7   •  •  *- 


#** 

PRINCETON,  N.  J.                           jf. 

Presented 

Division  ..  ..O.O.i•^^.   r  '■^'  ^-^ 

) 


//''/.  KifAv/nt/i . 


Fn»m rAron//f/M/wl/urf.h/sim  fra/Z^nf/rficnf/^. 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1868,  by 

UNITKD  STATES  PUIiMSHING  CO., 
la  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 


A   PREFACE 

IMPORTANT  TO  BE  READ  BEFORE  GOING  FORWARD. 

The  author  of  this  book  has  not  been  deterred  from  his  work  by  tht 
flippant  remarks  occasionally  made  in  regard  to  writing  a  Life  of  Jesus, 
as  if  it  were  a  semi-profane  attempt  to  improve  upon  the  EvangeKsts. 
Those  who  make  such  suggestions  ought  neither  to  preach  sermons 
nor  write  pastoral  lettei-s,  lest  they  be  suspected  of  an  ambition  to 
"  improve"  upon  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  or  the  Epistles  of  Paul. 

The  law  which  an  author  sets  to  himself  in  the  composition  of  a  book 
must  be  known  before  proper  criticism  can  begin.  If  this  volume,  or 
any  portion  of  it,  be  judged  as  if  I  had  attempted  a  Life  of  Christ,  the 
most  gi'ievous  misajiprehension  of  the  volume  and  its  axithor  may  be 
made.  It  is  no  more  such  a  book  than  it  is  a  vokmie  of  sermons  or 
of  poems.  It  carefully  abstains  from  being  a  Life  of  Christ.  A  Life 
of  Christ  necessarily  starts  with  the  assumption  that  Jesus  was  Christ. 
It  must  be  dogmatic,  and  can  be  useful  mainly  to  Chi'istians.  I  have 
assumed  no  such  thing.  Nor  have  I  assumed  in  this  book  that  the 
original  biographers,  the  four  Evangelists  and  Paul,  were  inspired.  I 
simply  assume  that  their  books  are  as  trustworthy  as  those  of  Herodo- 
tus and  Xenojjhon,  of  Tacitus  and  Cajsar.  They  write  about  the  man 
Jesus,  who  was  the  son  of  Mary.  They  preserve  Memorabilia  of  his 
acts  and  words.  I  deal  with  these  evangelic  biogi-aphers  as  I  would 
with  those  classic  authors.  I  strive  to  make  a  harmonious  narrative 
from  their  records,  and  to  ascertain  what  was  the  consciousness  of  Jesus 
as  he  performed  each  act  and  spoke  each  word,  according  to  the  laws 
of  thought  so  far  as  they  are  known  to  me.  This  book  must  not  be 
judged  from  any  theologic  stand-point.  If  my  views  of  theology  are  of 
any  importance,  they  must  be  sought  in  my  Sermons,  not  here. 


» \  PREFACE. 

There  will  be  foiind  in  this  book  a  new  translation  of  the  sayings  of 
Jesus.  The  ordinary  rule  in  such  cases  is,  not  to  make  a  literal  render- 
ing of  eacli  word  by  its  synonym  in  the  tongue  into  which  it  is  trans- 
ferred, but,  to  represent  the  idioms  of  one  language  by  those  of  another. 
I  have  departed  from  that  canon,  because  all  who  read  this  bf)t)k  will 
have  in  their  hands  the  Common  Vei-sion,  which,  generally,  does  that 
work  for  them.  The  translations  here  furnished  differ  from  those  in  the 
Common  Version,  in  being  usually  almost  strictly  literal,  and  they  have 
been  purposely  made  so,  that  such  of  my  readers  as  are  unacquainted 
with  the  original  may  have  an  opportunity  to  compare  a  literal  with 
an  idiomatic  version.  My  renderings  from  the  Greek  must  be  jiulged 
by  scholars  in  the  light  of  this  statement. 

The  lang\iage  employed  by  Jesus  was  what  is  called  the  Palestinian 
Aramaic,  which  is  also  called  Hebrew  by  early  ecclesiastical  writers,  ac- 
cording to  Papias,  Irenseus,  Oi'igen,  Eusebius,  and  Jerome.  Matthew's 
Gospel  was  ^\Titten  in  that  language.  Matthew  may  have  written  also 
the  Greek  version  of  liis  own  Gospel.  Tlie  books  of  Mark,  and 
Luke,  and  John  were  written  in  Greek,  a  language  which  it  is  prob- 
able Jesus  sometimes  employed.  The  autographs  of  these  four  books 
are  supposed  to  have  perished,  and  so  probably  have  all  the  copies 
made  in  the  first  three  centuries.  In  addition  to  the  \isual  causes 
for  the  disappearance  of  books,  we  may  mention  in  this  case  the  tho- 
rough manner  in  which  were  executed  the  decrees  of  Diocletian  in  the 
beginning  of  the  fourth  century  (February,  A.D.  303)  for  the  destruction 
of  all  thf  sacred  books  of  the  Christians,  for  the  purpose  of  extirj^ating 
"  the  superstition,"  as  he  called  it.  Notwithstanding  the  severe  j)cnal- 
ties  which  impelled  every  magistrate  to  execute  those  decrees,-  some 
copies  escaped  the  flames. 

'i'he  Diocletian  persecution  closed  a.d.  313.  Constantine,  the  first 
Christian  Emperor,  ascended  the  throne  A.D.  324.  In  A.D.  328  he  re- 
called Eusebius,  who  had  been  banished,  and,  in  a  letter  which  Eusebius 
quotes  in  his  Life  of  Constantine,  the  Emperor  directed  him  to  cause 
"fifty  copies  of  the  Sacred  Scrijitures  to  be  wi-itten  on  prepared  parch- 
ment, in  a  legible  manner,  and  in  a  ooniniodious  and  portable  form,  by 
transcribers  thoroughly  jiractiscd  in  the  art."  The  completion  of  tliis 
work   Constantine  acknowledged  in  a  subsequent  letter  to  Eusebius. 


rilEFACE.  V 

One  of  tliose  co})ies,  or  perhaps  the  oldest  copy  of  one  of  them,  is  the 
property  of  the  Emperor  of  Russia.  It  is  called  the  Codex  Sintiiticus, 
because  found  in  a  convent  on  Mount  Sinai,  by  Tischendorf,  a  learned' 
German.  That  copy,  being  the  oldest  extant,  is  the  basis  of  my  transla- 
tion. Whenever,  therefore,  the  reader  finds  any  of  the  words  of  Jesus 
in  this  book  different  from  those  in  the  common  version,  he  wall  under- 
stand that  he  is  carried  nearer  to  the  fountain-head  of  the  Jesus-literature. 

The  difference  in  the  characteristics  of  the  four  authors,  commonly 
called  Tlie  Evangelists,  is  worthy  of  note.  Matthew  was  a  practical 
man  of  business  ;  Mark  was  an  lesthetic  observer ;  Luke  had  a  scientific 
bias,  and  John  was  devoutly  metaphysical.  We  are  permitted  to  see 
Jesus  as  he  presented  himself  to  four  such  students  of  his  acts  and  ehar- 
acter.  Our  skill  is  to  be  exercised  in  combining  their  impressions.  It 
is  a  great  advantage  to  have  a  svibject  placed  in  so  many  different  lights 

Jesus  was  the  Founder  of  a  Faith.  He  lived  centuries  ago.  The 
most  diverse  claims  have  been  made  for  his  person  and  his  teachings. 
Almost  every  saying  of  his  has  become  the  basis  of  a  dogma.  It  ■will 
not  be  wonderful,  then,  that  historians  come  upon  actions  and  utterances 
of  his  which  involve  difficulties.  Some  of  these  are  still  difficulties  to 
me.  In  such  cases  I  have  frankly  said,  "  I  do  not  understand  this." 
So  would  it  be,  I  think,  with  any  other  honest  student  and  fair  wi'iter. 
By  this  candor  I  cannot  lose  the  esteem  of  those  whose  esteem  is  worth 
haviiig.  But,  I  have  not  avoided  the  hard  places.  Timid  readers  may 
wish  I  had.  Wherever  there  seemed  to  me  to  be  an  explanation,  I  have 
given  it.  It  may  satisfy  some.  It  may  lead  others  to  discover  what  is 
more  satisfactoiy  to  themselves.  In  no  case,  I  believe,  will  unlearned 
readers  of  good  sense  be  perplexed,  and  in  no  case,  I  trust,  will  scholars 
be  scandalized. 

Tliere  has  been  no  ambition  to  appear  learned.  To  those  who  are  not 
acquainted  ^vith  the  languages  in  which  the  EvangeKsts  wi-ote,  or  the 
languages  in  which  learned  men  have  commented  on  these  works,  I  have 
endeavored  to  make  the  way  plain  by  all  needed  helps.  Nor  has  there 
been  an  ambition  of  originality.  WTierever  I  have  used  the  labors  of 
others  I  have  given  credit,  so  far  as  I  recollect.  If  any  failure  on  this 
point  has  occurred,  it  has  been  through  inadvertence.  To  repair  that, 
and  to  send  students  to  the  sources  of  my  own  stream  of  information. 


VI  PEEFACE. 

I  have  supplied  a  list  of  the  books  used  iu  the  preparation  of  this  vol- 
ume. I  have  read  up  in  the  literature  of  the  subject  as  well  as  I  could. 
Several  impoi-tant  works  appeared  after  the  most  of  my  manuscript 
had  been  written,  among  which  should  be  mentioned  "  Jesus :  His  Life 
and  "Works,"  by  Chancellor  Crosby  of  this  city,  and  the  series  of  elo- 
quent sermons  called  "  The  Life  of  Christ,"  by  Dr.  Hanna  of  Edinburgh. 
Tlie  former  is  scholarly,  the  latter  dogmatic.  Each  has  its  place  of  use- 
fulness. So  it  will  be  found  of  every  attempt  in  this  line  of  thought. 
So  long  as  people  will  buy  and  read  works  on  Jesus,  why  should  they 
not  be  \sTitten  ?  There  is  no  more  intex-esting  field  either  for  critical 
investigation  or  for  devout  contemplation.  That  there  are  already  so 
many  lives  of  Jesus  will  never  be  a  reason  to  forbear,  to  any  man  who 
thinks  he  can  write  what  others  will  read. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  Dr.  Crosby's  book  has  almost  the  title  of 
mine.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Fumess  has  recently  published  a  work  bearing 
the  identical  title.  Yet  my  publishers  obtained  a  copyright  for  the  sim- 
ple title  of  this  book  before  either  of  those  others  appeared  or  were 
kno^^'n  to  be  in  i)rocess  of  preparation.  I  shall  not,  however,  sue  for 
damages  I    Three  books  could  scarcely  be  more  different. 

All  writers  on  this  subject  have  difficulty  with  the  chronology.  In 
this  book  the  terminal  points  of  bii-th  and  death,  I  think,  are  trustwor- 
thy, especially  the  latter ;  but  many  of  the  incidents  in  the  life  have  been 
arranged  in  an  order  which  I  have  seen  reason  to  change  several  times. 
The  result  of  my  investigation  is  the  conviction  that  it  is  not  now  in 
the  power  of  human  skill  to  arrange  a  harmony  of  the  facts  in  this 
biograpliy,  whicli  shoidd  be  positively  asserted  to  be  the  precise  order  in 
which  they  occurred.  Here  and  there  are  some  that  we  know  preceded 
one  the  other.  There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  order  of  the  Baptu^m, 
the  Temptation,  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  the  Transfiguration,  etc.,  but 
minor  incidents  puzzle  every  chronologer.  The  groupings  iu  this  book, 
OS  it  goes  to  the  printer,  are  the  last  result  of  my  most  careful  study, 
and  have  been  adopted  in  no  instance  simply  for  picturesque  effect. 

And  that  roniinds  me  to  speak  of  the  "  illustrations."  I  have  no 
objection  to  what  will  a.ssist  to  cxjtlain  a  matter  of  fact ;  but  as  tliis  i.s 
an  honest  book,  nttt  written  for  sensational  results,  I  have  refused  al)so- 
lutely  to  have  any  picture  in  the  book  that  was  not  taken  on  the  spot, 


PKEFACE.  VU 

or  that  was  not  an  exact  likeness  of  what  it  proposed  to  represent.  It 
seems  to  me  to  be  in  bad  taste  to  insert  in  the  seiious  biography  of  a 
great  dead  man  fantastic  pictures  from  painters  who  never  visited  the 
scenes  among  which  he  figured. 

I  leam  there  is  to  be  one  excej)tion.  The  pubKshers  inform  me  that 
they  intend  to  engi-ave  and  insert  a  head  of  Jesus.  If  they  choose 
to  make  a  present  to  their  purchasers  of  a  fancy  sketch,  and  if  my  read- 
ers are  willing  to  accept  it  as  a  work  of  art,  I  have  nothing  to  say.  I 
shall  not  object.  My  taste  and  judgment,  however,  must  not  be  held 
responsible  for  any  such  picture.  There  is  no  evidence  that  Jesus  ever 
sat  for  his  portrait.  If  he  ever  did,  there  is  no  certified  copy  extant.  Mr. 
A.  L.  Rawson,  a  traveller  and  artist,  in  whom  both  the  publishers  and 
the  author  have  confidence,  has  had  charge  of  the  whole  department  of 
illustrating  this  book,  and  his  maps  and  pictures,  in  my  judgment,  add 
greatly  to  its  value. 

It  is  a  pleasure  to  be  able  to  pay  even  part  of  a  debt  of  kindness,  in 
saying  that  I  owe  very  mtich  to  the  Mercantile  Library  of  this  city,  and 
to  its  officers,  especially  to  Mr.  F.  H.  Houston,  who  was  the  Librarian 
when  I  began  this  work,  and  to  his  siiccessor,  the  present  Librarian, 
Mr.  A.  M.  Palmer,  and  to  all  the  assistants  of  those  two  gentlemen. 
Tlie  aid  they  have  rendered  me  has  greatly  eni-iched  that  excellent  col- 
lection and  done  much  for  future  workers,  wliile  putting  me  in  debt  for 
manifold  courtesies  I  can  never  wholly  repay. 

In  the  preparation  of  these  pages  I  am  sure  that  there  has  been  no  am- 
bition of  novelty  ;  but  I  have  not  been  afraid  of  new  things,  nor  has  any 
opinion  commended  itself  to  me  because  it  was  old.  Oh  the  other  hand, 
novelty  has  been  no  recommendation  and  antiquity  no  disparagement. 
I  have  sought  to  know  the  truth.  When  I  believed  I  had  found  it,  I 
^v^ote  it,  and  now  publish  it  without  stopping  to  inquire  whether  these 
honest  opinions  will  please  or  displease,  or  whether  they  put  Jesus  at  an 
Advantage  or  a  disadvantage.  In  this  I  have  sought  to  imitate  the  spirit 
and  style  of  the  Evangelists.  A  man  would  be  sadly  stupid  who  should 
spend  some  years  on  a  subject  which,  more  than  any  other,  has  engrossed 
the  stiidy  of  thoughtful  men,  without  improving  the  opinions  he  formed 
in  earlier  life  on  less  investigation.  The  preparation  of  this  book  haa 
been,  to  me,  its  own  "  exceeding  great  reward." 


Vlll  PREFACE. 

As  far  as  practicable,  I  have  laid  aside  all  dogmatic  prepossessions 
But  in  writing  this  book  I  have  been  preparing  a  Memoir  of  my  Dear- 
est Friend,  and  if,  for  that  Friend's  sake,  and  in  the  spirit  of  that 
Friend,  I  have  dealt  snih  all  the  records  most  honestly,  it  is  also  fair  to 
state  that  I  have  treated  them  with  the  reverence  of  manly  love ;  and, 
whatever  may  be  the  final  decision  of  my  readers,  I  conclude  this  work 
with  a  love  for  Jesus  deeper  and  better  than  that  which  I  feel  for  any 
other  man  dead  or  li^'ing. 

I  have  a  final  request.  Wben  my  readers  shall  have  read  the  whole 
book,  and  have  attempted  to  answer  the  closing  question  on  the  710th 
page,  they  will  do  themselves  and  me  a  favor  if  they  will  return  to  this 
page  and  answer  tliis  question  : — 

If  such  a  case  can  be  made  out  by  a  rational  examination  of  the 
Four  Evangelists,  on  the  ground  that  their  memoirs  are  merely 

nU.MAN    IN    ALL    RESPECTS,   WHO    IS    JeSUS,  ON    THE    FURTHER  SUPPOSITION 
THAT    THOSE    MEMOIRS    ARE    DIVINELY    INSPIRED    RECORDS? 

My  own  belief  is  that  they  are  inspired.  That  belief  receives  fresh 
confirmation  from  every  examination  of  these  books.  On  this  grave 
subject  I  would  not  have  myself  misunderstood.  It  is  because  I  am  so 
thoroughly  satisfied  in  my  belief  in  the  inspiration  of  these  records 
that  I  have  felt  so  safe  in  resting  the  argument  of  this  volume  on  a 
basis  which  does  not  include  that  high  claim. 

Charles  F.  Deems 


OBAVB.  or  TBM  "CBTTRCn  OF  THB  STRANOERa," 

4  Winthrap  FUoe,  New  York,  Christmoi),  lOTl. 


CONTENTS. 


PAET  I. 

THE  BIRTH  AND  CHILDHOOD  OF  JESUS. 

[lYom  B.C.  6  to  A.D.  8.     Thirteen  years  and  a  AaJ/l] 

CHAPTER  I. 

PBELIMINAIfX  EVENTS, 

The  birth  ol  John  Baptist  annovinccd,  15. — Mary  and  her  genealogy,  17. — The  birth  of  Jesus  aiv 
noiinced,  19. — Mary's  visit  to  Elizabeth,  20. — Bii-th  of  John,  21. — John's  early  life,  22. 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE   BIRTH   OF   JESUS :      ITS   DATE. 

Joseph's  dream,  2.3. — Jesns  bom,  2^3. — Examination  of  the  chronology,  23. — Probable  date,  28. — 
Another  mode  of  approximation,  28. — From  the  death  of  Herod,  29. — From  the  astronomical  cal- 
culation, 3U. — From  the  slaying  of  the  Bothlehemite  infants,  .30. — From  the  taxing,  or  census,  31. 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE   PLACE   OF  THE   BIBTH  :     THE   CIRCUMCISION. 

Bethlehem,  36. — Site  never  lost,  37. — The  caravanserai,  40. — Vision  of  angels  by  shepherds,  40. — Jesua 
circumcised,  41. — Simeon,  41. — Anna,  42. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

HIS   FIRST  TEARS. 

The  Magi :  who  and  whence,  43. — Thoy  find  Jesus,  40. — They  elude  Herod,  47. — Joseph  dreams  again, 
47. — The  Might  into  EgyiJt,  47. — Herod  massacres  the  babes  of  Bethlehem,  48. — The  return  from 
Egypt,  49. — N'a/.iircth,  tlu-  home  of  Jesns,  50. — Jesu.s,  at  twelve  years  of  age,  in  the  Temple,  61. — 
Missed  and  found,  52. — His  life  in  Nazareth,  54. 

CHAPTER  V. 

STATE   OF   PUBLIC   AFFAIRS  DURING  THE    CHILDHOOD   AND    YOUTH   OP  JESUS. 

JuDiEA.  Heroil  the  Great.  .5(1. — Family  of  Horod,  5(). — His  will,  58. — His  funeral,  58. — ArchelaiLS,  68. 
— Troubles  in  st^ttling  the  succession,  58. — .'^abinus,  59. — Varus,  GO. — Archelaus  confirmed,  60. — 
The  p^H.-udi)-Alcxander,  (51. — Cyreuius,  (i2. — Therevolt  under  J\i(la-s,  (i2. — ilenahem,  iti. — Coponius, 
()3. — The  Samaritans  ];ollutc  the  Temple,  63. — Pontius  Pilute  outrages  the  Jews,  64. — Tacitus  and 
Josepluis  spi-ak  of  Jesus,  65. 

Galilkk.  HiTod  Anti|)as,  (15. — In  love  with  Herodias,  66. — Quarrels  with  Pilate,  66. — Heroiliaa,  66. 
— Charucter  of  Herod  Antipas,  67. 

The  Church.     'I'he  High-priesthood,  67. — Caiaphas  and  Annas,  67. — The  Sanhedrim,  68. 

The  Sects.     The  Pharisees,  71. — The  Sadducees,  71. — The  Essenes,  72. — The  Herodiaus,  72. 


PART  II. 


mTRODUCTION  OF  JESUS  TO  HIS  PUBLIC  MINISTRY. 

[From  A.D.  26  to  A.D.  27.     About  one  t/ear.] 

CHAPTER  I. 

JOHN'S  PREACHING  AND  MINISTRY. 

"The  Baptist"  opens  the  vmy  for  Jesus,  73.— Elijah,  73.— John's  consecration,  74. — His  mini.-rtTy,  7b. 
— SubsUmcc  of  his  discourses  :  Repcntjiiice,  77. — Against  formulism  and  scepticism,  78. — Aji- 
nouiuvd  a  coming  kingdom,  79. — Announces  the  presence  of  the  ruler,  80. — His  baptism,  80. — His 
miniiilry  not  pcrmanuuUy  effective,  82. 

CHAPTER  II. 

JESUS  DESIGNATED   AT   HIS  BAPTISM  BY  JOHN. 

Jesus  co'T'cs  to  be  bapti/.ed  by  John,  84. — Wliy  Jesus  was  baptized,  84. — Certain  mistakes,  84. — John's 
previous  acipi.-iijitunce  with  Jomis,  8*!. — .lohti  dccliues  to  baptize  Jesus,  87. — Momentous  crisis,  87. 
— The  descending  dove,  88. — John  and  Jesus,  88. — John  the  dLscoverer  of  Jesus,  88. — A  voice,  89. 


X  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  TEMPTATION. 

Aooounta  by  Ifntthew,  Mark,  and  Luke,  91.— Place  of  the  temiitation,  92.— F.xp1anatOT7  theorica,  99l 
—Sense  of  lii«  humanity  in  Jckuk,  '.t5.— Excitement  of  Jesus  at  his  baptism,  96.— The  collapse,  'M. 
— His  niirrative  (riven  humanly,  98. 

Batan,  08.— liii-ji  of  Satan  not  pr(pi)fit<rou.s  i>8.— Rational  probabilities  of  the  exlrtence  of  Satan,  99, 
100.— Satan  of  Jesus  not  Jewish,  100.— The  Jewish  idea  not  Persian,  100.— The  Satjin  of  Job,  lOL 
—Of  David,  101.— Of  the  Chronicles,  101.— Of  Zechariah,  101.— What  Jesus  believed  about  th« 
temptation,  102. 

First  U-mptation,  "  the  lust  of  the  flesh,"  10.3.— Second  temptation,  "the  lust  of  the  eye,"  m3.— Third 
temptation,  "  the  pride  of  life."  104.— Assault  on  the  Messiah  Bide  of  Jesus,  105.— Satan's  admis- 
sion, 105. 

Ministry  of  anfrels,  KM).- Anpels  the  highest  creatures,  106.— Their  power,  107.- Their  activity,  107. 
-Their  intclliK'enoe,  KIT.— Their  holiness,  lOS.— Their  numbers,  108.— Agents  of  God,  109.— "Tho 
Angel  of  Jehovah,"  109. — The  angels  minister  to  Jesus,  111. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE   FIRST  DISCIPLES. 

Committee  from  the  Pnnhodrim,  112.— John's  testimony  to  Jesns,  112.— "The  Lamb  of  God,"  113.— 
First  nvo  disciples,  11.3.— Andrew  and  John,  114.— Simon  (Peter),  11-1.- Philip,  115.— Natliaiiael, 
115.— "The  Son  of  Man,"  118.— The  son  of  David,  119.— Bartholomew,  119. 

CHAPTER  V. 

IN   CANA  AND   CAPERNAUM. 

Cans  of  Galilee,  120.— The  first  miracle,  120.— The  most  memorable  wedding,  121.— The  mother  of 
JcBua,  122.— The  watcr-pota,  12:^.— The  miracle,  124.— The  lesson,  125.- AvisittoCapcmaum,  125. 

PART  III. 

FROM  THE  FIRST  TO  THE  SECOND  PASSOVER  IN  THE  PUBLIC  LIFE  OF  JESUS. 
[One  year:  proUibly  from  April,  A.J).  27,  to  Aprtt,  AD.  28.1 

CHAPTER  I. 

CLEANSING   THE   TEMPLE. 

The  brokers  cxijcllcd  by  Jesus,  127.— His  authority  demanded,  127.— Reply  of  Jesms,  128.— The  Tem- 
ple, 128.— I'ainful  national  recollections,  129.— Retort  of  the  Jews,  130.— The  nation  shocked,  130. 
—The  resurrection-thought,  181.— An  Appeal,  131.— Jesus  had  no  "policy,"  132. 

CHAPTER  II. 

NICODEMTTS. 

Nicodcmus,  133.— His  address,  1.34.— Its  caution,  135.— Reply  of  Jesus,  1.35.— Mcaninp  of  that  reply, 
i:j«._"The  Kingdom  of  God,"  i:^8.— Nicodcmuss  reply,  138.— Response  of  Jesus,  139.— "Spirit" 
and  "wind,"  14U.  — Suri>risc  of  Nicodemiui,  141.— Jesus  claims  pre-existence,  14a.—Another  lofty 
claim,  14-3. — Two  great  doctrine.s,  14.3. 

CHAPTER  nL 

FllOM  SXI\>X.K  TO  BAMARIA. 

John  and  the  disciples  of  Jesus  baptizing.  145.— John's  self  conquest,  146.— His  last  testimony  for  Je«^^ 
147._Miuh:eniis  14H.— H.-roil  imprisons  John,  148.— Jesus  returns  to  Galilee,  149.— Sheohom, 
14U._Ori>rin  of  the  Samariums,  LW.— Hatred  between  Jews  and  Samaritans,  151.— Jacob's  well, 
152.— Samaritan  woman  at  the  well,  153.— A  strange  promise,  154.— The  won\nn  attempU  con- 
troversy, 155.— Reply  of  Jesu^  156.  -lie  declares  himself  the  .Messiah,  157 —Return  of  the  diaci- 
plea,  167.— Arrivals  from  the  city,  158.— Samaritan  id&is  of  the  Messiah,  168. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

ntOM   SAMARIA   TO   OALIT.EE. 

/osus  begins  to  preach,  160.— Ilonls  the  nobleman's  s<m.  161.- In  Nazareth,  162.— The  (lJ•nagogn^ 
162— Its  Intlucnne,  16.3.— Its  ofllcers,  16.'(.— lu  service,  KM.— Jesus  remls  from  Iwiiah,  ll*>5.— H« 
•hrx-ks  their  p^•ju(lioc^  165.— H<!  is  driven  from  Niixnn-th,  166.— Make.iCai>emaum  his  ht-ndquar- 
U«rM,  167.— l)es«riptlon  of  Ca|MTnuum,  107.— Its  surrouuding,  169.— Jesus  preaches  from  a  boat, 
170.- Wonderful  draught  of  flshi^s,  170.— The  fishermen  follow  Jesus,  171. 

CHAPTER  V. 

DEMONIACS. 

The  man  with  Hie  unrlenn  lipirit,  172— nemonlncul  iMwnessloM*:  classical  anthoritie^  173.— Jewish 
opinion,  174.— The.VewT.-sUmfntwrilens  174— One  their)-,  with  its  rea.«>ns,  174.— The  opiiOKing 
theory,  with  iU  rcasoiiK,  176.— Most  pr.4>ablo  theory,  179— A  demoniac  cured  in  the  syuagc^fuo,  17» 


CONTENTS.  XI 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE   FIItST  TOUR  OF  GALILEE. 

Jesns  heals  Simon's  mother-in-law,  181.— Exhaustive  effects  on  Jesns,  182.— Jesns  travels  in  Galilee, 
ISi.— The  kr)rosy,  18.3.— Supi^wetl  to  be  inciu-able,  1S5.— Je.'ius  heals  a  leper,  lyti.— The  suffcret 
and  the  healer,  187.— Je.'^us  withdraws  from  the  public,  ISO.- Heals  a  paralytic,  L'<9— Importance 
of  a  woni,  190.- An  awful  claim,  190 Call  of  Matthew,  191.— ifatthew's  feast,  19->.— John's  dis- 
ciples object,  193 The  Old  and  the  New,  194.— lUustrations,  195.— Jesus  the  dividing  line  of  his- 
tory, 19C. 

PAET  lY. 

FEOM  THE   SECOND   XJNTIL  THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  IN  THE  PUBLIC   inXISTHY 

OF    JESUS. 
[From  A.D.  28  to  A.D.  29.     One  pear.] 

CHAPTER  I. 

THE   SABBATH   QUESTION. 

The  House  of  Outponrins,  198.— The  impotent  man,  20O.— Cured  on  the  Sabbath,  200.— The  Sabbath 
before  Moses,  201.— The  Sabbath  in  the  Decalogrue,  202.— Its  lessons,  20.3.— Pharisaic  exactions, 
204.— Jesus  never  broke  the  Sabbath  law,  205.— His  reply  to  accusations,  206.— Remarkable  dis- 
course, 2U6. — Jesus  no  egotist,  209. — The  battle  begun,  210. 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE   SABBATH   QUESTION   AGAIN. 

The  disciples  in  the  grain-field,  211 — The  example  of  David,  211. — Example  of  the  priests  212. — 
Key  to  the  Sabbath-idea,  213. — The  battle  continued,  213.— Question  of  healing  on  the  Sabbath, 
213. — ^A  counter-question,  214. — An  ad  hovmiem  question,  215. — The  cure  of  the  \vithcred  hand, 
•215. — The  Herodians,  216.— Crowds  follow  Jesus,  216.— A  movable  pulpit,  217. 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE   TWELVE. 

A  crisis,  218.— Selection  of  the  twelve,  210.— Simon  I.,  or  Peter,  219.— Andrew.  221.— James  I.,  222.— 
John,  223.— Philip,  225.— Nathanael,  226.— Levi,  or  Matlhow,  227.— Thomas,  227.— James  II., 
22S.— Judas  I.,  2.30.— Simon  II.,  231.— Judas  II.  (Iscariot),  232.— "  The  Twelve,"  235.— Why  this 
number,  235.— Their  order,  236.— Types,  237.— Nothing  of  the  "church"  idea  239. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  SERMON  ON  TBE  MOUNT. 

Place  of  delivery,  241.— Reports  by  Jtatthew  and  Luke.  242.— The  time,  245.— The  Text:  Character, 
245. — The  Beatitudes:  Elemejils  «f  U>fUj  character,  248. — The  poor  in  spirit,  248.— Those  who 
mourn,  251. — The  nioi'k,  '2.52. — Those  wlio  hunger  and  thirst  for  righteousness,  254.— ^The  merci- 
ful, 255. — The  pure  in  heart,  256. — The  po.ace-niakers,  258 The  persecuted,  2.59. — The  reviled, 

260. — ValuQ,  of  a  lofty  character,  2()1. — Jesus  the  completer  of  the  law,  263. — Refutation  op 
Pharisaic  errors,  266. — Of  murder.  266. — Of  adultery,  271. — Of  divorce,  272.— Of  perjury, 
273. — Of  revenge.  274. — Love  and  hatred,  277. — Directions  for  the  discharge  of  duty,  280. 
—Alms-giving.  281.— Prayer,  282.—"  The  Lord's  Prayer,"  284.- Forgiveness,  292.— Fasting,  293.— 
Warnings:  Against  covetousness,  291. — Against  double-niindednos.s,  294. — Against  excessive 
anxiety,  295. — Against  harsh  judgments,  299. — Against  doubting  G-od,  301. — Against  the  broad 
way,  :301.— Against  hypocrisy,  303. — Conclusion:  Tlie  Hafe  foundation  of  cliaracter,  .304. — The 
manner  of  Jesus,  305. 

CHAPTER  V. 

IN  CAPERNAUM  AND  NAIN. 

The  centurion's  servant,  307. — The  centurion's  humility,  .308. — Jesus  aomircshim,  308. — The  servant 
healed,  .309. — In  Nain,  309. — Jesus  raises  the  dead,  310. — John  hears  of  the  works  of  Jesus,  312. — 
His  mes.sage  to  Jesus  and  reply,  312. — Defence  of  John  by  Jesus,  313. — Relative  estimate  of  John, 
314. — Both  John  and  Jesus  rejected,  315. — Jesus  dines  with  a  Pharisee  and  is  anointed  by  a 
woman,  317. — The  delicacy  of  Jesus,  318. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  second  tour   of  GALILEE   AND  RETURN  TO  CAPERNAUM. 

A.ccompanied  by  women,  320.— Magdala.  .320. — Ifary  Jlagdalene,  321. — Her  devotion  to  Jcsua,  322. — 
The  most  beautiful  of  loves,  .323. — Capematim,  324. — The  blind  and  dumb  demoniac,  :W4. — Phari- 
saic conspirators,  325. — The  charge  that  Jesus  has  a  demon.  325. — The  reply  of  Jesu-s  326. — Ha 
is  more  powerful  than  Satan,  326. — Blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  327. — The  sign  of  Jonah, 
331. — A  woman's  compliment,  :i33. — Mary  and  her  sons,  .3:W. — Jesus  eats  ^ith  a  Pharisee  and 
denounces  Pharisaism,  :i34. — A  "law\-er,"  .3:^5. — Warning  against  hjT)ocrisy,  337. — Parable  of  tho 
rich  fool,  337.— One  of  Pilate's  outrages,  341.— Parable  of  the  fig-tree,  34:J. 


XU  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

A  CHAPTER  OF  rAHABLES. 

Parable  of  the  Bower,  345.— Of  the  tares,  .340.— Of  the  i>atient  fanner,  346.— Of  the  mnstjird-wwl,  S4Q 
— Of  the  leaven,  347. — Explicntii>n  of  the  jMimble  of  the  sower,  349. — Of  the  jMiticnt  fiirnuT.  355 
— Of  the  iiiUKtarii-secd,  •i6o. — Of  tlie  leaven,  367. — Siuiilitudes,  357. — The  treasure  iii  the  lield, 
357.— The  pearl-buyer,  358.— The  drug-uet,  36'J. 

CHATTEIl  VIII. 

A   CBAFTER   OF   MIRACLES. 

Jesus  hart  no  politics,  .S61.— A  political  follower,  3fil.— A  hnrd  siiyinp,  .?02.— Its  diflficjiUT,  ?^1.— Iti 
lesKon,  •'Ifi.'). — Anuttier  lofwon,  ''M. — Stonn  on  the  lake,  3()4. — Jesas  stills  the  storm,  .',00. — Ciiulara, 
8C6. — The  ileinoniiic,  3(»7. — The  swine,  ."JCiS. — In  Ciipenianm,  370. — Jiiirns  371. — The  woman  with 
the  lK'morrha).'e,  .';71. — Is  heale<l  in  touching  Jesus,  371. — Death  of  Jaints's  daughter,  •jiii. — Jemu 
restores  the  (laughter  of  Juims  to  life,  37.3. — Two  hlinil  men  restorwl,  375. — Jesus  cures  a  dumb  do- 
mouiao,  375. — In  Nazareth,  377. — Again  rejected  by  his  own  people,  377. 

CHAPTEU  IX 

THE   THIRD  TOUR  OF   OALILKE   AND   RETURN   TO   CAPERJfAtTM. 

In  Gaince,  .379. — A  missionary  movement,  379. — Address  of  Jcfnis,  .3S0. — The  route  of  the  twelve,  381. 
—The  homealtur,  •iiSi. — A  warning,  3^'2. — A  consulutiim,  SSI — The  gos|)el  to  be  a  dis<-rimination, 
884. — A  frightful  figure,  .385. — A  great  Bt<'p  forward,  .■iK5. — John  Baptist  beheade*!,  ;^h5. — Herod 
hears  of  Jesus,  :iiHt. — Heturn  of  the  twelve,  3t><i. — Miraculous  feeding  of  five  thuusand.  3^8. — 
Btorm  on  the  lake,  3!IU. — Ji'sus  walking  on  the  waters,  .391. — I'rogressiveness  of  Jesus,  392. — In- 
tcnst-  excitement,  39;'. — The  breud-se<'kei's,  394. — They  demand  a  sign,  395. — Jesus  again  offends 
the  rhariseca,  396. — Their  puzzle,  397. — Jesus  pifts  his  followers,  398. 

PART  Y. 

FROM  THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  ENSUING  FEAST  OP  TABERNACLES. 

[From  April  to  October,  A.D.  29.     Six  moiUhn.] 

CHAPTER  I. 

UNSETTLED. 

Tradition,  399.— Jesns  rebukes  the  Pharisees,  400.— What  defllea  a  man,  401.— In  Phoenicia,  402.— 
The  S>Ti>I'h(i'nician  woman,  403. — Jesus  appreciates  holy  wit,  406. — The  Decn|iolis,  4(H). — Cure 
of  the  (leaf  stammerer,  408. — Healing,  409.  — J-'eiiling  of  four  thousand,  409. — Dalnianuthn,  410. — 
A  sign  ilernanded,  411. — Addri^ssed  to  weather-prophets,  412. — The  leaven  of  the  Pharisees,  413. — 
Bethsaida,  413. 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE  OBEAT  CONFESSION. 

(Vefwrcn  Philippl,  41.5.— Another  crisis,  41.5.— Not  struck  root,  41fi.—Peter'8  solemn  confession,  417. — 
Jesus  ree«Mve«  Messianic  homage,  417.— Address  of  Jesus  to  Peter,  418.— The  word  "church,"  420. 
— His  "congregation,"  420. — The  iwwer  of  the  keys,  421. — Jesus  controls  history,  423. — He  pre- 
dicts his  resurrection,  424.— Rebukes  Peter,  424. — Address  to  his  disciples,  426. — Its  meaning,  426. 

CHAPTEU  III. 

THE     TRANSKIOITRATION. 

Afloonnt  by  the  Evangellsfii,  427.— WTiy  Elijah  must  first  come,  408.- Site  of  the  transflgnration,  428. 
— I'cter's  conjecture,  42*.(. — The  voice,  429.  — liulueiux!  on  the  iliscii)le«,  4-30. — A  |>crplc.\ity,  ■VVd. — 
AnothiT  periJlexity,  4;J0. — Region  of  Cicsarea  Philippi,  431. — The  demoniac  boy,  432. — Jesus  hcali 
him,433. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

LAST   DAYS  IN   GALILEE. 

Throngh  Northern  Oulilep,  4"5.— The  Temple  Uix,  4.'!0.— A  miracle  of  knowledge,  4.'!7.— Mewdanic 
hoiM-s,  4.'!.s.— The  nile  of  pn-<-e<lcn(x',  4.'!S.— John's  frank  conf<-ssion,  4-39.— Schism,  440.— "If  two 
agn-e,"  411.— Idea  of  a  true  chun-h,  442.— Parable  of  the  unmerciful  servant,  442.— The  mission 
of  the  Seventy,  444.— Inhospitable  Samaritan  village,  446. 

PATIT  VI. 

FROM  THE  FEAST  OP  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  PASSOVER  WEEK. 

{From  October.  A.D.  29,  <«  Ajiril,  A.D.  30.    SU  MoiUA*.] 

CHAl-TEIl  I. 

AT  THE    PRAIIT   OF   TADERNACLEA. 

rhc  Peart  of  Tntiemaclcfl;  447.— Evening  servliv,  41.''.— Supplemental  festival,  440.— JoniRnt  the  feast, 
449.— His  defuiudve  ipooch,  450. — Uu  attacks  his  euendes,  451.— Asserta  his  heavenly  origin,  462, 


CONTENTS.  XI 11 

—An  alarming  speech,  453.— The  prreat  day  of  the  fea«t,  454.— The  fountain  of  Siloara,  4&1.— 
They  cannot  arrest  Jesus,  455. — In  the  treasury,  456. — The  woman  taken  in  adultery,  45G. — 
Caught  in  their  own  trjip,  457. — Conflict  of  Jesus  with  his  enemie.s,  457.— Jesus  more  deeply  in- 
cense.s  his  enemies,  4C0. — Jesus  charged  with  having  a  demon,  401. — His  reply,  403. — Jesus  befora 
Abraham,  402. 

CHAPTER  II. 

THE   FEAST   OF  DEDICATION. 

Near  Jericho,  40;3.— Parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan,  404. — From  Jerusalem  to  Jericho,  465. — Bethany: 
Mary  iind  JIartha,  400.- Reply  of  Jesus  to  Martha,  467.— The  blind  man,  40!).- Existenre  of  evil, 
409.— The  ancient  pagan  idi^-v  470.— The  Hebrew  idea,  470. — "Who  did  sin  ?"  471. — AVTiat  Jesus 
thought  of  it,  472.— Manner  of  the  healing,  473.— Healed  on  the  Sal)bath,  473.— The  patient  and 
his  parents  examined,  474. — Jesus  meets  him,  477. — Discourse  of  the  shepherd  and  the  sheep,  478. 
— Division  among  his  enemies,  479.— A  challenge,  4S0.— Exalted  claims,  480. 

CHAPTER  III. 

IN  PEBEA. 

Bethany,  east  of  Jordan,  482.— Jesua  visits  the  place  of  his  baptism,  482. — The  dropsical  man,  484. — 
Parable  of  the  Great  Supiier,  4S5. — Terms  of  diseiplesliip,  4S0.— Parable  of  the  Lost  Sheep,  487. — 
Of  the  Lost  Coin,  487.— Of  the  I'rodigal  Son,  487.- Of  the  Unjust  Steward,  489.— Meaning  of  the 
parable,  480.— Parable  of  the  Rich  Man  and  Lazarus.  491.— I'l-ayers  to  saints.  493.— Of  offences 
and  forgiveness.  494. — A  prayer  for  faith,  494. — Sickness  and  death  of  Lazarus,  495. — Devotion 
of  Thom;vs,  497. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

JESUS   ON   niS  LAST   CIRCUIT. 

Bethany,  near  Jerusalem,  498. — Jesus  claims  to  be  The  Resurrection,  500.— Mary  and  Jesus,  501. — 
The  grief  of  Jesus,  502. — At  the  grave,  503. — Lazanis  raised  from  the  dead,  504. — The  Suuhedrim, 
505.— Acknowledge  his  miracles,  51)5. — Reject  him  as  Messiah,  506.— Caiaphas,  5U0.— His  prophecy, 
507.— Ephron,  507.— Ten  lepers  healed,  509.— The  Pivoi/.tia  of  the  Son  of  Man,  511.— Parable  of 
the  Unjust  Judge,  512.- Its  lesson,  513.— Despondency  of  Jesu.s,  514. — Parable  of  the  Pharisee  and 
Publican,  514. — Final  departure  fiom  Galilee,  516. — Divorce,  516. — Mosaic  law  of  divorce,  517. — 
Tnie  law  of  divorce,  520. 

CHAPTER  V. 

GOING   TO  JERUSALEM. 

Jesus  blcs-ses  little  children,  523.— The  rich  ruler,  524.—"  Who  can  be  saved  ?  "  527.— The  PaUn^/enenia, 
528.— Parable  of  the  laborers,  528.— The  lesson,  530.— A  third  warning,  .530.— The  ambitious 
brothers,  532.— The  blind  men.  ,533.— Blind  Bartim;Eus  healed,  535.— Jericho.  536.— Zacchieus,  537. 
-His  conversion,  5oS.— Parjible  of  the  pounds,  539. — Bethany  :  House  of  Lazarus,  541. — Crowds 
fiock  to  see  Jesus,  542.— His  last  Sabbath,  542. 

PAET  YII. 

THE  LAST  WEEK. 

[From  April  2  to  April  8,  A.D.  30.] 

CHAPTER  I. 

THE    FIRST    DAY. 

Palm-Sunday,  543.— Jesua  riding,  544.— Great  excitement,  545.— "The  church"  frightened,  546.— 
In  sight  of  Jerusalem,  517.— Jesus  aimstrophizes  Jerus.alem,  548.— Entering  the  city  and  the 
Temple,  548.— Greeks  seek  him,  549.— The  JiaC/i-Kol,  550.— What  was  it?  551.— Jesus  knew  it,  552. 

CHAPTER  IL 

THE    SECOND    DAT. 

The  barren  fig-tree  CTtrsed,  6.54. — Trouble  in  the  narrative.  555. — A  gresit  lesson.  .556. — A  grand  truth. 
557. — The  second  cleaubing  of  the  Temple,  557.— Fine  discriminations,  558. — Aji  act  of  mercy, 
&58. 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE   THIRD   DAT. 

"By  what  authority?"  561.— A  counter-dilemma,  562.- Puzzled  priests,  563.— Parable  of  the  Two 
Sons,  504.— Parable  of  the  Wicked  Husbandmen,  .504.— Parable  of  the  Marriage  of  the  King's  Sou, 
665. — Withoiit  the  wedding-garment,  5<i7.— Conspiracy.  508.— Attempt  to  ensnare  Jesus,  569.— 
An  adroit  question.  570. — The  net  t«)m,  571. — A  profound  les.son,  .571. — Question  bv  thr  Sadducees, 
573.— Reply  of  Jesus,  574.— Jesus  against  Pantheism,  574.— The  great  commandment  .576.— Tho 
reply  of  Jesus,  570.— David's  son  and  David's  Lord,  .578.— The  valedictory  to  the  Jews,  .579. — Con- 
trasted with  the  "  Sermon  on  the  Mount,"  .5bl. — Final  woe,  587.— Last  "times,  587.— The  heart  of 
Jesus  melts  588. — The  widow's  mite,  5^9.- Last  utterance  of  Jesus  in  the  Temple.  .589.— Parable 
of  the  Ten  Virgins,  693.— A  prophecy,  594.— Jerusalem  to  be  destroyed,  595.— Pseudo-Christs,  596. 
— General  judgment  of  mankind,  690. — Jesus  the  representative  of  humanity,  698.- Absence  ol 
dogmatism,  599. 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  FOtTRTH    DAT. 

DiRappolnted  taopeit,  GOO. — Fcart  in  Rlmon'K  hoiiM-,  600. — Mary  anoints  Jesus,  600. — Jndos  objects,  601. 
— Reply  of  Jcsno,  fiOl. — A  meeting  of  consjiirators  602. — The  capture  postponed,  6(S. — Jndascomct 
to  them,  603.— The  case  of  Judos,  603.— Fresh  examination,  604-611. 

CHAITER  V. 

THE   FIFTH    DAT. 

The  first  day  of  unleavened  bread,  613. — Preparationa  tor  the  Paschal  Supper,  614. — At  whose  house, 
614. — Becwecn  the  evenings,  615. 

CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  SIXTH   DAT. 

Seel.  The  SuppEB.  Jcsus's  opening  speech.  616. — Wa.shes  their  feet,  617. — Peter's  refusal,  617. — 
The  Icwon,  618. — Sad  prediction,  619. — Self-inspection.  619. — Judas  leaves,  620. — Peter  puzzled, 
620. — Consoling  words,  622. — Philip's  materialiian,  02:3. — Thaddcua  perplexed,  624. 

Bee  2.  The  Valedictohy  and  Last  Pbayeb.  The  Hallul,  024.— An  out  door  discourse,  625. — 
A  pauKC,  626. — Disciples  exjircss  iM-lief,  627. — The  last  prayer  with  the  disciples,  627. 

Bee.  3.  Gethsemane.  The  Kedron  valloy,  628. — In  the  parden,  6;j(). — Solitary  jirayer,  ftiO. — A  horror, 
6.30.— The  sweat  of  blood,  6:31. — The  betrayal,  Ml. — Jewish  criminal  law,  tW2. — I*rejudgment,  633 
— Ir^(■^^^lnritil•s,  (;.'3. — The  sitcnal,  6:54. — The  arrest,  t>;i4. — Peter's  zeal,  6:J5. — Forsaken,  K'A. 

Sec.  4.  The  Tkial,  (i.'jti.  Fresh  outrage,  6.'i('>. — Annas,  6^36. — Caiapha.s,  (>17. — Reply  of  Jesus,  0.'JJ<. — 
Peter,  (1'18. — His  denials,  (i;57-640. — Daybreak,  Ml. — False  witnesses,  641. — Jesusputou  oath,  (°hl2. 
— The  judge  in  a  rage,  ()4."}. — Inttn.<e  excitement,  644. 

Sec.  5.  I'lLATE.  The  Procurator,  644.— The  jin  aladil,  644.— To  Pilate,  645.— Play  of  passions,  64.'). 
— A  halt,  646.— Change  of  ground,  647. — In  the  prajtorium,  64S. — Jesus  replies  to  Pilau-,  (>49.— 
A  contract,  6.50. 

Sec  6.  llicitoD.  Herod  and  Jesus,  050. — Herod  and  Pilate,  651. — Jesus  sent  to  Herod,  651. — Jesua 
B|ice<-hle«.s,  6,52. 

Sec  7.  Back  to  1'ilate.  Pilate  and  the  Sanhedrim,  (')52.— The  people  against  Jesus,  65.?.  —  Barabbas 
654. — rilate's  wife's  dream,  (i.'Vt. — The  unstable  people,  (l.'i.'j. — Pilate  washes  his  hand.-,  6.50.— Jesu« 
scourged  ami  mocked,  ().5(). — Pilate  in  trouble,  Ii57.  —  "F.cce  Homol  "  657. — Pilate  seiks  to  release 
Jesu.s  (i5vS. — "  Ca'sar's  Friend,'"  659. — A  dying  nationalitj-,  660. — The  sentence,  660. 

Sec.  R  The  last  of  Judas.  His  hopes  and  fears,  6t'>0. — The  gi-onnd  gives  way.  661. — He  returns  to 
the  priests,  Wll . — They  regard  him  a  fool,  6<')2. — He  Hings  the  money  away,  662. — Putter's  Field.  GtH. 

Sec.  9.  GoiNO  TO  CALVAliy.  Bearing  the  cross,  66:1 — The  CjTenian,  66:3. — Form  of  the  cro.ss,  664.-  - 
Dau^litcrs  of  Jerusaliin,  664. — Jesus  prophesies,  JMiS. — Golgotha.  665. — The  sour  wine,  6«>6. 

Sec.  10.  I'uoM  Nine  o'clock  till  Noon.  Jesus  prays  for  his  tormentors,  6(i7. — The  seamless  gar- 
ment, 667. — The  e])igraph,  66«. — Cie.sar's  verdict,  66S.— Jesus  reviled,  669. — The  imi>enitent  thief, 
)i»>9.  — The  jKjnitent  thief,  670. — Jesus  accepts  him,  671. — Near  noon,  671. — His  mother.  (i72. 

Sec.  11.  Fnnsf  Noon  until  THREy;  o'clock.  Noon  and  darkness,  67:3. — The  cry,  674. — A  mys- 
terj-.  (>74. — The  Ught  retiuTis,  6T5. — Jesus  thirsts  and  die-s,  676. — An  earthquake,  616. — The  cen- 
turion, 676. 

Sec.  12.  FliOM  TuREE  O'CLOCK  UNTIL  EvF.NlNO.  A  ritualistic difflailty,  6n. — The  thieves  killed,  678. 
— The  si)e»ir-thruBt,  678.— Physical  causes  of  death  of  Jesus,  679. — What  wa.s  his  agony  ♦  683.— 
JoMcph  and  NitxHlcmus,  68-1. — Secret  disciples,  684.— In  a  garden,  685.— Love's  last  vigil,  685. 

PAET  YITT. 

RESURRECTION  OF  JESUS  AND  SUBSEQUENT  EVENTS. 
[Forlv  Days.    From  April  9  to  May  19,  A.D.  80.] 

J.  The  Sabbath  after  cniciftxion,  fi86.— The  sepulchre  gtiarded.  687.— Prepamtions  for  embalming, 
687.  — .\  vision  In  the  wpiilchro,  O.'J.'*.- A  mo.ssjige  t<i  Peter.  (iS."^. — John  and  Peter.  6s<.)._.Mar>-  of 
Magdalo  wes  Jevus  690.— Her  olH-dience,  6!K).— The  other  women.  691.— The  watch,  691.— The 
SanhiMlrim,  091.— The  conspiriicy,  6'.P2.— On  the  way  to  Emmaus,  69:3. — Jesus  reveals  himself,  695. 
—He  apiieam  to  Peter,  O'.h;.— Fir^t  a.-«embly  of  the  disciples,  6'.>7.— Jesus  in  their  mlilst,  697.— The 
Holy  Spirit,  698.— Absoliilion,  698. — Thomas  increilulous,  699. — The  sei-ond  a-tseinblage,  700. 

II.  The  AiH^tlcd  In  Galilee,  700.— Jesus  by  the  lake,  701.— Peter's  ordeal,  702.— A  prediction,  703.— 
J..hn,  7(W. 

HI.  Talxir.  704.— "Five  hundred  brethren  at  once,"  704.— Jesus  reappears,  70.5.— The  commission, 
705.— The  lart  n-c-<irde<l  word,  705. — Jesus's  concept  of  Goil,  706. — All  restrictions  removed,  7U6. 
—A  milvcrsjil  n-llgion,  7U7.— A  chiim  ond  a  prediction,  707.— The  fulfilment,  707. 

IV.  The  Ascension,  709. 

Apprndicm. 

Chronology  of  the  Birth  of  Jesus  711.— Capernaum,  711.— Addition  to  note  on  page  ISO,  711.— 
Hlave«  at  Jubil-o,  711. -Mary  of  M.igdala,  712.— A  translatl.m  cxplaine.1,  712.— l)i*lpliiie,  7Pi 
The  woman  tiik.  n  in  ii/hilUry,  7i:i.  — lt.thany=  Ilethabaro,  713.— TraaalaUon  of  Matthew  xxlv. 
10,  713.— PhyslaU  c«uhc  of  the  death  of  Jesus,  713. 

PxacaiPTioif  OF  IixuirraATioKa,  729. 


JE  SXJ  S. 


PART    I. 
THE   BIETH   AND    CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 

FROM  B.C.  6  TO  A.D.  8— ABOUT  THIBTKEN  TEAKS  AND  A  HALF. 


CHAPTER   I. 


PKELmiNART   EVENTS. 


Lsr  the  reign  of  Herod  the  Great,  in  Judea,  lived  Zacharias  and 
Elizabeth.  They  were  of  priestly  descent  and  of  great  age,  were 
childless  and  without  hope  of  cliildren.  Their 
lives  had  been  blameless.  Their  family,  their 
employment,  and  their  character  gave  them  an  air  of  sanctity. 
Zacharias  was  of  the  course  of  Abia,  being  the  eighth  of  the 
twenty-four  courses  established  by  Da^dd.     (1  Chron.  xxiv.  10.) 

One  day,  in  the  order  of  his  course,  according  to  the  custom 
of  the  priest's  office,  his  lot  was  to  burn  incense  when  he  went 
into  the  temple  of  Jehovah.  Wliile  engaged  in  this  solemn  act, 
he  beheld  an  apparition  standing  on  the  right  side  of  the  altar  of 
incense.  The  sight  troubled  Zacharias.  Luke  says  it  was  an 
angel,  and  that  Zacharias  was  told  by  the  angel  that  his  name 
was  Gabriel.     This  is  the  name  of  the  man  whom  Daniel  had 


IG 


THE   BIETn   AND    CHILDnOOD    OF   JESUS. 


seen  in  a  vision,  and  from  whom  he  learned  the  time  when  the 
Messiah  should  appear.      (Daniel  ix.  21-23.     Gabriel  =  Man  oJ 
God.)     Gabriel  predicted  to  Zacharias  that  Eliza- 
Birth  of  John    \yQi\^  should  bear  a  son,  whose  name  should  be 
called  John  (in  Hebrew,  Jehoanan,  meaning  the 
gift  of  Jehovah,  equiValent  to  Theodore) ;  that  he  sliould  drink 
neither  wine  nor  strong  drink  (Xumbei-s  vi.  1-21),  but  that  he 
should  be  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  have  the  power  and 
office  of  Elias,  namely,  to  go  before  the  Lord  and  turn  the  hearts 
of  the  fathers  to  the  children,  and  to  make  the  people  ready  for 
the  Lord,  as  Malachi  had  predicted  in  the  last  words  of  the  Old 
Testament.     Zacharias,  being  incredulous,  asked  a  sign  of  Gabriel. 
It  was  given.     lie  was  to  be  dumb  until  the  birth  of  his  child. 

While  this  was  going  on,  the  whole  congregation — at  this  time 
unusually  large — were  silently  praying  in  the  outer  court.  The 
people  wondered  at  the  tarrying  of  Zacharias.  Wlien  he  camo 
forth  he  could  not  speak.  From  his  solenm  manner  and  speech- 
lessness the  people  concluded  that  he  had  seen  a  vision.  They 
were  then  in  expectation  of  the  Messiah. 

Zacharias  finished  his  week's  work  and  departed  to  his  own 
house,  which  was  probably  in  Hebron,  or  Juttah.  There  Eliza- 
beth conceived,  and  hid  herself  five  months,  saying,  "  Thus  hath 
Jehovah  dealt  with  me,  in  the  days  wherein  He  looked  on  me,  to 
take  away  my  reproach  among  men."  As  a  Deliverer  was  always 
looked  for,  the  highest  desire  of  a  Hebrew  bride,  in  the  line  of 
David,  was  to  become  a  mother — if  perhaps  it  might  be,  mother  of 
tlie  great  Expected  King.  Barrenness,  therefore,  was  a  reproach. 
Wliile  Elizabeth  was  quietly  awaiting  her  time  in  the  hill  coun- 
try of  Judea,  another  wonder  occurred  in  the  obscure  little  city 
of  Nazareth,  in  the  heart  of  Galilee  of  the  Gen- 
tiles, far  from  the  splendid  temple  where  Zacha- 
rias had  beheld  his  vision.  In  that  remote  place  dwelt  a  simple 
Hebrew  maiden,  whose  name  was  Mary.  She  was  poor.  Her 
society  was  that  of  the  common  work-people.  She  was  betrothed 
to  a  kinsman,  a  carpenter,*  named  Joseph.     But  royal  blood  ran 


Mary. 


*  The  word  translated  "carpenter" 
means  any  worker  in  wood,  builder  of 
houRCH  or  of  shipfl,  or  maker  of  wooden 
furniture.  We  know  that  Joseph  was 
not  a  ship-builder.     It  is  not  probable 


that  he  was  a  house-builder,  because  of 
the  scarcity  of  wood  and  the  custom  of 
building  stone  houses.  lie  was  probably 
a  maker  or  mender  of  furniture.  It  haa 
been  suggested  that  ho  was  an  architect. 


PEELIMINAKY    EVENTS.  17 

through  her  veins,  and  the  gifted  King  David  was  her  ancestor. 
So  great,  however,  had  been  the  decline  of  her  people,  that  even 
the  race  of  Jewish  kings  had  failed  to  keep  so  accurate  an  account 
of  their  genealogy  as  to  save  historians  from  great  per|3lexity. 

Two  tables  of  genealogy  have  been  preserved — one  in  the  bio- 
graphical sketch  by  Matthew,  and  another  in  that  by  Luke.     It  is 
noticed  that  both  trace  the   descent  of  Joseph 
rather  than  of  Mary,  for  whom  it  is  specially        ^°^''^*^?yo 
necessary  to  make  a  descent  from  Da\id,  seeing 
that  her  wonderful  Son  is  reputed  to  have  had  no  earthly  father. 
But  if  Mary  was  the  daughter  of  Jacob,  as  has  been  supposed, 
she  was  the  first  cousin  of  Jt^seph,  so  that  a  table  of  his  genealogy 
is  in  fact,  if  not  in  form,  a  table  of  Mary's. 

These  two  tables  present  very  grave  difficulties,  but  not  per- 
haps insurmountable.  Matthew  says  that  Joseph  was  the  son  of 
Jacob  ;  Luke  says  that  he  was  the  son  of  Ileli.  The  former  pre- 
serves the  genealogy  of  Joseph  as  legal  successor  to  the  throne  of 
David,  the  latter  \{\^  jprivate  genealogy^  showing  his  real  birth  as  a 
descendant  of  David.  Jac(jb  and  Ileli  might  both  have  been  sous 
of  Matthan,  who  was  thus  grandfather  to  both  Joseph  and  Mary. 
Jacob  might  have  been  Mary's  father,  as  was  generally  supposed, 
and  Ileli  Joseph's  father.  Or,  Mary  might  have  been  Matthan's 
granddaughter  by  her  mother,  whose  name  has  not  been  pre- 
served. This  latter  is  asserted  to  have  been  the  fact  by  Ilippo- 
lytus  of  Thebes,  in  the  lOtli  century  ;  but  his  statement  prol:>al)ly 
rested  upon  tradition,  the  value  of  which  we  cannot  now  ascertain. 
But  if  it  were  true,  then  Jacob  might  i-cally  have  had  no  son,  and 
Matthew  gave  his  name  as  Matthan's  eldest  son,  because  Matthew 
was  making  a  list  of  successive  heirs  to  the  throne^  not  of  succes- 
sive progenitors,  the  latter  being  the  work  of  Luke. 

If  we  compare  Luke's  personal  table  with  Matthe^v's  official 
table  of  genealogy,  we  find  that  the  lineal  descent  was  broken  in 
Jechonias  (Matt.  i.  12),  who  could  not  have  becTi  literally  the 
father  of  Salathiel,  as  he  is  declared  childless  in  Jeremiah  xxii. 
30.  It  is  clear  from  this  that  Matthew  could  have  been  irivins 
only  the  names  of  the  heirs  to  the  throne.  And  this  simple  ex- 
planation, if  applied  to  Matthew's  table,  according  to  the  Jewish 
law  in  Numbers  xxvii.  8-11,  may  go  far  towards  clearing  up  diffi- 
culties. Even  if,  with  Dean  Alford,  we  take  the  ground  that  the 
difficulties  created  by  the  two  tables  cannot  be  solved  without 
2 


18 


THE   BIRTH    AND   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 


Other  evidences. 


knowled"-e  wliich  we  do  not  possess,  it  would  not  be  positive  proof 
ai^ainst  the  general  conclusion  which  the  tables  undertake  to 
reach,  namely,  that  Jesus  was  a  descendant  of  David,  because  the 
writers  :nav  have  had  knowledge  which  we  do  not  possess, — or 
there  may  ha\"e  crept  some  clerical  erroi-s  into  the  text,  which  do 
not  vitiate  the  general  line. 

If  even  the  tables  wei-e  abandoned,  there  still  remain  such  ev- 
idences as  these :  (1).  The  nearly  contemporaneous  biographies  of 
Jesus,  all  indeed  upon  which  we  base  our  knowl- 
edge of  him,  speak  of  him  as  the  "  Son  of  Da- 
vid." He  was  repeatedly  addressed  as  such,  and  never  declined 
the  title.  Unless  we  accept  it,  we  are  obliged  to  consider  Jesus 
an  arrant  impostor.  There  can  be  no  middle  ground.  So  great 
a  man  could  never,  without  being  a  very  bad  man,  be  party  to 
what  the  gifted  M.  Renan  mischievously  calls  "  innocent  frauds^'' 
a  solecism  in  language  and  a  contradiction  in  thought.*  (2).  Paul 
was  a  scrupulous  Pharisee.  He  knew  where  to  find  the  records 
and  how  to  satisfy  himself.  In  2  Tim.  ii.  8  he  speaks  positively 
of  "  Jesus  Christ  of  the  seed  of  David,"  'f»  (r-rtpy.xToi  Axjiii. 
(3).  "  The  Emperor  Domitian  was  at  fii-st  uneasy  at  this  illus- 
trious descent,  which  might  lend  itself  to  ambitious  or  seditious 
views,  but  was  reassured  on  seeing  the  horny  hands  of  these 
children  of  a  king,  become  common  artisans."  (De  Pressense's 
"Jesus  Christ,"  book  ii.) 


*  il.  Renan  denies  the  existence  of 
the  family  of  David,  on  such  slender 
grounds  as  the  following  question  indi- 
cates :  '*  If  the  family  of  David  still 
formed  a  distinct  and  well-known  group, 
how  liappcns  it  that  we  never  see  it 
figuring  by  the  side  of  the  Sadokites, 
the  Boethuses,  the  Asmoneans,  or  the 
Herodn.  in  the  great  struggles  of  the 
times?"  (Life  of  Jesus,  ch.  XV.)  That  is 
verj'  goo<l  for  a  poet,  but  very  poor  for  a 
historian.  A  question  may  be  answered 
by  a  question ;  Does  not  M.  Renan 
know  that  at  this  very  moment  there 
are  delapsed  families  of  royal  blood  liv- 
ing in  Iv.iropc,  who  are  not  "  figimng  b}' 
the  side  "  of  the  IJonapartes  or  the  IJis- 
marcks,  "  in  the  groat  struggles  of  t/ir.^ie 
times  "  ?    He  says  the  Asmoneans  never 


claimed  descent  from  David.  Is  that 
an  argument  ?  Because  people  who  do 
not  belong  to  a  certain  family  make  no 
claim  to  the  relationship,  is  that  a  proof 
that  another  man's  claim  is  fal.'^e  ?  lie 
admits  that  Jesus  seemed  to  take  pleas- 
ure in  the  name  of  the  "  Son  of  David," 
' '  for  he  performed  most  graciously  those 
miracles  which  v^ere  sought  of  him  in 
this  name. "  And  to  verify  this  M.  Re- 
nan cites  several  passages  in  Matthew, 
Mark,  and  Luke  !  Is  it  not  suriiri-xing 
that  any  man  can  be  in  such  a  moral 
state  as  to  write  a  glowing,  almost  ador- 
ing, poetical  romance  of  one  whom  he 
begins  by  representing  as  a  sneaking 
impostor?  In  that  view  the  "  Vie  do 
Jesus "  is  the  mnut  remarkable  moral 
phenomenon  in  mudcra  literature. 


PEELUnNARY   EVENTS. 


19 


The  simple  maiden  Mary  was  residing  in  Nazareth,  a  small 
town  among  the  hills  which  constitute  the  south  ridges  of  Leba- 
non. Tlie  historians  give  her  no  worship,  no  idealizing,  no  halo. 
They  describe  her  as  a  quiet  soul,  looking  and  longing  for  the 
salvation  of  her  nation.  Her  becoming  a  mother  was  supernatu- 
ral, in  the  sense  of  a  loftier  class  of  influences  bearing  down  upon 
that  world  we  call  "  the  natural,"  by  which  we  can  reasonably 
mean  only  so  much  of  the  chain  of  cause  and  effect  as  we  discern. 
It  is  as  unphilosophical  to  deny  supernature  as  to  deny  nature. 
In  writing  history  we  must  follow  our  best  authorities,  and  how- 
ever unsatisfactory  they  may  be,  they  will  always  be  our  best  until 
better  be  found.  In  this  history  we  must  mainly  follow  the  writ- 
ers called  the  Evangelists.  If  they  set  forth  before  us  what 
Neander  calls  "the  divine  ideal  become  a  reahty,"  shall  we  throw 
away  this  finest  thing  because  it  is  so  fine  ? 

ElizabetJi  was  in  her  sixth  month  of  i-etirement,  when  Mary,  a 
virgin,  saw  an  angelic  apparition  in  the  city  of  Nazareth.  The  angel 
is  called  Gabriel  by  the  historians.  Perhaps  this 
is  the  name  he  gave  to  Mar}' 
interview  was  that  the  angel  said  to  her,  "  Hail, 
highh'^  favored !  The  Lord  is  with  you ;  and  blessed  are  you 
among  women  !  "  This  annunciation  troubled  the  simple  maiden, 
and  she  began  to  think  what  it  might  mean,  when  the  angel  spoke 
again  and  said,  "  Fear  not,  Mary :  for  you  have  found  favor  with 
God.  And,  see !  yoii  shall  conceive  and  bear  a  son,  and  you 
shall  call  his  name  Jesus.*  And  he  shall  be  great,  and  shall  be 
called  the  Son  of  the  Most  High.  And  the  Lord  God  shall  give 
him  the  throne  of  his  father  David,  and  he  shall  rule  the  house 
of  Jacob  through  the  ages,  and  of  his  kingdom  there  shall  be  no 
end." 

Knowing  herself  to  be  of  the  lineage  of  David,  she  had  no 
surprise  at  the  assumption  that  her  son  should  be  a  descendant 
of  the  great  kins:;  but  that  she  should  be  at  once  a  mother  and  a 
vii-gin  was  a  puzzle  to  her,  and  she  took  courage  to  say  as  much 
to  the  augel.  The  angelic  reply  was,  "  The  Holy  Spirit  shall 
come  upon  you,  and  the  power  of  the  Most  High  shall  invest  you 


TT  .      n  ji  Birth  of  Jesus 

Her  report  of  the    announced. 


*  Jesus  =  JosJiua  =  a  Sa\'iour.  Joshua 
was  a  common  name  at  that  time,  and 
the  reason  for  its  bestowment  upon  this 


Child  of  Miracle  is  given  in  Matt.  i.  21, 
because  he  should  "save  his  people 
from  their  sins." 


20 


TIIE    BIRTH    AND    CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 


like  a  cloud,  in  order  tliat  the  holy  thiii^  shall  be  called  the  !^<in 
of  God.  And,  belu^ld,  Elizabeth,  your  relative,  even  she  is  }»re2:- 
nant  with  a  son  in  her  old  age,  and  this  is  the  sixth  month  to 
her  called  barren :  for  nothinf]^  is  impossible  with  God."  Mai'V 
was  as  devout  as  she  was  modest,  and  she  said  to  the  angel, 
"  Behold,  I  am  tlie  servant  of  the  Lord  1  Let  it  be  to  me 
according  to  your  word."  And  the  angel  left  her,  and  she 
patiently  awaited  all  the  terrible  misapprehensions  and  ])erils  to 
which  this  honor  God  was  about  to  give  her  would  certainly  ex- 
pose her. 

Very  shortly  after  this  Mart  paid  a  visit  to  her  cousin  Eliza- 
beth, in  the  "Highlands"  of  Judea,  to  congratulate  that  relative 
upon  the  prospective  joys  of  maternity,  and  per- 
Elizabeth  haps  to  receive  counsel  for  her  own  behavior  in 

her  peculiar  circumstances.  She  entered  the 
house  of  Zacharias,  and  upon  the  delightful  surprise  caused  by 
her  salutation  Elizabeth  felt  the  fii*st  life-movement  oi  her  o\vn 
unborn  babe,  and  cried  out  with  joy,  "  Happy  are  you  among 
women,  and  happy  your  offspring !  And  whence  is  this  to  rae 
that  the  mother  of  my  Lord  should  come  to  me?  Forlo!  as 
soon  as  the  voice  of  your  salutation  sounded  in  my  ears,  the  babe 
leaped  within  me  for  joy.*  And  blessed  is  she  that  believed : 
for  there  shall  l)e  a  performance  of  those  things  that  were  told 
her  of  Jehovah! " 

Then  Mary,  as  if  by  sudden  inspiration,  uttered  that  glorious 
canticle  which  the  Christian  church  has  made  one  of  its  chief 
hymns  under  the  title  of  the  MiKjiiiJicat,  and  which  is  recorded 
in  Luke  i.  46-55. 

"My  soul  matjnifics  tho  Lord,  and  my  spirit  exults  in  God  my  Saviour;  for 

He  has  looked  un  the  low  condition  of  His  servant;  for,  behold,  from  this 

time  all   generations  shall   call  me   blessed,   because   thu 
Tlio  Magnlflcat. 

mij^hty  One  has  done  great  thinu^s  for  me,  and  holy  is  Ilia 

name;  and  Ilis  mercy  ia  to  generations  and  generations   of  them   that  fear 

Him.     lie  has  made  strong  His  ami;  He  has  scattered  the  j)roud  witli  tho 

thouglit  of  their  hearts;  He  has  brouglit  down  the  mighty  from  thrones,  and 

exalted  the  humble;  Ho  has  filled  the  hungry  with  goods,  and  sent  the  rich 


■  Phymcianfl   designate    thia    Hymp-  I  nomenon,  produced  by  rny  sudden  cnio 
torn  of  advanced  gestation  by  tlic  name  j  tion. 
of  "  quickening."     It  is  a  common  phe-  , 


PRELIMINARY    EVENTS. 


2] 


Birth  of  John. 


away  empty.     He  has  helped  Israel  his  servant,  and  remembered  his  mercy 
as  lie  said  to  our  fathers,  to  Abraham  and  his  posterity  forever,"  * 

After  this  Mary  stayed  with  Elizabeth  three  months,  until  just 
before  the  birth  of  John,  and  then  returned  to  her  own  home  in 
Nazareth. 

Elizabeth's  full  time  came,  and  she  was  the  mother  of  a  son. 
Her  relatives  and  neighbors  collected  to  congratulate  her.  On 
the  eighth  day,  according  to  Jewish  law,  the  child 
was  to  be  circumcised.  Some  near  relative  seems 
to  have  attem})ted  to  officiate  in  the  place  of  Zacharias,  who  was 
still  dumb.  He  gave  him  his  father's  name,  but  the  mother  inter- 
posed and  said,  "  No ;  but  he  shall  be  called  John,"  a  name  not 
belonging  to  her  husband's  family,  but  known  in  the  house  of 
Levi  and  among  the  Maccabcean  princes.  The  friends  remon- 
strated M^ith  Elizabeth,  and  appealed  to  Zacharias,  who  surprised 
the  company  by  writing  upon  his  tablets,  "  His  name  is  John," 
Immediately  his  dumbness  left  him,  and  he  broke  forth  into  a 
canticle,  which  the  Christian  church  has  since  preserved  under 
the  name  of  the  Benediotus. 


The  BesiedictUB. 


"Blessed  is  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel,  because  He  has  visited  and  redeemed 
His  people,  and  raised  up  a  horn  of  salvation  for  us  in  the  house  of  David 
His  servant,  as  He  said  by  the  mouth  of  His  holy  prophets 
from  of  old ;  a  salvation  from  our  enemies,  and  from  the 
hand  of  all  that  hate  us,  to  perform  His  mercy  with  our  fathers,  and  to  remem- 
ber His  holy  covenant,  the  oath  wliich  he  SAVore  to  A}»raham  our  father,  to 
grant  us  -without  fear,  being  delivered  from  the  hand  of  our  enemies,  to  serve 
Him  in  lioliness  and  righteousness  before  Him  all  our  days. 

"  And  you,  little  child,  shall  be  called  a  prophet  of  the  Most  High ;  for  you 
shall  go  before  the  face  of  the  Lord  to  prepare  His  ways,  to  give  a  knowledge 
of  salvation  to  His  people,  with  a  forgiveness  of  sins,  on  account  of  the  com- 
passionate mercies  of  our  God,  by  which  a  morning  from  on  high  has  visited 
us,  to  illuminate  those  sitting  in  darkness  and  the  shade  of  death,  to  direct 
our  feet  in  the  way  of  peace." 

The  extraordinary  circumstances  attending  the  birth  of  John 


*  We  shall  come  often  on  the  word 
translated  "forever."  In  our  English 
dictionaries  and  philosophical  books  we 
write  it  aon.  The  Greek  is  aiwv^  and 
signifies  a  life-time  of  anything — the 
Bpace  of  time  in  which  anything  exists. 
"  Through  the  ajon  "  means  while  that 


thing  or  that  state  of  affairs  exists. 
Here  it  means  as  long  as  the  posterity 
of  Abraham  exists.  It  does  not  involve 
the  idea  of  absolute  endlessness.  E'u 
Tov  aiMva  may  be  translated  ' '  perpetu- 
aUy." 


22 


THE   BIRTH   AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESF8. 


produced  a  profound  impression  upon  all  who  saw  and  heard. 

The  fame  of  these  things  spread  throughout  tliQ 

John  a     early    jj^,j^]  ^^^^  deepened  the  conviction  of  the  people 

history.  ,  ,     .  .  r 

that  their  nation  was  on  the  eve  or  great  events, 
and  quickened  their  hopes  of  speedy  deliverance  from  the  Roman 
yoke.  The  age  of  the  prophets  seemed  to  be  rolled  back.  Per- 
haps this  was  Elijah ;  he  might  even  be  the  Messiah.  And  thus 
the  very  birth  of  John  was  a  harbinger  of  Jesus. 

The  boy  grew  in  physical  and  mental  vigor,  in  virtue  and  moral 
energy.  As  he  approached  manhood  he  separated  himself  from 
his  worldly  countrymen  and  hid  himself  in  the  deserts  of  Judea, 
a  thinly  pet)pled  region  west  of  the  Dead  Sea,  where  he  gave 
himself  to  a  life  of  asceticism  and  religious  study  until  the  time 
of  his  entrance  upon  his  public  ministry. 


UtAW  AMD   FBUIT  Or  THK  CAUUtt.— "  UCMU." 


CHAPTEE    II. 


BIRTH    OF   JESUS  :     ITS    DATE. 


The  birth  of  Jesus  occurred  under  the  following  circumstances: 
Joseph,  to  whom  Mary  was  espoused,  was  a  devout  Jew.     lie 
knew  nothing  of  the   announcement  whicli  had 
been  made  to  her  by  the  angel.    After  her  return 
from  the  visit  to  Elizabeth  it  became  apparent  that  she  was  about 
to  become  a  mother.     Shocked  at  the  discovery,  Joseph  thought 
of  making  an    example  of  her.     But  his  love  was   not  wholly 
destroyed  by  her  supposed  misconduct,  and  he  was  minded  to  put 
her  away  privily,  which  was  a  milder  course,  as  it  saved  her  from 
the  shame  of  public  exposure.     Pondering  these  things  in  his 
troubled  and  affectionate  heart,  he  had  a  dream, 
in  which  the  angel  said,  "Joseph,  son  of  David,  '™' 

fear  not  to  take  unto  you  Mary,  your  wife ;  for  that  which  is  con- 
ceived in  her  is  of  the  Holy  Ghost;  and  she  shall  bring  forth  a 
son,  and  you  shall  call  his  name  Jesus,  for  he  shall  save  his  peo- 
ple from  their  sins."  Joseph  seems  to  have  been  addressed  by 
the  title,  "  Son  of  David,"  as  if  the  angel  would  assure  him  that 
though  he  came  of  royal  blood,  there  should  be  no  humiliation  to 
him  by  taking  Mary  to  wife. 

Joseph  rose  from  his  sleep  next  day  and  did  as  he  had  been 
bidden  in  the  dream,  taking  his  bride  to  his  own  home  and  await- 
ing the  unfolding  of  events. 

In  due  time  the  great  event  occurred.     Jesus  was  born. 

The  date  and  the  place  of  this  Great  Birth  are  important  and 
intimately  connected.     Bef(n-e  other  things  let  us  strive  to  settle, 
as  nearly  as  we  may,  the  question  of  the  tiine  of 
the  advent  of  Jesus  to  the  world.  Examination  of 

„  .       ,  ,  ^       1        ^       n     ^'^^  chronology. 

Can  we  ascertam  the  year,  the  month,  tlie  day « 
Christmas  has  been  celebrated  in  the  Latin  Cliurch,  as  the  anni- 
versary of  the  birth  of  Jesus,  on  the  25th  of  December,  and  the 
year  has  been  marked  as  the  75-ith  after  the  founding  of  the  city 


24 


THE   BIETIl    ANT)   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 


Examination  of 
the  year. 


of  Home.*  The  tradition  of  the  Latiu  Church  fii-st  appears  in 
the  writings  of  Augustine,  who  was  bom  a.d.  354,  too  late  to  make 
Uini  any  authority  on  such  a  question. 

It  is  now  well  ascertained  that  the  point  from  which  the  Christian 
Era  is  dated  is  several  years  later  than  the  actual 
birth  of  Christ.  lie  was  born  in  some  year  b.c, 
Before  Christ.  Let  the  reader  recollect  this. 
It  may  seem  anomalous  to  have  any  other  day  for  the  Chris- 
tian ei)()ch  than  the  very  day  on  which  Jesus  was  really  born  ; 
but  as  the  chronology  of  Christendom  had  gone  on  for  yeare 
before  thorough  investigation  was  made,  to  whatever  results 
they  lead  it  would  now  clearly  be  impracticable  to  rectify  the 
error.  The  confusion  caused  by  adding  the  years  and  months 
and  days  necessary  to  conform  the  first  of  January,  1S71,  for 
instance,  with  the  real  time  would  be  a  much  greater  inconveni- 
ence than  following  the  received  chronology,  especially  when  we 
shall  show  that  the  most  recent  researches  and  studies  exhibit  an 
eiTor  even  in  that  of  at  least  one  year,  and  probably  more.  And 
this  is  not  a  matter  affecting  any  man's  faith,  but  is  a  mere  ques- 
tion of  histoiical  inquiry.  If  even  it  could  be  shown  that  the 
evangelist  Luke  is  inexact,  his  want  of  exactness  is  easily 
exi)laiiu'd,  and  is  of  no  manner  of  importance  for  the  object 
which  he  had  in  view. 


In  Luke  iii.  1,  it  is  recorded  tliat  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  the 

reign  of  Tiberius  Caesar,  Pontius  Pilate  being  governor  of  Judasa, 

and  Herod  tetrai-ch   of  Galilee,  John    began  to 

,„.,  ^.°      ^^^^    preach,  and  tluit  at  that  X'wwe '■'■  Jesus  he(/<nt  to  he 
of  Tiberius.  »  '  „      t     i        •  •  •  hm 

(ihout  thirty  years  of  age.  Luke  in.  23.  I  he 
word  "about"  must  allude  to  something  less  than  one  year,  and 
refer  to  months  or  weeks.  The  "  fifteenth  year  of  the  reign  of 
Tiberius  Caesar"  is  now  to  be  fixed. 

Tiberius  Cicsar  was  admitted  to  joint  rule  by  Augustus  some 
time  before  that  emperor's  deatli,  at  which  time  Tiberius  became 
sole  emperor.  Does  Luke's  date  refer  to  his  associate  reign  or 
his  solitary  reign  ?     That  it  refere  to  the  former  is  showi  thus: 


•  According  to  Dionysius  ExiffunH.  in 
the  0th  century.  One  fact  bIiowh  that 
is  at  le.wt  four  years  too  late,  namely, 
that  Ilorod  died,  as  Josephns  shows  (An- 


Uqnitif^,  xviii.  9,  S  •',  '^vii.  8,  t-  4).  in 
u.c.  7r)0,  and  Jesus  was  born  before  the 
death  of  Uerod. 


BIRTH    OF   JESUS  :    ITS   DATE.  25 

(1.)  The  public  ministry  of  Jesus  must,  at  the  lowest  calcula- 
cioii,  have  covered  between  two  and  thi-ee  years,  as  not  less  than 
three^  and  probably  yjm/*,  Passovers  occurred.  (See  John  ii.  13  ; 
vi.  4;  xii.  1 ;  v.  1.)  It  may  have  occupied  more  than  tliree.  Let 
us  say  two,  of  M'hich  we  are  certain. 

(2.)  That  public  ministry  closed,  as  all  admit,  during  the  con- 
sulship of  the  two  Gemini,  and  that  is  fixed,  as  all  agree,  in  the 
fifteenth  year  after  the  death  of  Augustus.  Then  Jesus  could  not 
have  legun  liis  ministry  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  the  sole  reign  of 
Tiberius,  and  it  must  have  been  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  some 
other  reign,  that  is,  of  his  associate  reign. 

AVlien  did  that  associate  reis-n  bee^in  ? 

Comparing  Suetonius  with  Dio  Cassius,  it  appears  that  Tiberius 
returned  to  Rome,  triumphed,  and  dedicated  temples  in  the  consul- 
sliip  of  M.Emilius  Lepidus  andT.  Statilius  Taurus,*  in  the  month 
of  January.  It  would  seem  that  this  is  the  time  of  his  probable 
accession  to  joint  power  with  Augustus.  Indeed  Suetonius  says : 
'■'■Not  long  after  (the  dedication  of  the  temples)  a  law  being  pro- 
posed by  the  senate  that  he  (Tiberius)  should  administer  the 
government  of  the  provinces  in  common  with  Augustus,  he 
^  departed  into  Illyricum."  It  must  have  been,  at  longest,  only  a 
'few  weeks  after  Januar}'  of  this  year.  Let  us  sav  Felu'uarv. 
Now  the  consulship  of  M.  Emilius  Lepidus  and  T.  Statilius 
Taurus  Avas  in  the  third  year  before  the  death  of  Augustus. 
When  did  Augustus  die?  On  the  19th  of 
August,  in  the  year  in  which  Sextus  Appu-  ^^^  °  "^^' 
leius  and  Sextus  Pompeius  were  consuls.  What 
A.D.  was  that  ? 

From  some  ascertained  coincidence  of  an  event  in  s(Mne  con- 
sulship with  a  certain  year  in  our  era  modern  chronologers  have 
reckoned  back  and  arranged  the  consular  tables  so  that  we  have : 
A  D  161  \  ^*  ^^"'*  ^^'"^^^  Anton.  Caes.,  called  the  Philosoj^her, 
1  L.  yElius  Aur.  Verus  Ones.,  called  "  Commodus^'' 
In  copying  and  otherwise  it  seems  that  some  confusion  has  come 


*  Connilships  are  very  important  in 
these  investigations.  The  Romans  kept 
their  dates  by  consulships  as  we  do  by 
the  "Year  of  our  Lord."  The  preser- 
vation of  the  succession  of  consuls  was 
of  the  utmost  importance  in  their  chro- 


the  English  dated  everything  by  tho 
year  of  their  reigning  sovereign,  and  the 
Americans  by  the  year  of  their  Presi- 
dent. The  Fasti  among  the  Romans 
were  marbles  in  which  were  carved  this 
succession  of  consuls.      Fragments  of 


nology.     It  is  as  if  we  had  no  A.D.,  and  |  these  marbles  still  exist. 


A.D.  160 


26  THE   BIRTH    AXD   CniLDIlOOD   OF   JESUS. 

ill  at  this  point  of  the  chronohigical  calculation,  and  two  sets  oi 
consuls  have  been  shrunk  into  one  year.  The  authority  of  three 
lists  (those  of  Cassiodorus,  Victorius,  and  the  Paschal  Chronicle) 
makes  two  years,  while  that  of  one  list  (Idatius)  makes  one  year. 
It  is  safer  to  ft)llow  the  stronger  authority,  and  by  correcting  the 
mistakes  of  copyists,  the  consular  list  at  this  particular  period  is 
restored  thus : 

'  T.  El.  Aur.  AntoninVrS  "  Pius,"  Emperor  (who  died 

this  year),  and 
M.  El.  Aiwelius  Anton.,  the  Philosopher  (who  suc- 
ceeded him). 
I  M.  El.  Aurelius  Anton.,  the  Philosopher,  a,nd 
A.D.  161  I  j^  ^^^  ^j^^_  A^erus,  called  "  Commodus." 

It  will  be  perceived  that  this  pushes  back  all  the  other  consul- 
ships one  year,  so  that  those  for  160  must  be  placed  in  a.d.  159, 
and  so  all  the  way  back  through  the  list.  The  consulship  of 
Sextus  Ai)puleius  and  Sextus  Pompeius,  usually  entered  a.d.  14 
(Julian  Period  4727),  must  be  one  year  earlier. 

The  result  is  that  Augustus  died  on  the  19th  of  August,  a.d. 
13 :  *  the  associate  reign  of  Tiberius  began  three  yeai-s  before 
this,  namely,  a.d.  10,  in  February  :  in  the  fifteenth  year  of  that 
reign — between  February,  a.d.  24,  and  February,  a.d.  25 — Jesus 
reached  his  thirtieth  year.  This  is  marked,  because  it  was  the 
legal  time  of  entering  upon  the  Jewish  priesthood,  and  was  the 
age  at  which  Jesus  actually  began  his  public  ministry.  From 
that  date  deduct  thirty  years,  and  the  conclusion  is  reached  that 
Jesus  was  born  between  tlie  Februaries  of  the  yeai-s  6  and  7 
before  the  beginning  of  the  Vulgar  Era. 

Seeing  that  this  event  has  been  by  different  writers  assigned  to 
every  month  in  the  year,  can  we  ascertain  the  very  ihiyf  If  not, 
let  us  see  how  nearly  it  can  be  approximated.  The  Latin  Church 
has  kept  the  25th  of  December;  the  Greek  Church  originally 
observed  the  6th  of  January,  but  subsequently  came  over  to  the 
Latin  calendar.     Neither  date  has  any  conclusive  authority. 

According  to  Joscphus,  Jerusalem  was  taken  in  the  second  year 
of  the  reign  of  Vespasian,  on  the  Stli  day  of  Sep- 

Examination  of  ^^,,,^1^^^,  A.D.  70,  wliicli  was  ill  the  year  of  the 
month  and  day.       ^.^^  ^^^^  ^^3^  and  the  temple  was  destroyed  ou 

*  Be  careful  to  notice  that'  this   is  I  the  actual  birth  of  Jesus, 
the  Vulgar  Era,  not  an  era  dated  from  1 


BIRTH    OF   JESUS :    ITS   DATE. 


27 


the  4th  of  August.  According  to  the  Jewish  Mishna— compiled  in 
Palestine  toward  the  close  of  the  second  century— on  that  day 
the  first  sacerdotal  class  of  the  twenty-four  which  officiated  in 
rotation,  each  a  week  (1  Chron.  xxiv.,  and  Keheniiah  xii.),  entered 
upon  their  duties.  Computing  the  number  of  sacerdotal  cycles 
between  a.d.  70  and  b.c.  8,  we  ascertain  *  that  on  the  4th  day  of 
August,  B.C.  8,  there  were  nine  weeks  and  five  days  needed  to 
complete  the  cycle.  Add  these  to  4th  of  August  and  we  reach 
October  11  as  the  recommencement  of  the  cycle.  The  eighth  class, 
that  to  which,  according  to  Luke  i.  5,  Zacharias  belonged,  would 
enter  upon  duty  on  the  forty-ninth  day  after  October  11 ;  that 
is  November  29  (b.c.  8).  A  simple  arithmetical  calculation  shows 
that  Zacharias  must  have  been  serving  on  the  following  days: 

p,.c.9.   August        12iB.c.8..July  14 1  b.c.  7.  .May  16 

B.  c.  8 . .  January       27  |  b.  c.  8 .  .  November  29  I  b.  c.  7 .  .  October       31 

Add  to  these  dates  fourteen  months  and  twenty-two  days,  by 
which  allowance  is  made  of  seven  days  for  Zacharias's  ministry, 
five  months  and  fifteen  days  for  Elizabeth's  time  before  the  Annun- 
elation,  and  the  usual  period  of  nine  months  for  Mary's  time,  from 
the  Annunciation  to  the  birth  of  Jesus,  and  you  have  the  follow- 
ing  table : 

BC.  8.. November  3  I  b.c.  7 ..  October         6  1  B.C.  6.  .August  7 

B.C.  7 . .  April         1 8 1  B.C.  6 .  .  February     20  I  B.C.  5 . .  Januaiy         22 

These  six  dates  are  all  that  seem  possible  on  the  calculation  by 
the  courses  of  the  priests.  It  is  not  necessary  to  point  out  objec- 
tions to  any  single  date,  as  our  previous  calculations  have  shown 
that  it  must  have  been  b.c.  G.  Was  it  February  20  or  August  7? 
To  decide  between  these  dates  we  are  helped  by  the  statement  m 
Luke  ii.  8,  that  at  the  Nativity  "there  were  in  the  same  country 
shepherds  abiding  in  the  fields,  keeping  watch  over  their  flocks 
by  nio-ht."  Would  this  have  been  in  the  month  of  February  ?  In 
Buhle's  Economical  Calendar  of  Palestine  (it  may  be  found  as 
the  454th  of  the  fragments  in  the  4to  edition  of  Calmet),  which 
contains  a  very  satisfactory  account  of  the  weather  for  each 
month,  it  is  shown  that  February  is  rainy  and  snows  are  f  rccpicnt 

*  111  this  way  :  The  interval  between  1  divided  by  24,  gives  166  cycles,  with  9 

the  dates  is  77  years,  being  28,124  days,     weeks  and  5  days  over, 
being  4,017  weeks  and  5  days,  which,  1 


28  TJIK    HIKTIl    AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

in  tlie  southern  ])art.  It  was  not  a  month  for  sheplierds  to  be 
watching  their  flocks  at  night  in  the  open  air.  Nor  is  it  probable 
that  tlie  enrohnent  wliich  was  had  at  the  imperial  order  would 
have  been  assigned  to  so  distressing  a  portion  of  the  year,  nor 
that  Mary,  in  her  condition,  could  have  taken  this  journey  in 
February. 

The  1th  diiy  of  August,  b.c.  6  (a.u.c.  747),  is  the  nearest  approach 

we  can  make  to  the  date  of  the  birth  of  Jesus.     Within  a  fort- 

niglit  of  that  day  this  great  event  most  probably 

Jesus  bom  pro-    occurred. 

bably  a.u.c.   747,  -^  ,  .  ^  .       ■,  t    i  i      , 

jjc  (J  in  reaching  this  date  i  have  used  the  most 

direct  and  most  trustworthy  mode  of  calculation, 
and  yet  find  only  a  probable  conclusion,  after  having  read  an  im- 
mense amount  of  matter  on  this  question.  It  is  annoying  to  see 
learned  men  use  the  same  a])paratus  of  calculatii^n  and  reach  the 
most  diverse  results.*  It  is  bewildering  to  attempt  a  reconcilia- 
tion of  these  varying  calculations.  It  may  be  }>roj)cr  to  consider 
the  other  data  used  in  these  calculati(jns,  and  give  the  reader  the 
benefit  of  the  latest  investigations. 
It  is  recorded  in  Matthew  ii.  1-10: 

"  Now  wlu-n  Jesus  was  bom  in  Bethlehem  of  Judea  in  tlio  days  of  Ilerod  the 

king,  beliold,  there  came  -wise  men  from  the  east  to  Jerusalem,  saying,  "Wlicrc 

is  he  that  is  bom  King  of  the  Jews  ?  for  we  have  seen  his 

other  modes  of  ap-  . 

proxjmation  ^^'^'' '"  *"^  CA^it,  and  are  come  to  worship  him.     ^\^lcn  He- 

rod the  king  had  heard  these  things,  ho  was  troubled,  and 
all  Jemsalem  \Nith  him.  And  when  he  liad  gathered  all  the  chief  pricst.s  and 
scribes  of  the  peoi)le  together,  he  demanded  of  them  where  Christ  should  be 
bom.  And  they  said  unto  him,  In  Bethlehem  of  Judea:  for  thus  it  is  writti-n 
by  the  prophet.  And  thou  Bethlehem,  in  the  land  of  Juda.  art  not  the  least 
among  the  princes  of  Juda :  for  out  of  thee  shall  come  a  Qovemor,  that  shall 
rule  my  people  Israel.  Then  llerod,  when  he  had  jjiivily  called  the  wise 
men,  inquired  of  them  diligently  wliat  time  the  star  ajjjx'ared.  And  h(?  sent 
them  to  Bethlehem,  and  said.  Go  and  search  diligently  for  the  young  cliild; 
and  when  ye  have  found  him,  bring  me  word  again,  tli.it  I  may  come  and 
worshij)  him  also.  "When  they  had  heard  the  king,  they  departed ;  and,  lo, 
the  star,  which  they  saw  in  the  cast,  went  before  them,  till  it  came  and  stood 
over  where  the  young  child  was.  When  they  saw  the  star,  they  rejoiced  with 
exceeding  great  joy." 

•  For  example  :  the  birth  of  our  Lonl  I  and  Grcswcll ;  n.C.  5  by  Usher  and  Pe- 
ia  placed  in  n.c.  1  by  Pearson  and  IIup;  Itnvius;  n.C.  0  by  Strong,  Luviu,  and 
B.C.  2  by  Scaliger;  n.r.  ^  by  Raronius  '  Clark;  n.C.  7  by  Idclcr  and  Sancle- 
and  Paulus;   B.C.  4  by  Bengel,  Wicscler,  j  mcpto. 


BIRTH    OF   JESUS  :    ITS    DATE.  29 

"  The  data  in  tliis  passage  furnish  little  help  towards  precision, 
but  do  fix  the  exterior  limit  of  the  Nativity.  We  learn  from  it 
that  Christ  was  born  before  the  death  of  He- 
rod ^  and  Herod  died,  according  to  Josephus  ^  ^.t^° 
{Ant.  xvii.  8,  §  1),  'having  reigned  thirty- four 
years  from  the  time  that  he  had  procured  Antigonus  to  be  slain ; 
but  thirty-seven  from  the  time  he  had  been  declared  king  by  the 
Romans '  (see  also  B.  J.  i.  33,  §  8).  His  appointment  as  king, 
according  to  the  same  writer  {Ant.  xiv.  14,  §  5),  coincides  with 
the  184th  Ol^-mpiad,  and  the  consulship  of  C.  Domitius  Calvinu3 
and  C.  Asinius  Pollio.  It  appears  that  he  was  made  king  by  the 
joint  influence  of  Antony  and  Octavius ;  and  the  reconciliation 
of  these  two  men  took  place  on  the  death  of  Fulvia,  in  the  year 
714.  Again,  the  death  of  Antigonus  and  the  siege  of  Jerusalem, 
which  form  the  basis  of  calculation  for  the  thirty-four  years,  co- 
incide (Joseph.  A7it.  xiv.  16,  §  4)  with  the  consulship  of  M.  Vip- 
sanius  Agrippa  and  L.  Caninius  Gallus,  that  is,  with  the  year  of 
Rome  717 ;  and  occurred  in  the  month  Sivan  {=  June  or  July). 
From  these  facts  we  are  justified  in  placing  the  death  of  Herod 
in  A.u.c.  750.  Those  who  place  it  one  year  later  overlook  the 
mode  in  which  Josephus  reckons  Jewish  reigns.  Wieseler  shows 
by  several  passages  that  he  reckons  the  year  from  the  month 
Nisan  to  Nisan,  and  that  he  counts  the  fragment  of  a  year  at 
either  extreme  as  one  complete  year.  In  this  mode,  thirty-four 
years,  from  June  or  July,  717,  would  apply  to  any  date  between 
the  first  of  Nisan,  750,  and  the  first  of  Nisan,  751.  And  thirty- 
seven  years  from  714  would  apply  likewise  to  any  date  within  the 
same  termini.  Wieseler  finds  facts  confirmatory  of  this  in  the 
dates  of  the  reigns  of  Herod  Antipas  and  Archelaus  (see  his 
L'hronologische  Synojpse^  p.  55).  Between  these  two  dates 
Josephus  furnishes  means  for  a  more  exact  determination.  Just 
after  Herod's  death  the  Passover  occurred  (Nisan  15th),  and  upon 
Herod's  death  Archelaus  caused  a  seven-days'  mourning  to  be 
kept  for  him  {Ant.  xvii.  9,  §  3,  xvii.  8,  §  4) ;  so  that  it  would 
appear  that  Herod  died  somewhat  more  than  seven  days  before 
the  Passover  in  750,  and  therefore  in  the  first  few  days  of  the 
month  Nisan,  a.u.c.  750." — Smithes  Dictionary  (Hurd  &  Hough- 
ton's edition),  p.  1381). 

It  has  also  been  noticed  that  Josephus  mentions  {Ant.  xvii.  6, 
4  fin.)  an  eclipse  of  the  moon  not  long  before  the  death  of  He- 


30  TITK    RIRTII    AND    CHILDHOOD    OF   JESFS. 

rod,  ^vliich  by  calculation  can  liave  been  only  that  which  occurred 
on  tlie  ni^ht  between  j\Iarch  12  and  March  13,  a.u.c.  750,  Now, 
as  Jesus  was  born  before  the  death  of  Herod,  it  follows  that  the 
Dionysian  era,  which  corresponds  to  a.u.c.  754,  is  at  least  four 
yeai-s  too  late. 

But  tlie  question  arises,  How  long  before  Herod's  death  did  the 
Nativity  occur  ?  We  can  approximate  this  only  by  allowing  suffi- 
cient space  for  all  the  events  Avhich  are  recorded, 
calculations.  namely,  the   journey  of   the  AVise  Men  and  the 

sojourn  of  Joseph  and  Mary  in  Eg3'])t.  An  as- 
tronomical calculation  by  Kepler  found  a  conjunction  of  Jupiter 
and  Saturn,  in  the  sign  of  the  Pisces,  a.u.c.  747,  which  is  before 
the  vulgar  era  6,  the  date  I  assigned  to  the  Birth.  But  Kepler 
found  the  same  conjunction  again  in  the  spring  of  the  next  year, 
with  the  i)lanet  Mai-s  added,  and  from  this  would  place  the  Birth 
in  748.  But  Idelcr,  on  the  same  kind  of  calculation,  i)laces  it  in 
747.  Although  these  calculations  favor  the  date  which,  for  other 
reasons,  I  believe  to  be  correct,  I  place  no  great  reliance  upon 
them,  because  we  have  no  certainty  that  the  star  mentioned  in 
Matthew  has  the  same  time  as  the  celestial  phenomcTion  found  by 
astronomical  calculations.  The  coincidence,  however,  must  bo 
acknowledged  as  very  interesting. 

In  Matthew  ii.  IG,  it  is  said  tliat  Ilerod,  when  he  saw  that  the 
Wise  Men  had  mocked  him,  was  very  angry,  and  sent  and  slew  all 

Killing  of  the  the  children  that  were  in  Bethlehem,  and  in  all 
children  in  Beth-  the  coasts  thereof,  from  tivo  years  old  and  under, 
lehem.  n  according  to  the  time  which  he  had  dil'Kjcntly 

inquired  of  the  Wise  Men."  How  hnig  before  Herod's  death  was 
this?  We  have  no  means  of  knowing.  But  it  M'as  some  time. 
And  that  time  must  bo  added  to  the  two  years  which  he  had 
learned  by  diligent  inquiiy  of  the  Wise  Men  had  elapsed  before 
this  slaughter  and  the  time  they  had  seen  the  star.  Then,  the 
Nativity  occurred  more  than  two  years  before  another  period, 
which  period  was  some  time  before  the  spring  or  summer  of 
A.u.c.  750.  If  those  two  undetermined  ]ieriods  amount  to  one 
year,  then  the  Nativity  is  j)lacod  somewhere  in  the  summer  of 
A.u.c.  747,  tlie  time  reached  by  the  date  assigned  in  tliis  work. 
But  this  is  presented  as  only  an  aj)j)roximation. 

Luke  (ii.  1-7)  says:  "It  came  to  pass  in  those  days  that  there 
Vrent  out  a  decree  from  Cajsar  Augustus  that  all  the  world  should 


BIRTH    OF   JESUS :    ITS   DATE. 


31 


be  taxed  ;  and  tliis  taxing  was  first  made  wlien  Cyrenins  [Quirinus] 
was  governor  [that  is,  proconsul  or  lord-lieuten-  rph  T  '  o- 
ant]  of  Syria ;  and  all  went  to  be  taxed,  every 
one  to  his  own  city.  And  Joseph  also  went  up  from  Gali- 
lee, out  of  the  city  of  Nazareth,  into  Judea,  unto  the  city  of 
David,  which  is  called  Bethlehem  (because  he  was  of  the  house 
and  lineage  of  David),  to  be  taxed  with  Mary  his  espoused  wife, 
being  great  with  child.  And  so  it  was,  that,  while  they  were 
there,  the  days  were  accomplished  that  she  should  be  delivered. 
And  she  brought  forth  her  first-born  son."     .     .     . 

This  is  admitted  to  be  one  of  the  most  perplexing  passages  in 
the  Evangelists.     Dean  Alford  thinks  it  unmanageable.   Neander 
thinks  it  may  be  inexact.     The  destructive  critics 
have  made  the  most  of  it  as  affecting  the  author-  ^ 
ity  of    the    Evangelists.      It    does  not  seem  to 
help  us  in  settling    the    date    of    the   Nativity,  but  as  it  will 
help  us  to  something    much    more    important    than   tlie  mere 
date,  we  must  consider  its  difticulties,  which  are  simply  chrono- 
logical. 

1.  It  is  said  that  there  is  no  record  in  any  other  history  of  a 
census  of  the  whole  Roman  empire  under  Augustus.  It  has 
been  argued  in  reply  that  the  Zegis  Actiones  Objections:— 
and  their  abrogation  were  quite  as  important  in  No  other  history 
respect  to  the  eai-ly  Roman  history  as  the  Census  of  this  census. 
of  the  Empire  was  to  the  latter,  and  as  Livy,  Dionysius,  and 
Polybius  make  no  record  of  the  former,  we  are  not  to  be  sur- 
prised that  later  histoiians  do  not  mention  the  latter.  Our  knowl- 
edge of  the  former  is  derived  from  a  law-book,  nainely,  "  The 
Institutes  of  Gains :  "  if  any  perfect  copy  of  a  similar  Icno  book, 
covering  the  times  of  the  alleged  census,  made  no  mention  of  it, 
then  the  argument  from  silence  {argiinientuin  de  taciturnitate) 
might  have  some  force.*  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  Suetonius 
and  Tacitus  are  very  brief,  and  that  in  the  history  by  Dio  Cassius 
there  is  a  gap  of  ten  years,  from  a.u.c.  747  to  757,  the  very 
period  in  which  Luke  says  the  census  was  begun.  The  argument 
from  silence  would  prove  that  no  important  events 'occurred  in 


*  Huschke  in  Wieseler,  p.  78.  The 
Bame  author  says:  "If  Suetonius  in 
his  life  [of  Aug:ustus]  does  not  mention 
this  census,  neither  does  Spartian  in  his 


life  of  Hadrian  devote  a  single  sj'Uable 
to  the  edictiim  jieifetuum,  which,  in 
later  times,  has  chiefly  adorned  the 
name  of  that  emperor." 


JJ2  THE    BIRTH    AND    CHILDHOOD    OF   .lESrS. 

the  long  reign  of  Angnstup,  except  those  whicli  the  fragmentaiy 
history  of  the  times  has  preserved. 

J5ut  it  is  known  that  the  subtle  Augustus  was  centralizing  the 
eriii)ire,  and  that  about  five  yeai-s  before  the  birth  of  Jesus  all 
the  procui-atoi's  of  the  empire  were  brought  over  to  his  control. 
(Dion.  Cass.,  liii.  32.)  From  several  sources  we  learn  that  esti- 
mates of  tlie  empire  were  being  made  about  this  time,  enrolments 
which  re(|uired  many  years  for  their  completion. 

And  unless  some  proof  can  be  produced  to  show  that  no  such 
census  was  actually  had,  it  is  to  be  boi;ne  always  in  mind  that, 
apai-t  from  all  notion  of  inspiration,  as  mere  htirnan  authority 
Luke  is,  to  say  the  least,  as  good  as  Tacitus ^Philo,  Josephus,  or 
any  other  ancient  historian  whose  loor/rs  have  been  presented. 

2.  It  is  said  that  if  such  a  census  had  been  ordered  it  would 
not  have  included  Judea,  which  was  not  yet  a  Koman  pi-ovince. 

It  would  not  I'^  ^'cpljj  reference  is  made  to  a  passage  in  Taci- 
have  includedJu-  tus.  Augustus  directed,  as  we  learn,  a  *•'  brevia- 
^^^-  rium  totius  imperii  "  to  be  made,  in  which,  accord- 

ing to  Tacitus,  "  Opes  publicse  continebantur  :  quantum  civium 
sociorumqne  in  armis,  quot  classes,  regna,  provincise,  tributa  aut 
vectigalia  et  necessitates  ac  largitioues."     (Tacit.  Ann.,  i.  11.) 

If  the  "  sociorum,"  "regna,"  and  "  provinciaj "  did  not  in- 
clude such  a  principality  as  Herod's,  it  would  be  difficult  to  leiirn 
to  what  these  words  arc  to  be  a])pliod.  Moreover,  the  connection 
of  Judea  witli  the  province  of  Syria,  first  established  by  Pompey, 
was  never  considered  as  dissolved  I>y  ITerod's  elevation  to  the 
throne. 

3.  It  is  ol)jected  that  the   Ivoman  mode  of  taking  the  census 

was  according  to  actual  residence.     But,  even  if  that  was  so,  and 

^,  ,  ,    ^  even  if  the  census  of  Aumistus  did  not  neces- 

^ot  the  Roman  '^  i        tt        i         i  • 

,no(le  sanly  embrace  Judea,  we  know  tliat  JJei'od  at  this 

time  had  state  reasons  for  desiring  to  propitiate 

the  emperor,  and  might  on  that  account  have  ordered  a  census; 

which,  as  he  did  it  as  oi  his  own  motion,  he  might  prefer  to  take 

in  the  Jewish  way,  that  is,  in  the  place  whence  the  family  s]u-ung, 

rather  than  in  the  lioman  manner,  that  is,  in  the  ])lftce  of  actual 

residence.     Or  even  if  Ilerod  had  simply  proclaimed  a  census,  it 

is  quite  easy  to  see  that  the  Jews  would  prefer  to  go  to  the  place 

of  nativity,  as  that  had  been  their  custom. 

4.  Again,  it  is  objected  that  the  state  of  Mary's  health  would 


BIKTII    OF   JESUS  :    ITS   DATE.  33 

liave  precluded  such  a  journey.  It  is  answered,  that  if  the  enrol 
meut  was  made  by  tribes,  a  Jew  of  the  house  and  jj^—.g  ]iealth. 
lineage  of  David  would  make  great  exertions  and 
sacrifices  to  present  himself  in  his  proper  place  and  secure  the 
recognition  of  his  position.  This  motive  would  operate  equally 
upon  Joseph  and  Mary,  as  both  were  of  the  family  of  David. 
Quiet  women  have  enormous  reservoirs  of  determination.  AVlien 
one  of  them  sets  her  heart  on  any  course  it  is  only  an  insur- 
mountable obstacle  that  can  divert  her. 

5.  Another  objection  is  that  Luke  seems  to  say  that  this  census 
did  not  take  place  until  at  least  ten  years  later.  (Luke  ii.  2.) 
This  brings  us  to  the  real  difficulty  in  the  passage.  It  is  an  ob- 
jection urged  by  Dr.  Strauss,  but  not  by  him  fairly  put,  {Leben 
Jesu,  i.  iv.  32,)     Let  us  examine  this, 

Luke  makes  two  statements :   (1,)  That  Augustus  decreed  a 
taxing.     (2.)  Tliat  this  taxing  was  made  when  Cyrenius  was  gov- 
ernor of  Syria.     Let  the  distinction  between  the 
statements  be  noticed.     The  first  has  been  estab- 

,  ,  ,        ments  seem  con- 

lished  above,  as  I  think,  conclusively.  The  his-  tradictorr. 
torian  Luke  asserts  it,  and  there  is  nothing  in 
history,  so  far  as  we  now  know,  to  cast  the  slightest  discredit  on 
it.  The  difficulty  is  to  reconcile  the  second  statement  of  Luke 
with  his  first,  or  to  clear  away  somehow  the  difficulties  of  the 
passage.  Cyrenius  was  governor  twelve  years  after  the  date  of 
the  I^ativity  assigned  above,  and  this  passage  seems  to  make  the 
birtli  of  Jesus  to  have  occurred  during  his  governorship. 

The  following  explanations  are  tendered : 

(a.)  Herod  undertook  the  census  after  the  Jewish  form,  accord- 
ing to  the  inn)erial  decree,  but  died  before  it  was  finished.     The 

Evangelist  knew  that  as  soon  as  a  census  was 

T  ,       •  1     T       •  1    1  •  ,  How  explained, 

mentioned  persons  conversant  with  J  ewish  history 

would  think  at  once  of  the  census  which  was  had  about  twelve 
years  later,  after  the  banisliment  of  Archelaui,  which  was  notori- 
ously a  Roman  census,  and  caused  an  insurrection  (Josephus,  Ant. 
xviii.  1,  §  1),  and  therefore  he  added  the  second  verse,  which  is 
equivalent  to  this :  "  No  census  was  actually  completed  then  :  and  I 
knew  that  the  first  Roman  census  was  had  after  the  banishment 
of  Archelaus ;  but  the  decree  went  out  much  earlier,  namely,  in 
the  time  of  Herod,"  This  is  the  explanation  of  Dr,  Thomson, 
Archbishop  of  York. 
3 


34  THE   BIRTir   AXD    childhood   of   JESUS. 

I 

(b.)  Cyrcnius,  it  is  siiid,  may  have  been  twice  governor.  Prof. 
A.  "NV.  Zumpt,  of  Berliu,  has  published  a  work  entitled  Com- 
mentatio  de  Syria  liomanorum provincia  a  C(Bsare  Awjiisto  ad 
T.  Yei<pas'M7ium^  in  which,  by  a  long  course  of  argument,  he 
shows  that  it  is  probable  Cyrenius  was  twice  governor ;  but  then 
he  makes  his  fii-st  term  of  office  too  late  by  several  years  to  agree 
with  our  date  of  the  Nativity.  Lardner  (i.  329)  suggests,  which 
is  perhaps  better,  that  he  was  a  commissioner  extraordinary  sent 
from  Home  for  the  special  purpose  of  superintending  this  census; 
and  we  learn  from  Tacitus  that  he  had  a  special  fitness  for  this 
kind  of  work,  and  was  at  this  time  absent  in  the  East. 

(c.)  Kelief  is  sought  on  the  side  of  phil<jlogy.     The  passage  in 

the   original  (Luke  ii.  2)  is,  avry}  airoypa(})r)  iyevfTO  irpiliTq  i/ye/Aoieuorros 

r^s  Svpta;  KvprjVLov.*  The  word  cyeVero  may  be  translated  "  was 
completed,"  as  much  as  if  Luke  had  said,  "  It  was  Ijegun  as  an 
enrolment  just  before  the  birth  of  Jesus,  and  completed  years 
after,  under  Cyrenius."  Or,  TrpwTTy  maybe  translated  "before," 
and  then  the  passage  would  mean,  "  this  enrolment  took  place 
hefore  (that  better  known  enrolment,  when)  Quiriiius  was  gover- 
nor of  Syria."  (See  Alford's  Greek  Testament,  in  loco.)  For 
similar  examples  in  Greek  literature  De  Pressense  refers  to  Tho- 
luck  {GlauhwilrdigJceit,  p.  ISl),  and  confines  himself  to  citing  a 
specimen  of  the  same  construction  in  (John  i.  15)  the  words  of 
John  the  l]aj)tist,  -^p' t6<; fL«v  rjv^  "he  was  before  me."  If  this  be 
received  it  ends  all  difficulties. 

Let  it  be  remembered  that  {\\\?,  \?,  wot  o.  proved  inifccKnuy  m 
Luke,  it  is  only  a  dithculty,  an  obscurity.     No  man  has  shown 

tliat  Augustus  Ca3sar  could  not  have  ordered  this 
ny  an  o  scu-    (.(.jjg^jo  jj^^^j.  |]j.^|- (^yj-^^jjiuj^  absolutelv  could  not  have 

been  governor  when  it  was  in  process  of  execution. 
"We  know  tliat  he  was  irovernor  veai*s  after  the  Nativitv,  and 
with  that  gubernatorial  term  we  have  been  striving  t()  reconcile 
Luke's  statements.  The  whole  difficulty  arises  from  our  ign«> 
ranee,  not  from  Luke's  proved  inaccuracy.  All  honest  historical 
inquirei's  should  admit  that  Luke,  who  lived  near  the  time  of 
what  he  narrates,  is  at  least  fpiite  as  competent  a  historian  as  the 
modem  Dr.  Strauss,  or  the  modern  M,  Penan. 

*  In  this  text  I  have  followed  the  I  l,ytf,u»iio¥Toi,  but  immediately  precedes 

Cocinx  Sinfiiticus,  the  oldest  authority,  '  it. 
in  which    rp^im    is  not  separated  from  ' 


BERTH    OF    JESUS  :    ITS    DATE. 


35 


This  passage  has  ahnost  no  importance  in  respect  to  the  date 
of  the  Nativity,  and  therefore  I  did  not  discuss  it  m  that  connec- 
tion. It  is  important  as  giving  ns  a  historical  reason  for  the 
birth  hi  the  city  of  Bethlehem  of  the  child  whose  parents  were 
inhal)itants  of  Nazareth.  To  a  Jewish  reader  this  is  vital,  as 
those  whom  he  treats  as  prophets  had  plainly  pointed  to  Bethle- 
hem as  the  place  of  the  birth  of  the  Great  Deliverer. 

Jesus,  then,  was  lorn  in  Bethlehem,  about  the  beginning  of 
August,  B.C.  6,  A.u.c.  7-i7. 


NAZAnETH. 


CHAPTEE    III. 


PLACE   OF   THE   BIETU  :    THE   CIECDMCISION. 


Betthi.ehem,  the  name  signifying  "  House  of  Bread,"  is  one  of 
the  oldest  towns  in  Palestine,  having  been  in  existence  before 
Jacob's   return  to  his  native  land.     It  is  still  ex- 
isting.    As  to  its  location  there  have  nevei-  been 
doubts.      It   is  identical   with  the  present  Beit- 
Lahm,  "  House  of  Flesh,"  of  the  Arabs.    It  is  six 
miles,  and  two  hours'  travel,  south  from  Jerusalem, 
east  of  the  main  road  to  Hebron.     (Robinson's  Researches  in 
Palestine,  \o\.  ii.,  p.  159.) 


Matt.  i.  ;  Luke 
ii.  Bethlehem, 
the  birthplace  of 
Jesus. 


BETRLKHCM    EPHRATH. 


The  original   name  of  tlio   town  was   Eimik.vth,  or   Eimik.vtah. 
In    Micah    v.  2,    it    is    called    liETiii.KiiKM-ErnuATAii.      Its  tirst 


PLACE    OF    THE   BIKTII  :    THE    CIECOrOISrON. 


37 


fame  came  to  it  from  its  being  the  birthplace  of  David,  who, 
however,  did  nothing  to  advance  it,  even  after  his  elevation  to 
the  throne.  His  ancestor  Boaz  had  possessions  here,  and  in  some 
of  the  meadows  in  sight  of  the  town  Ruth  gleaned.  But  it  never 
rose  to  the  dignity  of  a  capital.  The  birth  of  Jesus  has  made  it 
to  be  known  to  the  whole  world.  Since  that  event  tradition  has 
never  lost  sight  of  Bethlehem.  Justin  Martyr  visited  it  in  the 
second  century ;  Origen  in  the  third  ;  afterwards  Eusebius,  Jerome, 
the  Bordeaux  Pilgrim,  and  thousands  of  others.  The  Emperor 
Hadrian  planted  a  grove  of  Adonis  on  the  spot,  to  desecrate  it. 
This  gro\e  kept  up  the  identification.  It  remained  from  135 
to  315  A.D.  About  A.D.  330,  Constantine  or  the  Empress  Helena 
erected  a  church  which  remains  to  this  day.  In  the  twelfth  cen- 
tury it  was  elevated  into  an  episcopal  see.  There  is  shown  a  cave 
in  which  Jesus  is  said  to  have  been  born  ;  but  the  precise  spot  can- 
not now  be  known,  and  it  seems  absurd  to  suppose  that  cattle 
were  kept  twenty  feet  under  ground.    But  we  know  the  town.* 


*  The  birth  of  Jesus  in  Bethlehem  be- 
ing coincident  with  the  prophecies  of  the 
birthplace  of  the  Messiah,  the  destmc- 
tive  critics  attack  it  as  being  a  false 
statement ;  but  it  is  observable  that  no 
one  has  proved  its  incorrectness,  nor 
even  i^resented  anything  worth  calling 
an  argument.  For  instance,  Dr.  Strauss 
(Book  i.  31)  says:  "But  the  opposite 
hypothesis  as  to  the  original  dwelling- 
place  of  his  parents,  from  which  these 
Evangelists  start  in  the  accounts  they 
give,  shows  that  they  are  not  following 
any  historical  authority,  but  simply  a 
dogmatic  conclusion,  drawn  fronx  the 
passage  in  the  prophet  Micah,  v.  1. "  Can 
such  modes  mislead  thinking  men  ?  A 
historian  says  that  two  people,  husband 
and  wife,  live  in  New  York,  but  finding 
it  important  to  go  to  London  iij  person 
on  or  before  a  given  day, to  attend  to  mat- 
ters of  great  import;mce,  the  wife  is 
there  delivered  of  a  son,  the  distinguished 
subject  of  the  historian's  biography,  and 
who  afterwards  spends  a  great  part  of 
his  life  in  New  York.  Some  subsequent 
critic  says:  "Nay,  but  he  was  bom  in 
New  York,  for  does  not  the  historian 


'  start '  with  that  as  '  the  original  dwell- 
ing-place of  his  parents  ? '  "  Such  a 
critic  would  equal  Dr.  Strauss.  But  then 
Dr.  Strauss  proceeds  on  the  theory  that 
he  was  a  native  of  Nazareth.  Why  not 
say  he  was  bom  at  Damascus  ?  On  what 
authority  do  these  writers  assiime  that 
he  was  bom  in  Nazareth  ?  On  the  au- 
thority of  the  Evangelists.  Dr.  Strauss 
makes  fifteen  references  to  the  four 
Evangelists,  which,  if  the  reader  wUl 
consult,  will  be  found  to  contain  no  state- 
ment whatever  as  to  his  birthplace,  but 
simply  speak  of  Jesus  as  a  Nazai-eue  or  a 
GalUean.  Two  (Matt.  xxvi.  69,  71)  are 
the  accusations  made  against  Peter  by 
women,  that  he  was  an  associate  of  ' '  Je- 
sus of  Galilee,"  or  "  Jesus  of  Nazareth." 
A  third  is  the  speech  of  the  unclean 
spirit  (Mark  i.  24),  "  "RTiat  have  we  to  do 
with  thee,  thou  Jesus  of  Nazareth  ?  " 
A  fourth  is  Mark's  account  of  what  Mat- 
thew gives  in  chapter  xx\'i.  A  fifth  is 
Luke  xviii.  37,  where  the  blind  man  in- 
quires the  meaning  of  the  noise,  and  the 
multitude  tell  him  that  "  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth passes  by."  This  is  the  amount  ol 
Dr.  Strauss' s  argument. 


3S  THE   BIEXn   AXD   CIIILDnOOD   OF   JESUS. 

It  lies  on  tlie  eastern  and  nortlieastern  brow  of  a  ridire,  run 
ning  cast  and  west,  from  tlie  top  of  which    there  is    an  exten- 


Tlie  utter  want  of  fairness  is  seen  in 
three  ways  :  1.  In  the  case  supposed 
above,  of  an  American  bom  of  American 
parents  in  London,  his  subsequently  re- 
turning and  being  called  ' '  ]VIr.  Blank,  of 
New  York,"  or  "  Mr.  Blank,  the  Ameri- 
can," would  certainly  not  prove  that  he 
was  born  in  Xew  York,  and  most  certainly 
nbt  prove  that  he  was  not  born,  in  Lon- 
don. 2.  Take  his  reference  to  Luke.  To 
prove  that  Jesus  was  boi'n  in  Nazareth  he 
produces  the  reply  of  a  miscellaneous 
crowd  to  a  beggar.  They  called  him  a 
"  Nazarene."  But  if  that  passage  in 
Luke  be  good  authority  we  must  take  the 
whole,  what  the  beggar  said  as  well  as 
what  the  multitude  said.  The  beggar 
cried  out,  "Jesus,  son  of  David,  have 
mercy  on  me."  Then  Jesus  was  gener- 
ally reputed  to  be  the  son  of  David.  But 
this  Dr.  Strauss  denies,  and  because  he 
is  following  ' '  simply  a  dogmatic  conclu- 
sion drawn  from  "  his  theory  of  myths, 
he  is  anxious  to  show  that  Jesus  was  not 
bom  in  Bethlehem,  the  city  of  David, 
and  was  not  the  son  of  David  at  all,  and 
was  not  believed  to  be  the  son  of  David. 
{Leben  Je^fu,  chap,  ii.)  But  his  own  au- 
thority confutes  him.  3.  He  cites  Luke 
xxiv.  19  to  prove  thfit  Jesus  was  bom  in 
Nazareth.  Does  Luke,  in  that  passage 
or  any  where  else,  say  so?  Not  at  alL 
But  this  same  Luke,  Dr.  Strauss's  wit- 
ness, doe3  say,  distinctly,  ii.  G,  7,  that 
Jefus  waJi  born  in  Bethlehem. 

In  all  this  there  is  nothing  supernatu- 
ral, 80  that  Dr.  Strauss  might  not  answer 
that  we  had  gone  out  of  the  region  of 
realities.  It  is  purely  a  matter  of  fact. 
If  Dr.  Strauss  denied  the  whole,  and 
said,  "  No  man  knows  where  Jesus  was 
bom,"  it  would  be  another  thing.  Bub 
he  affirms  that  lie  was  bom  in  Nazareth. 
It  was  no  more  miraculous  to  Ik;  bom  in 
Bethlehem  tlian  in  Nazareth.  But  it 
doea  connect  Jesus  mth  the  house   of 


David,  and  does  connect  him  with  what 
the  Jews  regarded  as  a  prophecy,  and  so 
obstinate  is  Dr.  Strauss  in  his  adherence 
to  his  naturalistic  theory,  that  no  fair 
reader  of  his  book  can  fail  to  see  that 
there  never  was  a  theologic  zealot  more 
bent  to  his  creed  than  Dr.  Strauss  to  his 
dogma.  But  historians  must  avoid  all 
dogmatism. 

M.  Rennn  (chap.  ii. )  says  distinctly, 
"  Jesus  was  bom  at  Nazareth."  ^^^ly 
not  say  that  he  was  bom  at  Capemaxim  ? 
^\^lat  is  his  authority  ?  He  has  none  but 
I^Iatthew,  Mark,  and  John !  He  cites 
Matthew  (xiii.  54,  et  seq. ).  The  reader 
will  see  upon  inspection  that  there  is  not 
the  slightest  allusion  whatever  to  the 
birthplace  of  Jesus,  or  of  any  other  per- 
son, in  any  portion  of  this  chapter.  It 
simply  speaks  of  the  return  of  Jesus  to 
his  own  country,  but  does  not  say  where 
that  country  is  ;  and  if  it  be  assumed  to 
be  Nazareth,  that  would  not  prove  that 
he  was  bom  there,  as  thousands  of  men 
who  were  bom  in  Europe  speak  of  Amer- 
ica as  their  country,  since  it  has  been 
their  place  of  residence  for  many  years. 
The  fact  that  in  manhood  Jesus  should 
speak  of  Nazareth  as  his  countrj'.  and 
others  should  so  speak  of  him,  has  no 
bearing  on  the  question  of  the  place  of 
his  nativity.  But  how  does  M.  Renan 
know  that  this  is  a  fact  ?  On  the  au- 
thority of  Matthew.  Then  Matthew  is 
his  witness,  and  he  says  erfdidfly  that 
Jesus  icasborn  in  Bethlehem  (ii.  1). 

Again,  JL  Renan  cites  Mark,  and  refers 
to  vi.  1,  where  it  is  written  :  "  And  he 
went  out  from  thence  and  came  into  his 
ovsTi  country."  No  mention  is  maile  of 
any  town  in  the  whole  passage.  And 
this  is  citetl  to  prove  that  Jesus  was  bora 
in  Nazareth  !  ! 

M.  Renan's  last  authority  is  John  i. 
45,  40,  where  it  is  said  that  Philip  found 
Nathanacl  and  said  :   ' '  We  have  found 


PLACE   OF   THE   BIRTH  :    THE   CIRCUMCISION. 


39 


sive  view  toward  the  east  and  south,  in  the  direction  of  Jericho, 
the  Dead  Sea,  and  the  mountains  of  Moab.  In  the  time  of  the 
captivity  there  was  an  inn,  or  caravanserai,  close  to  Bethlehem, 
which  appears  to  have  been  a  point  of  departure  for  Egypt. 
(Jeremiah  xli.  17.)  Perhaps  this  was  the  very  inn  where  Jesus 
was  born.  The  prophet  Micah  (v.  2)  had  said  of  this  city  of 
David:  "Thou  Bethlehem-Ephratah !  though  thou  be  little 
among  the  thousands  of  Judah,  out  of  tliee  shall  he  come  unto 
me  to  be  the  Pailer  of  Israel ;  whose  goings  forth  have  been  fi-om 
old,  from  the  days  of  eternity  !  " 

It  is  said  that  the  inn  or  caravanserai  in  Bethlehem  was  so 
crowded  that  Josepli  and  Mary  were  obliged  to  find  lodging  in 
the  stable.     There  Jesus  was  horn,  the  first  child  of  Mary.* 

It  would  seem  that  his  birth  occurred  in  the  night.     There 


him  of  whom  Moses  in  the  law,  and  the 
prophets  did  write,  Jesus  of  Nazareth, 
the  son  of  Joseph. "  Would  any  man  in 
a  court  of  law  bring  such  testimony  for- 
ward to  establish  the  birthplace  of  an 
individual  ?  It  might  prove  that  Jesus 
resided  at  Nazareth  when  he  was  about 
thirty  years  of  age,  but  it  has  no  bearing 
whatever  upon  the  question  of  the  place 
of  his  nativity.  A  man  having  resided 
in  New  York  a  few  yeai-s,  caUed  to  make 
affidavit,  might  describe  himself  gener- 
ally as  "of  New  York,"  imless  the  doc- 
uments were  known  by  him  to  be  about 
to  be  used  on  the  question  of  the  place 
of  his  nativity  or  citizenship.  The  fact 
that  John  says  that  Philip  spoke  of  Jesus 
at  thirty  as  being  "of  Nazareth,"  is 
nothing  to  the  ijoint ;  but  two  historiajis, 
one  having  had  personal  intercourse  for 
years  with  the  subject  of  his  biography, 
Bay  distinctly  that  he  was  bor7i  in  Beth- 
lehem, and  that  settles  the  question  until 
better  evidence  can  be  produced  showing 
that  he  was  bom  elsewhere. 

Of  a  piece  with  this  is  M.  Kenan's 
Btatement  in  Life  of  Jesus,  cha^p.  xv.  : 
"  The  family  of  David  had  become,  it 
would  seem,  long  since  extinct,"  when 
M.  Renan,  as  one  of  his  notes  shows, 
knew  that  the  doctors  Hillel  and  Gama- 
liel were  reputed  of  the  race  of  David, 


and  Dr.  Strauss' s  reference  to  Luke 
xviii.  brings  up  a  passage  in  which  a 
bUnd  beggar  by  the  way -side  salutes  Je- 
sus as  the  "  son  of  David,"  no  one  of 
the  multitude  present  objecting,  show- 
ing that  Jesus  was  pubUcly  and  notori- 
ously recognized  as  of  that  race  and 
lineage. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  how  unreliable  are 
the  quotations  and  references  of  those 
who  attack  the  Evangelists.  A  great  par- 
ade is  made  in  foot-notes  and  parentheses. 
They  look  like  authority.  The  shrewd 
writers  knew  that  not  one  in  a  thousand 
of  their  readers  will  consult  the  passages 
referred  to.  Take  this  instance:  M. 
Renan  positively  names  the  place  of  the 
birth  of  Jesus,  and  then  in  a  foot-note 
quotes  three  distinct  ancient  authors, 
and  gives  chapter  and  verse.  That  looks 
like  settling  the  question.  But  an  exam- 
ination shows  that  not  one  of  these  au- 
thors alludes  in  these  places  to  the  sub- 
ject, and  one  of  them,  who  knew  Jesus 
personally,  positively  affirms  that  he  was 
bom  in  anotJier  place  / 

*  Mary  appears  to  have  been  the 
mother  of  several  children,  sons  and 
daughters,  younger  than  Jesus.  Foui 
sons  are  named,  and  daughters  are  al- 
luded to  in  Matthew  xiii.  55,  and  Mark 
vi.  3. 


40  THK    15IKTII    AND    CM  II.MIOOD    OF   JESUS. 

were  sliL'jilierds  watching  their  flocks  in  one  of  tlie  pasture  grounds, 
which  may  still  be  seen  near  Bethlehem.*     To  them  appeared 


a  vision,  and  they  believed  that  God  told  them  not  to  fear,  that 
there  was  born  that  day,  in  the  city  of  David, 
,  Jesus,  who  was  the  Anointed  Lord,  the  Messiah. 

Tliat  they  might  be  assured,  it  was  t<»ld  them  that 
they  should  find  him  in  swaddling-clothes  and  lying  in  a  manger, 
one  of  those  exterior  stalls  usually  attached  to  caravanserais.  Im- 
mediately there  burst  upon  the  ears  of  the  shepherds  a  chorus 
sung  by  multitudes  of  voices,  saying,  "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest, 
on  earth  peace,  good  will  to  men." 

If  it  be  inrpiired  how  this  statement  came  into  history,  the 
answer  is,  that  it  is  probable  that  Luke,  when  he  came  to  writing 
the  biography  of  his  Master,  male  diligent  search  for  all  he 
could  find  of  the  early  life  of  Jesus,  and  in  that  search  received 
from  the  lips  of  one  of  the  shepherds  his  simple  account  ()f  the 
transaction.  This  sounds  like  the  narrative  of  an  eye-witness. 
It  may  not  have  literal  accuracy,  but  it  has  been  noticed  how  re- 
markably free  it  is  from  all  materialism,  how  very  pure  and  ele- 
vated is  the  statement  of  the  transaction.  It  occurred  as  any  well- 
balanced  mind  might  reasonably  suppose  it  would,  if  the  Great 
Father  ever  made  any  such  conlmunication  to  men. 

The  shepherds  went  to  l>ethlehem  and  found  the  place,  the 
motlicr  and  the  babe.  Then  they  made  known  what  thoy  had 
heard  in  the  plain,  and  returned  rejoicing. 

*  About  a  mile  east  of    Bethlohem  I  lage  of  the  Shepherds, 
there  ia  a  little  village  called  the  Vil- 1 


PLACE   OF   THE   BIKTU  :    THE   CIRCITMCISION.  41 

Luke  asserts  that  Mary's  child  was  circumcised,  according  to 
the  Levitical  law,  on  the  eis^hth  dav,  and  received 

'  Circumcision  of 

the  name  oi  Jesus.  jesus 

The  Mosaic  law  required  the  presentation  to  the 
Lord  of  every  first-born  male,  but  allowed  children  to  be  redeemed 
from  exclusive  devotion  to  religious  pursuits  by 
the  payment  of  five  shekels,  whicli  is  about  thirty    .^  thrtemr^r  ^ 
American  gold  dollars.     See  Levit.  xii.  24 ;  Num- 
bers xviii.  15,  16.     At  the  same  time  the  parents  were  to  offer  a 
sacrifice  of  a  pair  of  turtle-doves  or  young  pigeons.     (Leviticus 
xii.  8.)     In  this  service  consisted   the  legal  purification  of  the 
mother.     The  rich  offered  a  lamb  ;  the  poor  gave  pigeons.     Mary 
had  only  doves  to  bring. 

If  this  history  had  been  ^vritten  ])y  an  impostor  he  would  have 
given  a  different  turn  to  tho  story.  These  sacrifices  imply  sin. 
If  Jesus  be  that  Holy  One  from  the  birth,  why  were  these  offer- 
ings made  ?  The  straightforwardness  of  the  story  gives  a  gen- 
eral air  of  truthfulness  to  the  whole  narrative.  There  is  no  myth 
here.  Mythical  narratives  elevate.  This  depresses.  It  places 
Jesus  in  the  race  of  sinners.  A  writer  of  myths,  as  Neander 
suggests,  would  have  brought  in  an  angel  to  hinder  Mary  from 
submitting  her  child  to  a  ceremony  so  unworthy  his  dignity. 

But  here  there  appears  strikingly  that  mingling  of  humiliation 

and  glory  which  marks  all  the  main  passages  of  the  life  of  Jesus. 

Amid   the   general   spiritual   declension   of    the 

^  ,  ^  ,        -,       ,.,  T     1        1         ,         1  Simeon  and  Anna. 

Jews  there  existed  a  little  band,  not  perhaps  con- 

sociated  so  as  to  be  called  a  society,  but  well  knovm  to  one 
another,  of  those  who  made  careful  culture  of  the  spiritual  life, 
and  who  were  waiting  for  some  special  revelation  of  mercy  from 
Almighty  God.  Among  these  were  two  aged  people,  named 
Simeon  and  Anna,  who  looked  earnestly  for  the  coming  of  the 
Consoler  of  Israel.  Simeon  had  received  what  he  believed  a 
divine  intimation  that  he  should  not  die  before  he  had  seen  Je- 
hovah's Anointed.  Moved  by  special  spiritual  impulse  he  came 
into  the  temple  the  very  day  of  Mary's  purification,  which  was  forty 
days  after  the  circumcision  of  the  child.  There  was  something 
in  the  babe  which  responded  to  the  cry  of  the  soul  of  Simeon. 
In  him  he  recognized  the  long-looked- for  Eedeemer,  and  taking 
the  child  in  his  arms  he  broke  into  that  rapture  which  the  Chris- 
tian Church  has  preserved  under  the  name  of  the  JVunc  Dimittis : 


4:2  THE   BIRXn    A^T)   CITTLDHOOD   OF   JESrS. 

"  Lord,  now  Icttest  Thou  Tliy  servant  depart  in  peace,  according  to  Thy 
word:  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  Thy  salvation,  whicli  Thou  hast  prepared  before 
the  face  of  all  the  peoples ;  a  light  to  enlighten  the  nations,  and  the  glory  of 
Thy  people  Israel."     (Luke  ii.  29-32.) 

Although  Jesus  never  recognized  Joseph  as  liis  father,  Luke 
speaks  of  Joseph  and  Marv  together  as  the  parents  of  Jesus,  as 
they  naturally  would  generally  be  taken  to  he,  and  says  tliat  this 
display  of  rapture,  upon  the  part  of  Simeon,  caused  Joseph  and 
Mary  'to  marvel.  Although  Mary  knew  of  Jesus's  miraculous 
birth,  each  new  wonder  would  impress  her  with  fresh  awe.  Per- 
ceiving this,  Simeon  said  to  Mary,  "  Behold,  this  is  set  for  the 
fall  and  rising  again  of  many  in  Israel ;  and  for  a  sign  to  bo 
spoken  against ;  and  a  sword  shall  pierce  through  thine  own  soul 
also,  that  out  of  many  hearts  evil  thoughts  may  be  revealed." 

In  the  words  of  Simeon  we  discover  a  feeling  very  much  in 
advance  of  the  general  state  of  the  Jewish  mind.  They  display 
a  softness,  a  hopefulness,  and  a  liberality  to  which  the  hard  Jew- 
ish heart  of  his  day  was  generally  a  stranger.  It  contains  the 
idea  of  development  through  struggle,  a  spread  beyond  the  limits 
of  Judaism,  and  a  final  triumph,  which,  while  it  should  ])rcak  up 
the  exclusiveness  of  that  ancient  faith,  should  bestow  upon  it  a 
greater  glory  than  any  of  its  anterior  traditions. 

There  was  also  one  ^nna,  "  a  pi'ophetess,"  daughter  of  Pha- 
nuel,  of  the  tribe  of  Asher.  In  early  womanhood  she  had  mar- 
ried. After  seven  years  her  husband  died.  She  had  been  more 
than  fifty  years  a  widow,  and  had  devoted  lierself  to  the  tem- 
ple-service, not  departing  from  the  house  of  God,  whom  she 
served  niglit  and  day  with  fasting  and  prayei*s.  Coming  in  at 
this  moment  she  joined  Simeon's  thanksgiving,  and  reported  the 
case  "  to  all  that  looked  for  redemption  in  Jerusalem."  * 


*  Schleiermncher's  conjecture  that  the 
narrative   came  indirectly    from    Anna 


minutely  described  than  Simeon,  while 
Simeon's  words  are  reported  and  her's 


■eema  plausible,  seeing  that  she  is  more  '  are  not. 


CHAPTEE  lY. 

HIS  rmsT  yeaks. 

In  the  course  of  tlie  year  following  the  birth  of  Jesus,  there 
arrived  in  Jerusalem  a  company  of  men  described  as  the  "  Wise 
men  from  the  East."     (]\Iatt.  ii,  1.)     Who  were  they  ? 

Matthew  calls  them  \ia<^oi.  By  this  name  Magi  the  Greeks 
denoted  the  priests  of  Persia,  just  as  ^ve  now  speak  of  the  Brah- 
mins of  India.     The  Magi  may  have  been  a  tribe, 

as  Herodotus  says  tliev  were.     To  them  amono;        ^  ;  "•  >     ^^^ 

_,       .  "^        -    -  ^      .  ,      ^      «=    of  the  Magi, 

the  Persians,  as  to  the  Levites  among  the  J  ews, 

were  intrusted  all  the  public  matters  of  religion.  Their  chiefs 
educated  the  prince  ;  they  were  royal  counsellors  and  judges;  they 
kept  sacred  traditions,  and  were  thought  to  be  able  in  various  ways 
to  divine  the  future,  especially  by  watching  the  stars  and  by  in- 
terpreting dreams. 

In  the  Roman  Empire  their  name  was  generally  assumed  by 
rrtagicians.  The  bad  character  of  this  class  is  clear  from  a  decree 
of  the  Senate,  which  banished  them  from  Pome  in  the  year  16. 
Matthew  used  the  term  in  its  original,  in  its  national  and  honor- 
able sense.  This  is  certain  from  Herod's  honorable  treatment  of 
these  Magi.  For  in  the  whole  world  there  were  only  two  classes 
of  men  who  would  have  been  at  all  safe  in  coming  to  the  capital 
of  so  jealous  and  bloody  a  tyrant  with  the  question,  "Where  is  he 
that  is  born  King  of  the  Jews?"  even  though,  as  was  the  case  with 
these  Magi,  they  were  understood  to  be  seeking  not  for  a  spiritual, 
but  for  a  temporal  lord  ;  these  two  classes  were  citizens  of  Pome 
and  subjects  of  the  Parthian  kings,  and  it  would  have  been  well 
that  even  such  should  have  had  more  than  a  common  claim  to 
the  protection  of  their  governments. 

The  Parthians,  a  small  but  warlike  tribe,  had  gotten  the  upper 
hand  in  Persia.  They  were  haughty  and  fierce,  and  so  wielded 
the  military  power  of  that  country  as  to  make  it  dreaded  even  by 


44:  THE   BIKTir    AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS, 

the  Romans.  Herod's  kingdom  was  exposed  to  their  sndden 
im-oads,  and  in  his  youth  he  had  fled  before  them  fi-om  Jcrnsalem. 
Against  their  anger  his  dependence  even  on  the  Tl<»nian  power  was 
no  sufticient  protection.  In  Babylonia,  which  was  then  a  province 
of  tlie  Parthian  Empire,  was  the  city  of  Ctesiphon,  on  the  river 
Tigris,  one  of  several  of  the  Parthian  capitals.  If  these  ]»ilgrims 
came  from  Ctesiphon  under  a  safe-conduct  from  the  Parthian 
king,  or  were  Magi  of  his  court,  Herod  would  not  have  dared 
to  touch  a  hair  of  their  heads,  and  would  have  been  driven  to 
some  such  policy  as  that  to  which  he  did  resort.  His  treat- 
ment c»f  them,  especially  his  calling  together  the  Saidiedriin,  a 
body  of  men  who  in  their  sacerdotal  and  learned  character  much 
resembled  them,  proves  thstt  these  Magi  were  men  of  very  high 
rank,  though  they  were  not  kings,  as  they  were  commonly  held  to 
be  in  the  Middle  Ages.  This  tradition  seems  to  have  gr(jwn  very 
naturally  out  of  their  reception  at  Herod's  court;  and  it  was 
probably  right  in  making  them  three  in  number,  for  this  seems 
to  be  indicated  by  their  presents  to  the  infant  Jesus. 

These  Magi  are  described  in  our  version  as  from  "  the  East," 
and  it  is  said  they  were  in  the  East  when  they  saw  the  Star.  In 
the  original  the  Greek  w^ord  is  the  same  in  l)oth  places,  but  with 
such  a  difference  in  its  form  as  would  make  the  difference  made  in 
English  by  prefixing  to  the  ft)rmer  the  word  fai\  which  thus  means 
the  Far  East.  In  some  of  the  later  Books  of  Hebrew  Scripture 
Babylonia  is  called  the  East,  and  Persia  lies  next  heyond  it  and  in 
the  same  line.  History,  geograi)hy,  and  Hebrew  usage  leave  no 
reasonal)lc  doubt  that  these  strangers  were  Persians,  and  saw  the 
Star  in  ]>abylonia,  then  a  Persian  province. 

Zoroaster,  the  famous  Persian  teacher  of  religion,  who  may  have 
lived  as  far  back  as  1500  yeai-s  before  Christ,  or  not  far  from  the 
time  of  Moses,  was  no  idolater,  and  in  the  Bible  the  Persians  are 
not  classed  with  the  heathen.  Cyrus,  the  founder  of  the  Persian 
Empire,  was  ])rodicted  by  Isaiah  (xliv.  24;  xlv.  1-0);  by  him  the 
Temple  of  God  in  Jerusalem,  wliich  had  been  burned  by  the  king 
of  Babylon, was  ordered  to  l)e  rtbnilt ;  and  in  his  proclamation  to 
that  effect  (Neh.  i.  1-2)  he  acknowledges  the  God  of  the  Pei-sians 
and  of  the  Hebrews  to  be  tlic  same  Lord  (iod  of  Heaven.  Daniel 
was  hi"-h  in  honor  with  ibis  kini;;  and  the  Magi  liad  an  idea  of  a 
Sosiosh,  or  Redeemer,  to  come,  that  in  certain  respects  was  strik- 
ingly like  his.     From  the  time  of  Cyrus  there  were  ever  many 


HIS   FIKST   TEARS.  45 

Jews  in  the  Persian  or  Parthian  conntry,  and  many  things  per- 
taining to  the  Hebrew  religion  must  have  been  well  knoNvn  to 
some  of  the  Magi. 

But  how  did  they  come  by  their  idea  of  the  Star  ?  It  was  the 
universal  belief  of  their  times  that  the  stars  controlled  the  fates 
of  men.  The  science  that  professed  to  look  into  their  influences 
was  called  Astrology,  and  the  Magi  were  astrologers.  An  ancient 
prophet,  who  was  of  the  East,  and  who  was  not  a  Jew,  had  foretold 
a  Jewish  Messiah  in  the  remarkable  prediction,  "  There  shall  come 
a  Star  out  of  Jacob,  and  a  Sceptre  shall  rise  out  of  Israel" 
(Numb,  xxiv,  17),  words  then  understood  as  foretelling  that  a  new 
star  would  shine  at  his  birth.  In  all  Syria  there  was  in  their  time 
an  expectation  that  this  personage  would  soon  appear,  which  must 
have  been  common  also  to  the  Jews  in  the  East  and  in  the 
Far  East.  Within  that  very  century,  this  belief,  as  Suetonius 
and  Tacitus*  state,  had  much  to  do  with  the  uprising  of 
the  Jews  against  the  Pomans,  in  which  Jerusalem  perished. 
That  which  is  further  required  to  explain  why  they  were  so 
sure  they  saw  the  Star  of  the  King  of  the  Jews  is  furnished  by 
a  discovery  of  Kepler.  He  traced  back  the  orbits  of  the 
planets,  and  found  that  near  the  time  of  the  birth  of  Jesus  cer- 
tain of  the  planets  were  in  positions  of  great  import  in  astrology  ; 
Jupiter  and  Saturn  were  in  conjunction ;  that  is,  were  very  close 
to  each  other,  and  were  in  such  a  place  in  the  zodiac  that  the  like 
happens  but  once  in  800  years ;  and  there  were  other  astrological 
sio-ns,  all  giving  the  idea  that  some  great  event  was  to  come  to 
pass  in  Judaea,  as  Kepler  says,  "  according  to  the  rules  of  Chaldean 
art  as  existing  even  till  his  own  time."  The  new  star  therefore 
seemed  to  them  the  Star  of  the  King  of  the  Jews ;  and  it  seems 
providential  that  Kepler  enables  us  to  see  how  the  Magi  came 
scientifically  to  this  opinion,  for  the  silence  of  the  Bible  as  to  any- 
thing supernatural  in  this  proves  it  was  not  revealed  to  them. 

The  conjunctions  of  Jupiter  and  Saturn  occurred  twice,  in  the 
spring  and  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year,  and  some  have  thought 
the  Magi  saw  the  earlier  one  when  they  were  in  the  East,  the  later 
Due  when  they  left  Jerusalem,  and  that  it  wag  in  the  direction  of 


*  Suetonius  says :  "  Percrebuerat  Ori- 
ente  toto  vetus  et  constans  opinio,  esse 
in  f atis,  ut  eo  tempore  Judaea  profecti 


ribns  persuasio  inerat,  antiquis  sacer- 
dotum  liberis,  contineri,  eo  ipso  tempore 
fore  ut  valesceret  Oriens,    profectiqiie 


rerum  potirentur. "    Tacit  us  says :  ' '  Plu- )  Judsea  rerum  potirentur . ' ' 


46  TIIE   BIETir    AND   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 

Bethlehem,  and  so  acted  as  a  guide  to  them.  But  it  is  neither 
manly  nor  honest  thus  to  evade  the  astronomical  difficulties  of 
their  guidance  by  the  star.  It  does  not  suit  the  words  of  Mat- 
thew, who  says  it  was  a  star,  and  that  it  went  befoi-e  them ;  and 
the  latest  astronomical  researches,  while  they  prove  the  accuracy 
of  Kepler's  discovery,  prove  that  this  conjunction  was  not  in  such 
a  direction  from  Jerusalem  that  it  could  in  any  way  liavo  been 
a  guide  to  Bethlehem.* 

Upon  arriving  in  Jerusalem  the  Magi  seem  to  have  gone  at  once 

to  the  king's  palace.      At  any  rate,  Herod  learned  that  they  were 

present  in  the  city,  and  ascertained  the  object  of 

Herod  and  the    ^j^^j^.  ^^^.j^g     ^yj^j,  jjjg  ^g^j^^]  craftiness  he  called 

together  the  Sanhedrim  to  learn  where,  according 
to  the  sacred  books  of  the  Hebrews,  the  Messiah  should  be  born. 
They  recited  to  him  the  well-kno^vu  prophecy  in  Micah  (v.  2) 
pointing  to  Bethlehem.  Calling  the  Magi  to  him,  Herod  care- 
fully inquired  the  time  at  which  the  remarkable  "star"  had  made 
its  appearance.  Then  he  directed  them  to  go  forthwith  to  Beth- 
lehem and  ascertain  exactly  all  the  facts  in  the  case  and  report  to 
him,  pretending  that  he  was  equally  desirous  to  pay  due  deference 
tt)  the  royal  infant. 

The  Magi  resumed  their  journey,  still  beholding  the  luminous 
appearance  in  the  heavens,  until  they  reached  Bethlehem,  where, 
of  course,  in  so  small  a  village,  they  had  no  difficulty  in  ascer- 
taining the  place  where  the  infant  Jesus  actually  was,  as  the  star 
indicated  somehow  the  very  spot.  They  worshipped  him,  and 
opened  their  treasures ;  and,  according  to  oriental  etiquette,  i)re- 
sented  him  costly  gifts — gold  and  frankincense  and  myrrh. 


*  There  is  not  room  in  a  work  like 
this  to  enter  into  details  for  the  reasons 
on  which  every  statement  is  based  and 
from  which  every  conchision  is  drawn. 
Dr.  Francis  W.  Upham's  book,  "The 
\Vi.so  Men :  Who  they  were  and  how 
they  came   to  JeniHalcm,"   New  York, 


of  our  religion  in  the  early  ages  of  the 
world,  which  are  of  great  value  to  the 
people  as  well  as  to  scholars,  and  espe- 
cially so  in  their  bearings  on  the  dis- 
cussions of  these  times.  I  cordially 
concur  with  Dr.  Tayler  Lewis  in  s.iying : 
"WTioevcr  reads   this   book   must   a«. 


1S71.  is  the  first  succes-sful  attempt  quire  a  new  interest  in  the  study  of 
that  I  have  seen  to  ck-ar  up  this  pil-  '  the  Scriptures.  There  is  hardly  a  paj^e 
grimagc.  After  reading  it,  I  cancelled  in  which  wc  arc  not  startled  by  some- 
what I  had  before  written  on  the  thing  strikingly  original,  while  at  the 
subject.  Besides  solving  what  hereto-  |  same  time  leaving  on  the  mind  an  im- 
fore  has  been  a  mystery,  this  book  gives  I  pression  of  its  profound  truth." 
new  ideas  and   facts  as  to  the  history  I 


HIS   FIRST   YEAES. 


47 


That  night  they  dreamed.  And  in  their  dreams  they  were 
warned  not  to  retm-n  to  Herod.  They  were  believers  in  visions. 
They  hearkened  to  this.  Instead  of  going  back  to  Jerusalem 
they  returned  to  their  own  country,  by  some  other  way,  probably 
going  south  of  the  Dead  Sea. 

The  night  after  the  departure  of  the  Magi,  Joseph  dreamed  a 

dream,  in  which  he  saw  an  angel,  who  said  to  him,  "  Arise,  and 

take  the  youno;  child  and  his  mother,  and  flee  ^,.  ^^ .  ^  „      ^ 
•^         ^  -       Flight  into  Egypt, 

into  Egypt,  and  be  there  imtil  1  brmg  you  word  ; 

for  Herod  will  seek  the  young  child  to  destroy  him."     Joseph 

obeyed  the  warning,  and   conveyed  the   mother   and   child   to 

Egypt.     This  country  was  the  most  convenient  refuge  for  them, 

being  easy  of  access,  politically  disconnected  fi-om  Judaea,  and 

inhabited   by  many  Jews,  who   had  been  long   settled   in   the 

country.* 

Tradition  makes  Joseph's  route  by  way  of  Hebron,  Gaza,  and 

the  desert,  and  there  could  have  been  no  more  direct  course. 

They  still  point  out  at  Hebron  a  spot  where  the  family  encamped 

for  the  night.     Not  far   from   Heliopolis,  on  the  way  towards 

Cairo,  is  the  village  Metariyeh,  where  it  is  said  Joseph  made  his 

sojourn  while  in  Egypt,  which  is  probable,  because  of  the  many 


*  Matthew  cites  this  as  a  fulfilment 
of  the  saying  in  Hosea  xi.  1,  "And 
called  my  son  out  of  Egypt."  But  the 
saying  in  Hosea  has,  to  a  modem  reader, 
no  reference  to  the  Messiah  whatever, 
and  is  not  prophetical,  but  is  a  mere 
statement  of  a  fact  in  early  Jewish  his- 
tory. The  explanation  seems  to  be 
that  it  was  the  habit  of  the  Hebrew 
mind  to  refer  everything  to  the  Messiah, 
to  make  every  past  event  somehow  typical 
of  him,  and  that  Matthew  was  familiar 
with  the  fact  that  before  the  coming 
Jesus  the  Jews  believed,  from  this  of 
passage,  that  the  Messiah  was  to  repeat 
in  his  history  what  had  occurred  in  the 
history  of  his  people.  With  this  knowl- 
edge Matthew  naturally  cited  this  verse 
of  Hosea. 

A  similar  accommodation  occurs  in 
Matt.  ii.  18:  '"In  Rama  was  there  a 
voice  heard,   Rachel  weeping  for  her 


children,"  etc.,  quoted  from  Jeremiah 
xxxi.  15,  where  it  was  applied  to  cir- 
cumstances connected  with  the  Baby- 
lonish captivity.  Dean  Alf ord  says : 
"  We  must  seek  an  explanation  in  the 
acknowledged  system  of  prophetic  inter- 
pretation among  the  Jews,  still  extant 
in  their  rabbinical  books,  and  now  sanc- 
tioned to  us  by  New  Testament  usage  ; 
at  the  same  time  remembering,  for  our 
caution,  how  little  even  now  we  under- 
stand of  the  full  bearing  of  prophetical 
words  and  acts.  None  of  the  expres- 
sions of  this  prophecy  must  be  closely 
and  literally  pressed.  The  link  of  con- 
nection seems  to  be  Rachel's  sepulchre, 
which  (Gen.  xxxv.  19)  was  '  in  the  way 
to  Bethlehem,'  and  perhaps  from  that 
circumstance  the  inhabitants  of  the 
place  were  called  /tei'  cJdkhoi."  (Alford's 
Greek  Test.,  in  loco.) 


48  THE   BIRTH   AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

Jews  who  resided  at  that  time  in  Ileliopolis.     But  there  is  no 
historic  certainty  in  this. 

The  nearness   of  Bethlehem  to  Jeritsalem  allowed  Herod  to 

inform  himself  promptly  of  the  movements  of  the  Magi.     "Wlien 

he  ascei-tained  that  they  had  eluded  him  he  was 

Massacre  of  the  ^^        ^  ^  ^  ^      ^  ^^   ,^  i 

B  thi  h      b  b        exceedmo-ly  angry,  and  sent  and  slew  all  the  male 
children  in  Bethlehem  "  from  two  years  old  and 
under,  according  to  the  time  which  he  had  diligently  inquired 
of  the  Wise  Men." 

This  great  crime  is  consistent  M-ith  the  character  of  the  man 
He  had  ascended  the  throne  through  blood  ;  in  blood  he  had  sus- 
tained himself;  he  had  murdered  his  wife  and  three  sons 
through  the  suspicion  of  jealousy ;  and  he  had  arranged  that  the 
principal  men  of  the  Jewish  nation  should  be  slaughtei'ed  at  his 
death,  that  the  people  might  have  some  occasion  to  mourn,  as  he 
foreknew  what  a  joy  of  relief  they  would  feel  at  the  death  of 
their  tyrant.  He  was  suffering  the  pain  of  a  horrible  and  incur- 
able disease,  loving  life  yet  looking  for  speedy  death.  He  was 
just  in  the  condition  to  connnit  this  outrage. 

That  Josephus  does  not  mention  this  circumstance  is  nothing 
to  the  purpose.  Josephus  did  not  know  everything.  Josephus 
did  not  tell  all  he  knew.  So  many  and  great  were  the  outrageous 
crimes  committed  by  Herod  that,  even  if  this  came  to  the  knowl- 
edge of  Josephus,  it  might  not  have  occurred  to  him  to  mention  it. 
It  did  not  6i)ecially  bear  on  anything  he  had  in  hand,  and  he  had 
told  enough  of  Herod's  history  to  depict  the  character  of  the  wretch 
of  Avhoni  the  Empei'or  Augustus  is  re])orted  to  have  said,  ^^JTerodis 
maIM//ij)orcus  esse  qiiamjilias:  "  "  I  would  i-athcr  be  Herod's  hog 
than  Herod's  son."  There  is  every  pi\)b;il>ility  in  the  history,  and 
nothing  against  it.*  And  ^Matthew  is  as  good  historical  author- 
ity as  any  other  ancient  writer,  and  better  than  Joscj)lius.t  He 
has  a  reason  for  mentioning  this  circumstance,  and  lie  states  what 


*  Unless  you  say  that  it  ia  too  horri- 
dIc  to  be  believed  :  but  why  ?  Herod 
murdered  his  wife  Mariainiie,  and  his 
three  sons,  Alexander.  Aristobulns,  and 
Antipater,  the  latter  just  before  his  own 
death — perhaps  about  the  time  of  the 
Bethlehem  ma-ssacre.     If  ho  killed  his 


of  the  hated  inhabitants  of  an  obscure 
Jewish  ^'illape  ? 

f  J.ichti  iiMfin  Kuppfcsts  that  Josephus 
would  jinrposcly  avoid  eveiTthiii}^  that 
drew  attention  to  the  Messianic  hopes 
of  his  people :  L<irdner  that  he  could 
not  have  mentioned  this  case  without 


own  family,  would   he  feel  any  com-  '  giving  the  Christian  cause  a  great  ad 
punction  at  killing  some  of  the  children  .  vantage. 


HIS    FIEST   TEARS. 


49 


consists  with  the  well-known  character  of  the  man  of  whom  it  is 
related. 

How  many  children  fell  we  cannot  now  know.  Voltaire,  who 
was  always  ready  to  adopt  any  calculations  which  wonld  tend  to 
throw  discredit  on  the  history  in  the  New  Testament,  supposes, 
according  to  an  old  Gentile  tradition,  that  the  number  would  be 
14,000 !  nearly  three  times  as  many  as  the  largest  assigned  popula- 
tion of  Bethlehem.  Sepp  supposed  the  number  of  inhabitants  to 
have  been  about  5,000,  and  this  would  make  the  number  of  chil- 
dren of  the  specified  age  to  be  about  ninety.  Townsend  makes 
the  number  of  inhabitants  at  2,000  ;  the  number  of  slain  cliildren 
would  then  be  about  fifty.  Some  have  said  fifteen.  No  one 
knows. 

Upon  the  death  of  Ilerod  Joseph  had  another  dream,  in  which 
he  saw  an  angel  who  told  him  to  return  to  his  native  land  with 
Mary  and  the  child,  as  his  enemies  were  now 
dead.     Joseph  obeyed  immediately.     He  seems      Return  and  set- 

,,  ,     ,         T^,      .  ,,       .  tlement  in  Naza- 

to  have  naturally  supposed  that  David  s  city  was  ^^^^ 
the  place  where  David's  son  should  be  reared, 
and  so  prepared  to  return  to  Bethlehem.  But  upon  reaching  the 
confines  of  Judsea,  he  learned  that  Archelaus  had  succeeded  to 
the  throne  of  his  father  Herod.  He  knew  that  this  prince  had 
inherited  his  father's  cruelty  and  contempt  of  holy  things,  and  so 
he  was  afraid  to  return  to  Bethlehem,  which  was  within  the  ter- 
ritories of  Archelaus.  Joseph  having  again  been  warned  in  a 
dream  to  go  to  Galilee,  which  was  under  the  dominion  of  the 
mild  Antipas,  seems  to  have  made  a  detour,  travelling  east  of  the 
Jordan,  within  the  territory  of  Ilerod  Philip,  until  he  came  to  be 
opposite  Galilee,  which  he  entered,  and,  proceeding  to  Nazareth, 
settled  his  family  in  that  city.  Jesus  thus  became  confounded 
with  the  despised  Nazarenes.* 

In  this  town  the  first  twelve  years  of  the  life  of  Jesus  were 
spent.  History  gives  us  little  insight  into  this  period  of  his  exist- 
ence.    Luke  says  that  he  "grew  and  waxed  strong  in  spirit,  filled 


*  Matthew  says,  "  that  it  might  be 
fulfilled  which  was  spoken  by  the 
prophets,  He  shall  be  called  a  Nazarene. " 
So  far  as  I  can  discover,  the  Old  Testa- 
ment does  not  contain  any  text  in  which 
the  word  Nazarene  is  applied  to  the 
Messiah,     The  explanation  may  be  that 

4 


prophets  had  described  the  Messiah  as  a 
despised  person,  as  the  Nazarenes  were. 
See  John  i.  46,  where  Nathanael  quotes 
the  proverb,  ' '  Can  any  good  thing  come 
out  of  Nazareth  ?  "  In  Isaiah  liiL  we 
have  a  specimen  of  the  general  prophecy. 


50  THE   BIRTH    AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

with  wisdom  ;  and  tlie  grace  of  God  was  upon  liini."  He  had 
for  his  playmates  liis  younger  half-brothers,  children  born  to  Mary 
after  Jesus,  together  with  his  cousins,  the  children  of  Cleopas. 
At  his  mother's  knee  he  learned  language  and  the  elements  of 
religious  thought,  lie  was  probaljly  engaged  in  assisting  in  the 
ordinary  affaire  of  the  household  as  he  grew  older,  and  perhaps 
assisted  his  reputed  father  Joseph  in  his  business  as  a  carpenter. 
The  silence  of  history  is  filled  with  the  babblings  of  tradition, 
which  seems  to  delight  to  crowd  these  twelve  yeare  with  wonder- 
ful fantasies.  We  may  rely  only  upon  what  is  certainly  affirmed, 
and  yet  it  is  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  wonderful  child  car- 
ried with  him  the  unconscious  air  of  an  innocent  soul  that  has 
uncommon  depths  of  spiritual  introspection,  and  is  being  fitted 
for  a  marvellous  destiny. 

So  great  is  the  influence  of  the  surroundings  of  the  young  that 
the  situation  and  the  scenery  of  Nazareth  must  hereafter  forever 
be  a  study  of  profound  interest  to  every  student  of  the  growth  of 
character.  There  is  none  more  jjlowino:  than  the  foUowinir,  M'ith 
which  M.  Renan  closes  the  second  chapter  of  his  "  Life  of 
Jesus"  : 

"  Nazareth  was  a  little  town,  situated  in  a  fold  of  land  broadly  open  at 
the  summit  of  the  group  of  mountains  wliicli  closes  on  the  noitli  the  i)lain  of 
Esdraelon.  Tlie  population  is  now  from  three  to  four  thousand,  and  it  can- 
not liave  varied  much.  It  is  quite  cold  in  mntor,  and  the  climate  is  very 
healthy.  Tlie  to^vn,  like  all  the  Jewish  villages  of  the  time,  was  a  mass  of 
dwellings  built  -ft-ithout  pretensions  to  style,  and  must  have  presented  that 
poor  and  uninteresting  appearance  which  is  offered  by  villages  in  Semitic 
countries.  Tlie  houses,  from  all  that  appeara,  did  not  differ  much  from  those 
cubes  of  stone,  without  interior  or  exterior  elegance,  which  now  cover  the 
richest  portion  of  Lebanon,  and  which,  in  the  niitlst  of  vines  and  fig-trees, 
are  nevertheless  very  pleaeant.  The  environs,  moreover,  are  cliarming,  and 
no  place  in  tlie  world  was  so  well  adapted  to  dreams  of  absolute  happiness. 

"Even  in  our  days  Nazareth  is  a  delightful  sojourn,  the  only  place  perhaps 
in  Palestine  where  tlie  soul  feels  a  little  relieved  of  the  liurdcn  wliieh  weighs 
upon  it  in  the  midst  of  this  unequalled  desolation.  The  people  are  friendly 
and  good-natured;  the  gardens  are  fresh  and  green.  Antonius  Alartyr,  at 
the  end  of  the  sixth  century,  draws  an  enchanting  picture  of  the  fertility 
of  the  environs,  which  he  coinjiares  to  paradise.  Some  valleys  on  the  western 
side  fully  justify  his  description.  The  fountain,  about  which  the  life  and 
gayety  of  the  little  to>\-n  centred,  has  been  destroyed;  its  broken  channels 
now  give  but  a  turbid  water.  But  the  Iteauty  of  the  women  who  gatlier  tliero 
at  niglit — tliis  beauty  which  was  already  remarked  in  the  sixth  century,  and 
in  which  was  seen  the  gift  of  tlie  Virgin  Mary,  has  been  suri)risingly  wcU 


HIS   riEST   TEAKS.  51 

presei-ved.  It  is  the  Syrian  type,  in  all  its  languishing  grace.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  Mary  was  there  nearly  every  day,  and  took  her  place,  "vnth  her  urn 
upon  her  shoulder,  in  the  same  line  with  her  unremembcred  countrywomen. 
Antonius  Martyr  remarks  that  the  Jewish  women,  elsewhere  disdainful  to 
Cliristians,  are  here  full  of  affability.  Even  at  this  day  religious  animositie-s 
are  lefes  intense  at  Nazareth  than  elsewhere. 

"The  horizon  of  the  town  is  limited;  but  if  we  ascend  a  little  to  the  pla- 
teau, swept  by  a  perjDetual  breeze,  which  commands  the  highest  houses,  the 
prospect  is  splendid.  To  the  west  are  unfolded  the  beautiful  lines  of  Carmel, 
tei-minating  in  an  abrupt  point,  which  seems  to  plunge  into  the  sea.  Then 
stretch  away  the  double  summit  which  looks  down  upon  Megiddo,  the  moun- 
tains of  the  counti-y  of  Shechem,  -with  their  holy  places  of  the  patriarchal 
age,  the  mountains  of  Gilboa,  the  picturesque  little  group  with  which  are 
associated  the  graceful  and  terrible  memories  of  Solam  and  Endor,  and 
Thabor,  with  its  finely  rounded  form,  which  antiquity  compared  to  a  breast. 
Tln-ough  a  depression  between  the  mountains  of  Solam  and  Thal^or  are  seen 
the  valley  of  the  Jordan  and  the  high  plains  of  Paraea,  which  form  a  contin- 
uous line  in  the  east.  To  the  north,  the  mountains  of  Safcd,  sloping  towards 
the  sea,  hide  St.  Jean  d'Acre,  but  disclose  the  gulf  of  Khaifa.  Such  was  the 
horizon  of  Jesus. 

"  This  enchanted  circle,  the  cradle  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  represented  the 
world  to  him  for  years.  His  life  even  went  little  beyond  the  limits  familiar 
to  his  childhood.  For  beyond,  to  the  north,  you  almost  see  upon  the  slope 
of  Hemion,  Cesarea  Philippi,  his  most  advanced  point  into  the  Gentile  world, 
and  to  the  south,  you  feel  behind  these  already  less  cheerful  mountains  of 
Samaria,  sad  Judaea,  withered  as  by  a  burning  blast  of  abstraction  and  of 
death." 

Joseph  and  Mary  ^vere  accustomed  to  go  up  annually  to  Jenisa- 
lem  to  attend  the  Passover  Festival.  When  Jesus  reached  the 
age  of  twelve  he  was  carried  to  the  Temple,  to 
be  initiated  into  the  regular  study  of  the  law,  and  '^^^^^  ^^^^^ 
to  begin  the  observance  of  the  festivals  and  fasts  ^  °^  °^^' 
of  the  Jewish  church.  The  Jews  believed  the  age  of  twelve  to 
be  the  line  dividing  childhood  from  youth.  At  that  period  one 
was  called  "son  of  the  law,"  and  first  incurred  legal  responsi- 
bility.* 

This  incident  is  the  only  passage  in  the  early  life  of  Jesus  of 
which  we  have  any  reliable  historical  account.  But  it  is  full  of 
interest. 

lie  was  a  remarkable  child,  born  under  remarkable  circum- 
stances, which  had  undoubtedly  been  narrated  to  him,  and  which 

*  Josephus  states  that  when  he  was  i  city  met  with  him  to  put  questions  tc 
fourteen  years  of  age  the  priests  of  the  \  him  about  the  law 


52  THE   BIETn    ANT)   CIIILDnOOD   OF   JESUS. 

he  had  pondered  as  he  read  the  law  and  tlie  prophets,  or  heard 
tlieni  read.  He  had  never  been  in  the  Temple  since  he  was  an 
infant.  Now  the  sight  of  the  solemn  fane  and  the  holy  rites, 
amid  the  excitement  of  the  great  crowds  who  were  present,  must 
have  stirred  the  depths  of  this  profound  young  soul.  A  solemn 
sense  of  his  spiritual  capabilities,  and  perhaps  an  awful  presenti- 
ment of  his  tremendous  destiny  must  have  come  upon  him.  lie 
began  to  be  revealed  to  himself.  lie  did  not  put  himself  forward 
as  a  teacher  among  those  white-haired  rabbis.  Ilis  hour  had  not 
yet  come.  But  he  was  neither  a  stupid  nor  a  frivolous  boy.  His 
rare  fine  spirit  had  been  developing  itself  amid  the  quiet  scenes 
of  nature,  and  he  had  been  hjoking  into  the  faces  of  the  most 
profound  and  puzzling  questions.  Many  a  bright  day  from  the 
heights  near  iSTazareth  he  had  gazed  upon  the  grand  scenery  about 
liim,  turning  over  what  he  had  heard  of  the  historic  associations 
of  such  famous  places  as  were  in  sight,  feeling  his  blood  tingle 
with  the  touches  of  autumnal  breezes  or  glowing  in  the  rich 
warmth  of  the  first  spring ;  and  Life  and  Man,  the  Seen  and  the 
Unseen,  Nature  and  Supemature,  held  their  problems  up  to  his 
soul.  And  he  dared  to  study  them.  At  twelve  he  was  ready  to 
ask  questions  even  of  rabbis.  The  custom  of  the  Jewish  schools 
was  for  the  scholars  to  ask  questions  of  the  teachers,  and  much 
of  rabbinical  literature  consists  of  answers  to  such  interrogato- 
ries. The  questions  a  man  asks  are  as  indicative  of  his  character 
as  the  positive  sayings  that  go  out  of  his  mouth.  If  history  had 
preserved  these  questions  which  he  asked  in  the  Tem])lo,  we 
should  be  helped  in  our  study  of  Jesus.  It  records  simply  the 
creneral  fact  that  his  learned  liearei-s  were  astonished  at  his  under- 
standing. 

AVlicn  the  Paschal  ceremonies  were  ended,  Joseph  and  Mary 

started  to  return  to  Nazareth.     They  did  not  at  firet  perceive  that 

Jesus  was  not  of  the  company.     They  had  been 

M  ssed  by  Jo-    g^  accustomed  to  his  obedience  as  to  rely  upon  his 
seph  and  Mary.  1 1  •  '•  • 

promptness.     Lastern  travellei-s  in  ancient  times 

ordinarily  made  a  short  journey  on  the  first  day.     Perhaps  Joseph 

and  Mary  did  not  start  until  some  time  in  the  afternoon,  and 

then  in  company  with  many  othei*s.     When   they  pitc-hed  their 

tents  that  night  they  discovered  his  absence.     They  returned  to 

Jerusalem.     Luke  says  that  "  after  three  days  they  found  him." 

This  probably  includes  their  first  day  out,  tlie  second  day,  in  which 


HIS   FIEST   YEARS.  53 

they  returned  and  inquired,  and  the  third  day,  when  they  found 
him.  He  was  in  the  Temple,  among  the  rabbis,  astounding  them 
by  asking  questions,  startling  by  reason  of  their  artless  depth  and 
amazing  significance.* 

Mary — not  Joseph — spoke  to  him.  She  and  Joseph  knew  their 
relations  to  the  boy.  And  Mary  said,  "Son,  why  have  you  dealt 
so  with  us?  Behold,  your  father  and  I  have  sought  you  sorrow- 
ing." Up  to  that  time  he  seems  to  have  regarded  Joseph  as  his 
father,  and  to  have  behaved  towards  him  in  that  relation.  But  in 
his  public  teachings  he  never  acknowledged  Joseph  as  his  father. 
If  Mary  had  said  "  we,"  the  remarkable  answer  in  which  Jesus  ex- 
presses his  sense  of  his  own  intimate  relationship  with  God  could 
not  have  been  given.  But  "your  father  and  I"  brings  it.  With 
tender  reproachf  ulness  Jesus  replied :  "  How  is  it  that  you  sought 
me?  Did  you  not  know  that  I  must  be  about  my  Father's  busi- 
ness?" As  if  he  would  remind  his  mother  that  she  ouo-ht  to 
know  from  his  extraordinary  introduction  to  the  world  that  his 
was  to  be  an  extraordinary  life.  As  if  he  would  remind  her  of 
the  fact  that  at  the  Annunciation  she  had  been  told  by  the  angel 
that  her  child  was  to  be  the  "Son  of  the  Most  High."  All  this 
she  knew;  but  now  it  comes  home  to  her  with  power,  when  that 
simple,  ingenuous,  noble  child  stands  up  in  the  house  of  God  and 
claims  his  Divine  Paternity. 

Of  this  only  authenticated  saying  of  Jesus  in  his  childhood,  Stier 
beautifully  says:  "  Solitary  floweret  out  of  the  wonderful  inclosed 
garden  of  thirty  years,  plucked  precisely  there  where  the  swollen 
bud,  at  a  distinctive  crisis,  bursts  into  flower.  To  mark  that  is 
assuredly  the  design  and  the  meaning  of  this  record.  The  child 
Jesus  sought  to  know  himself,  and  his  whole  life  of  childhood 
was  this  seeking." 

All  these  things  Mary  laid  up  in  her  heart,  and  most  probably 
after  the  death  of  Jesus  told  them  to  Luke.  This  sounds  like  a 
mother's  narrative  repeated  by  a  historian. 

That  Jesus  had  accumulated  a  vast  number  of  questions  touch- 
ing God  and  man,  life  and  death,  the  seen  and  tlie  invisil)le,  it  is 
most  natural  to  suppose.  One  also  naturally  thinks  that  those 
questions  must  have  been  based  largely  upon  the  Hebrew  sacred 

*  "  To  answer  children  is  indeed  an     scribes  and  sophists  must  know  how  to 


sxamen  rigororuni, "  says  Hamann.    And 
again,  "  He  who  will  stop  the  mouths  of 


put  questions."     (Edition  of  Roth,   ii 
424.) 


54  THE   BLRXn   AND   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

books,  and  that  when  he  should  find  an  opportunity  of  going  to 
ecclesiastical  headquarters  and  visiting  the  appointed  expounders 
of  the  law  and  the  official  explainers  of  the  pnjphets,  he  would 
j>ropound  such  questions,  and  that  his  interrogatories  would  not 
be  captious  or  critical  or  superficial,  about  tithes  and  such  trifles, 
l)ut  such  as  the  solemn  tone  and  the  special  deep  phrases  of  the 
Hebrew  oracles  would  suggest  to  a  child  t)f  such  exquisite  genius 
and  sucii  extraordinary  spirituality.  Would  they  not  naturally 
run  along  the  lofty  line  of  Messianic  hope  and  promise  which  his 
gifted  ancestor  David  had  dra^vn  ?  Would  they  not  push  against 
the  doors  to  spiritual  freedom  and  the  emancipation  of  humanity 
which  Isaiah  seems  to  have  set  ajar? 

"NVlien  this  marvellous  child  came  amid  the  rabbis  and  bejran 
to  ask  these  questions,  no  wonder  they  were  amazed.  But  he 
must  have  been  disappointed.  Blindness  was  on  the  eyes  of  the 
teachers  in  Jerusalem.  The  more  he  pressed  his  simple  questions 
the  more  he  must  have  felt  that  sense  of  his  ommi  sonship,  of  that 
intimate  nearness  to  the  Father  of  spirits  which  luis  singled  him 
from  among  the  company  of  the  sons  of  God  as  the  elder  brother 
of  humanity.  They  could  not  instruct  him  as  to  Jehovah's  An- 
nointed.  Years  after,  on  his  last  visit  to  Jerusalem,  in  the 
last  week  of  his  public  ministry,  in  this  same  Temple,  Jesus  pro- 
jiouuded  to  this  same  school  of  teaching  the  questions,  "What 
think  ye  of  Christ?  Whose  son  is  he ? "  (Matt.  xxii.  42.)  Did 
not  his  first  questions  have  the  same  bearing? 

Two  things  seem  to  have  come  strongly  to  hini  from  this  visit; 
his  own  Peculiarity  and  the  Worthlessness  of  the  religious  teach- 
ing of  his  nation.  To  what  extent  the  foi-mer  we  do  not  know. 
If  it  was  a  wide  view  and  a  profound  conviction,  he  kept  it  hum- 
bly folded  in  his  soul  and  bided  his  time. 

Then  he  went  down  with  Mary  and  Joseph  to  Nazareth,  and 
abode  with  them,  and  was  subject  to  them.     For  another  space, 

^.  ,  coveriuff  eighteen   ycare,  we  have  an  mibrokcn 

Eighteen   years       ,,  '^        ^^  tt-  i  n 

in  Nazareth  Silence  as  to  Jesus.    History  does  not  utter  a  sylla- 

ble. But  during  all  that  season  he  was  ripening ; 
and  the  times  were  ri]>eiiing.  He  lived  a  life  of  some  activity, 
}»ri)bal»ly  working  with  his  reputed  fatlier  at  the  bench  of  the  car- 
penter. He  led  also  probably  a  social  life,  making  and  receiving 
vifits,  as  his  })rc6enco  at  the  marriage  in  Cana  would  seem  to  im- 
])ly  that  he  was  in  friendly,  cheerful  intercoui-se  with  the  people 


HIS    FIKST   YEAKS.  55 

of  his  neighborhood.  Beyond  this  we  cannot  penetrate.  "We 
only  know  that  when  a  man  achieves  in  a  few  jeai's  a  great  work 
the  influence  of  which  lasts,  he  must  somehow  through  his  pre- 
vious life  have  been  accumulating  assets  of  power  to  meet  the 
drafts  of  his  crisis.  Jesus  was  no  exception.  He  was  thirty 
years  growing  in  the  preparation  to  do  the  work  of  three. 

That  preparation  could  hardly  have  embraced  what  we  call 
"  learning,"  in  any  sense  beyond  a  study  of  the  ancient  Hebrew 
Scripture.  Hellenism,  which  embraces  what  we  generally  con- 
ceive to  be  the  culture  of  the  Greeks,  had  not  penetrated  to  the 
obscure  town  in  which  Jesus  spent  his  early  life.  Indeed  it  was 
discouraged  by  the  Jews  throughout  Judea.  In»the  Talmud  of 
Jerusalem  (Peah.  i.  1)  a  story  is  told  of  a  learned  rabbi,  who, 
when  asked  at  what  time  it  was  projDer  to  teach  a  child  the  wis- 
dom of  the  Greeks,  replied  :  "  At  the  hour  when  it  is  neither  day 
nor  night,  for  it  is  written  of  the  law,  '  Thou  shalt  study  it  day 
and  night.' "  He  must  also  have  been  preserved  from  what  M. 
Renan  happily  calls  the  "  grotesque  scholasticism  "  at  that  time 
taught  in  Jerusalem,  and  which  shortly  after  was  embodied  in 
the  Talmud.   He  had  no  reo-ular  theolomcal  training. 

O  o  O 


CHAPTER    V. 

PUBLIC  ATFAIES  DUEING   THE   CHILDHOOD   AKD    YOUTH    OF   JESU8. 

JUD^A. 

"VTiiKX  Jesus  was  born  Herod  was  near  his  end,  perishing  of  an 
Incurable  disease.  His  reign  had  been  one  of  oppression  and 
jj      ,  terror  to  the  Jews,  but  so  skilful  a  politician  was 

he  that  no  combination  had  been  able  to  break 
liis  influence  at  Rome.  He  continued  his  crimes  up  to  the  very 
day  of  his  death.  He  had  slain  his  wife  on  suspicion,  that 
Mariannie  whom  he  so  loved  that  after  her  death  he  M'ould  go 
howling  for  her  through  his  palace.  lie  had  slain  his  two  sons, 
Alexander  and  Aristobulus,  and  just  before  he  died  he  slew  a 
third  son,  Antipater. 

lie  had  outraged  the  religious  sentiments  of  the  Jews.  He 
had  l)uilt  a  theatre  in  the  Holy  City.  He  had  introduced  Roman 
games,  in  which  gladiators  and  wild  beasts  fought.  He  had  put 
up  the  Golden  Eagle  over  the  gate  of  the  temi)le,  probably  about 
the  time  he  had  inscribed  the  name  of  Agrippa  over  the  gate. 
The  Jews  regarded  this  as  a  breach  of  the  Second  Command- 
ment. It  was  intolerable  to  them.  '  It  was  "  an  abomination  of 
desolation."  At  the  instigation  of  two  rabbis  there  was  an  up- 
rising, and  on  a  false  report  of  the  death  of  Herod  the  young 
men  of  the  city  tore  down  the  hated  thing  in  open  daylight. 
Herod  caused  the  rabbis  to  be  burnt  alive,  the  high-priest  Mat- 
thias to  be  deposed,  and  Joazar  to  take  his  place. 

This,  in  brief,  was  the  state  of  affaii*s  in  Jerusalem  when  He- 
rod died,  as  related  at  large  by  Joseplms  {A?it.y  book  xvii.) 

To  underetand  the  history  of   the  times  of   Jesus   we   must 

know  the  condition  of  the  Jews  and  the  course  of  their  rulei-s,  of 

^     .,     -  „  whom  members   of    the  familv  of  Ilcrod  were 

Family  of  Heroa. 

chief  in  the  first  year  of  Jesus.  We  need  only 
notice  the  children  of  the  fii-st  five  wives  of  Herod,  in  a  table 
adapted  from  Smith's  JV.  T.  History. 


PUBLIC    AFFAIKS   DUEING   THE   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS.  67 

1.  Before  his  accession  to  the  throne  Ilerod  married  i)or/5/ 
and  her  only  son,  Antipater,  was  the  %dctim  of  'his  father's  dying 
rage.  2.  Aristobulus,  his  eldest  (son  by  Mariamne,  the  grand- 
daughter of  Hyrcanus),  was  the  parent  of  a  large  family,  and 
from  him  were  descended  the  two  Agrippas,  the  first  of  whom 
was  the  "  Iving  Herod  "  who  slew  James  and  imprisoned  Peter  ; 
the  second  the  "  King  Agruppa  "  before  whom  Paul  j^leaded. 
3.  After  the  murder  of  Mariamne  Ilerod  married  another 
Mariamne^  daughter  of  the  high-priest  Simon  :  her  son  was  He- 
EOD  Philip,  whose  marriage  with  his  niece  TIerodias,  daughter  of 
Aristobulus,  followed  by  her  divorce  of  him  to  marry  his  half- 
brother,  Herod  Antipas,  to  whom  she  stood  in  the  same  relation, 
led  to  the  martyrdom  of  John  the  Baptist.  He  is  often  con- 
founded with  his  half-brother  Philip,  the  Tetrarch  of  Ituraea. 
4r.  His  next  wife,  Malthace,  a  Samaritan,  was  the  mother  of 
Herod  Antipas  and  Akghelaus.  5.  By  Cleojpatra  he  had  two 
Bons,  the  younger  of  whom  was  Philip,  the  Tetrarch  of  Iturjea 
and  the  adjacent  districts,  with  Trachonitis.  6.  His  other  wives 
and  their  children  are  of  no  consequence  in  the  history.  These 
complicated  relations  will  be  made  clearer  by  the  following  con- 
Bpectus  of  the  chief  personages  with  whom  the  history  is  con- 
cerned for  the  four  generations  of  the  family  : 

A. — Herod  the  Great. 

WiTES.  Sons. 

1.  Doris 1.  Antipater.  \  -^        x  j   .      xi.  •    j! 

2.  Mariamne,  grandd.  of  Hyrca-  j  3.  Aristobulus.  \  E^erated  by  their  fa- 

nus  n  -j  3.  Alexander.  j      ^^^  ^^  ^  lifetime. 

3.  Mariamne,   d.  of  Simon V'  ^^^^^^^  ^^P  ^      I  ^""^^^  ^^  ^  P^^^^^  P^'" 

'  {  m.  Herodias.  )      son. 

4.  Malthace,  a  Samaritan W'  ^^""f.  ^''^^^^  * " '     11^^^''\  °^.  ?^1'^^^- 

'  (6.  Archelaus Etnnarch  of  Judaea. 

5.  Cleopatra ^  m.  Salome^d.'^f  Philip  \  Tetrarch   of  Northern 

(      I.  and  of  Herodias.  )      ^^raja,  etc. 

B. — Children  op  Aristobulus. 

1.  Herod  Agrippa  I King  of  Judaea. 

2.  Herodias,  m. — 

(1.)  Herod  Philip  I. 
(2.)  Herod  Antipas. 

C. — Children  of  Herod  Agrippa  I. 

1.  Herod  Agrippa  II.  (titular  king) Tetrarch  of  X.  Perjea.  eta 

2.  Bemice Named  in  Acts  xxv.  23. 

3.  Drusilla,  m.  to  Felix Named  in  Acts  xxiv.  24. 


68  THE   BIETU    AND   CHILDHOOD   OP   JESUS. 

Ilcrod  made  a  will  in  favor  of  the  cliildreu  of  Maltliacc,  name- 
ly, Ileiud  Antipas  and  Archelaus.     At  fii-st  Antipas  Mas  named 

as  the  successor;  but  the  final  codicil  gave  the 

succession  to  Archelaus.  To  Antipas  was  left  the 
government  of  Galilee  and  Peitea,  with  the  title  of  tetrarch.  In 
his  domain  Jesus  spent  the  larger  portion  of  his  life.  To  Ilerod 
Philip  II.  was  left  the  territory  and  government  of  Ituriua,  Gau- 
lonitis,  and  Batnnea,  with  the  title  of  tetrarch. 

As  soon  as  Herod's  death  was  known  the  soldiery  were  gath- 
ered together  in  the  amphitheatre.  A  letter  from  Ilerod  waa 
read,  in  which  he  thanked  the  army  for  their  fidelity  to  him,  and 
exhorted  them  to  be  as  faithful  to  Archelaus.  Then  the  kingf's 
last  testament  was  read,  in  which  he  named  his  successor.  Ar- 
chelaus was  acclaimed  king. 

He  addressed  himself  at  once  to  the  discharge  of  his  last  filial 
duties.     He  took  care  that  the  funeral  of  his  father  should  be 

most  sumptuous.     A   golden   bier,   embroidered 
unera  o        -    ^^.-^^  prccious  stoncs,  held  the  body,  which  waa 

covered  Avith  pui-ple.  The  dead  monarch  had  a 
diadem  upon  his  head,  over  which  was  a  crown  of  gold  ;  he  also 
had  a  sceptre  in  his  right  hand.  The  bier  was  surrounded  by  the 
sons  and  numerous  relatives  of  the  deceased.  Next  to  these  the 
guard  and  band,  dressed  according  to  their  nationalities — Thra- 
cians,  Germans,  Galatians — tlien  the  whole  army  followed  ''  in  the 
same  maimer  as  they  used  to  go  out  to  war,  and  as  they  used  to 
be  put  in  array  by  their  nuister-masters  and  centurions;  these 
were  followed  by  five  hundred  of  his  d<jmestics  carrying  si)ice8. 
And  so,"  says  Josephus  {Ant,  book  x\  i.  chap.  8),  "  they  went  eight 
furlongs  to  Ilerodium,  for  there  by  his  own  command  he  was  to  be 
buried."  From  Jericho,  where  Ilerod  died,  to  Ilerodium,  wliere  he 
was  buried,  was  a  distance  of  two  hundred  furlongs,  and  if  the 
account  of  Jose])hus  means  that  the  procession  moved  at  tlie  rate  of 
eiglit  furlongs  a  day,  tliis  pomp  continued  no  less  than  twenty  days. 
AMiile  Archelaus  was  thus  publicly  mourning  for  his  father,  he 
was  said  to  be  i)rivatcly  spending  his  nights  in   revelry.     Tlie 

mourning  done,  he  went  up  to  the  Tem})le,  took 

Archelaus.  Trou-     j^j^  ^^^^  ^  ^  ^j^j.^^^^  ^f         jj^         j.^  COnciliating- 

bles  in  pcttliiig  the     ,  ,  ,  .      ■■  •      i      i  ^i  • 

o„«„«=m;^«  Iv  to  the  multitude,  iM-onnsed   tliem  cvervtlnng, 

but  declined  to  assinne  the  crown  imtil  the  will 

of  hie  father  had  been  ratified  by  Coesar. 


PUBLIC   AFFAIRS   DUKENG   THE   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 


59 


Archelaus 
Rome. 


But,  almost  iiiiniediately  after,  a  sedition  was  raised  in  the  city. 
The  people  began  a  lamentation  for  the  two  mart}T^  who  had 
perished  in  the  affair  of  tlie  Eagle.  At  the  Passover,  at  the  time  of 
the  evening  sacrifice,  this  feeling  became  deep,  and  broke  into  cries 
for  vengeance.  Archelaus  sent  his  general  to  explain  and  remon- 
strate. But  it  was  of  no  avail.  The  upshot  of  the  riot  was  the 
slaughter  of  three  thousand  men  and  the  breaking  up  of  the  feast. 

Archelaus  then  went  to  Rome  to  secure  the  establishment  of 
his  kingdom  by  an  imperial  edict.  He  carried  with  him  the 
eloquent  orator  Nicholas  of  Damascus,  who  had 
been  a  faithful  friend  of  his  father.  With  him 
also  was  his  intriguing  aunt,  Salome,  who  was 
secretly  in  the  interest  of  his  brother,  Plerod  Antipas.  The  Jews 
sent  after  him  a  deputation  of  five  hundred  of  their  chief  men, 
praying  Ciesar  to  abolish  the  monarchy  and  let  them  be  governed 
by  their  own  laws.  They  made  what  capital  they  could  of  the 
inauspicious  events  which  had  attended  the  beginning  of  his 
government.* 

While  Archelaus  was  in  Rome,  Jerusalem  was  in  charge  of 
Sabinus,  the  Roman  procurator  of  the  province.  He  was  a  vio- 
lent, tyrannical,  avaricious  coward.  He  made 
diligent  search  for  the  late  king's  treasure,  and 
did  not  scruple  to  take  even  the  sacred  treasure, 
devise  means  to  exasperate  the  Jews.  The  smouldering  fires  of 
fanatic  determination  to  fi-ee  their  country  from  the  Roman  yoke 
were  fanned  into  a  flame.  When  Pentecost  came  vast  multitudes 
of  men  from  all  parts  of  the  country  flocked  to  Jerusalem,  mani- 
festly full  of  bitterness  and  ready  for  mischief.  They  encamped 
about  the  Temple,  and  besieged  Sabinus,  who  fi'om  a  lofty  tower, 
to  which  he  had  betaken  himself  for  safety,  gave  a  signal  to  his 
troops  to  issue  foi-th  against  the  besiegers.  Much  slaughter  was 
on  both  sides.  The  Jews  were  repulsed,  but  betook  themselves 
to  the  Temple,  from  the  heights  of  whicli  they  rained  arrows  on 
the  Romans,  who  could  not  reach  their  enemies.     The  Romans, 


Sabinus. 


He  seemed  to 


*  Perhaps  it  is  to  this  that  Jesus  allud- 
ed in  the  parable  reported  by  Luke  (xix. 
12-27):  "  A  certain  nobleman  (  fycfn^,  a 
man  of  birth  or  rank,  the  son  of  Herod) 
went  into  a  far  country  {Italy)  to  re- 
ceive for  himself  a  kingdom  (Judaa), 


and  to  return.  But  his  citizens  {tJie 
Jeics)  hated  him,  and  sent  a  message  (or 
embnsst/)  after  hira.  (to  Augustus  Casar), 
saying,  '  We  will  not  have  this  man  to 
reign  over  us.' " 


60 


THE   BIRTH    AND   CllILDUOOD    OF   JESUS. 


Varus. 


Archelaus  con- 
finned. 


however,  set  fire  to  the  cloisters,  the  roof  fell  in,  and  many  were 
precipitated  into  the  flames.  Those  who  were  not,  were  either 
slain  by  the  Romans  or  threw  themselves  upon  their  swords  or  into 
the  fire.  The  troops  of  Sabinus  broke  into  the  Tem])le  and  plun- 
dered the  sacred  treasures;  but  the  Jews,  furious  at  the&e  outrages, 
continued  the  siege. 

Meanwhile  disbanded  troops  of  Ilerod  roamed  over  the  coun- 
try plundering  and  ravaging.  The  people  were  driven  about, 
and  many  of  the  villages  were  destroyed.  The 
utmost  confusion  prevailed  in  Jerusalem  and  in  the 
rural  districts.  Varus,  the  prefect  of  Syria,  marched  to  the  relief  of 
Sabinus  with  a  great  force.  The  insurgents  laid  down,  their  ai-ms ; 
two  thousand  were  crucified,  and  the  others  sent  to  Rome  for  trial. 
Notwithstanding  the  influence  brought  to  bear  against  him, 
Archelaus  succeeded  in  securing  from  Augustus  so  much  of  a 
confinnation  of  his  father  Herod's  will  as  to  make 
him  not  king  indeed  over  the  whole  country,  but 
ethnarch  of  Judtea,  Idumaja,  and  Samaria,  one- 
half  of  that  which  had  been  subject  to  Ilerod.  Archelaus  was 
also  promised  the  royal  dignity  if  he  should  govern  so  as  to 
deserve  it.  lie  retained  also  the  chief  cities  of  Jerut^alem,  Se- 
baste,  Cffisarea,  and  Joppa.  His  income  was  six  hundred  talents.* 
Upon  his  return  he  seemed  disposed  in  some  measure  to  conciliate 
the  Jews.  The  only  act  of  his,  however,  which  had  much  con- 
cern with  their  history,  was  his  displacement  of  Joazar,  whom 
Ilerod  had  made  high-priest  after  the  afi^air  of  the  Eagle,  and 
the  substitution  of  Eleazar,  Joazar's  brother.  But  his  general 
course  was  tyrannous  towards  Jews  and  Samaritans,  and  the 
liatred  of  the  Jews  for  him  was  increased  by  his  violation  of  their 
law.  Glajihyra  was  his  sister-in-law,  having  been  the  wife  of  his 
brother  Alexander.  After  his  father  Ilerod  had  killed  him,  Gla- 
phyra  married  Juba,  king  of  Lydia,  and  Mhen  he  died  Archelaus 
divorced  his  wife  Mariauuieand  married  Gla])hyia.  She  had  had 
three  children  by  his  brother  Alexander,  which  made  it  offensive 
to  the  Jewish  law  for  Archelaus  to  marry  her.  The  Jewish  peo]>le 
made  suflicient  interest  in  Rome  to  cause  Archelaus  to  be  recalled 


*  A  BhekeL  in  the  times  of  Joscphus, 
from  whom  we  have  the  8tiit<»mcnts  in  the 
text,  was  worth  about  70  cents  in  t'old, 
and  3,0U0  shekels  beiii^'  to  a  talent,  the 


talent  waa  worth  about  f2,100;  and 
the  income  of  Archelaus  must  hava 
been  about  |1, 800,000  in  g..Ul. 


PCBLIC   AFFAIRS   DURING   THE   CIIILDHOOD    OF   JESUS.  61 

and  examined.  The  result  was  that  Augustus  stripped  him  of  his 
rule,  at  tlie  end  of  ten  years  after  his  appointment,  took  away  his 
money,  and  banished  him  to  Vieniie,  in  Gaul,  where  he  died,  the 
year  unknown. 

In  the  meantime  the  excited  state  of  the  public  mind  rendered 
it  possible  for  many  pretenders  and  impostors  to  palm  themselves 
upon  the  people  and  add  to  tlie  general  troubles  and  perplexities. 
One  case  was  notable. 

There  was  in  the  city  of  Sidon  a  young  man,  by  birth  a  Jew, 

who  had  been  educated  by  a  Roman  f  reedman.     His  resemblance 

to  Alexander,  one  of  the  sons  of  Herod  whom  he 

had  slain,  was  so  striking:  that  many  were  ready  f  ^^^" 

'  °  .  .  exander. 

to  attest  that  he  was   Alexander.     Discovering 

this  he  turned  it  to  his  own  account,  and  united  with  "  an  ill  man  " 
who  had  great  cunning.  The  story  put  forth  was,  that  he  was  the 
real  Alexander,  brother  of  Aristobulus,  and  that  those  whom 
Herod  sent  to  destroy  him  had  actually  saved  him  and  his  brother, 
slaying  other  men  in  their  stead.  In  Crete  and  in  Melos  the 
Jews  believed  him  the  true  Alexander,  and  gave  him  much 
money.'  He  had  the  audacity  to  go  to  Home.  The  Jews  of  that 
city,  learning  that  he  was  coming,  went  out  to  meet  him,  brought 
him  in  a  royal  litter  through  the  streets,  and  adorned  him  with 
ornaments  at  their  o^vn  expense.  There  was  great  joy  at  what 
they  supposed  a  special  providence.  So  great  a  stir  did  this  make 
that  the  report  reached  Augustus,  who  sent  for  this  pseudo- 
Alexander  and  his  accomplice.  The  emperor  soon  detected  the 
imposture.  The  Prince  Alexander  had  lived  in  his  palace,  and 
Augustus  knew  his  physique.  This  man's  hands  and  body  had 
all  the  roughness  which  belongs  to  a  laboring  man,  while  Alex- 
ander's had  had  the  smoothness  of  those  who  are  reared  delicately 
in  kings'  palaces.  So  Augustus  took  the  young  man  aside  and 
told  him  of  the  discovery,  and  that  he  thought  the  plan  too  deep 
to  have  been  concocted  by  one  so  young,  and  that  if  he  would 
reveal  his  accomplices  his  life  should  be  spared.  He  did.  He 
was  put  to  the  galleys  and  his  accomplice  was  put  to  death.* 
And  so,  again,  had  the  hopes  of  the  Jews  been  raised  and  dashed. 
Upon  the  banishment  of  Archelaus,  Judsea,  including  Samaria, 
was  reduced  to  the  state  of  a  Roman  province  and  go\ei'ned  by  a 

*  Josephus,  Ant.,  book  xvii  ch.  12, 


63  THE   BIRTH    AND   Crin.DHOOD   OF   .TESUS. 

procurator,  who  was  the  subordinate  of  the  Prefect  of  Syria.  Tlie 
Homan  dependencies  were  of  two  classes, — those  which  were  gov- 
erned solely  by  the  Emperor,  and  those  which  were  under  the 
direction  of  the  Senate.  The  former  were  the  imperial,  the  latter 
the  senatorian  provinces ;  the  former  were  under  the  immediate 
government  of  Legates,  the  latter  of  Proconsuls.  The  Legates  col- 
lected the  revenues  through  inocnr&tors, _procu)'afo7'es  Cwsaris/  the 
proconsuls  through  quaestors.     All  these  officei-s  were  men  of  rank. 

Publius  Sulpicius  Quirinus,  called  in  the  New  Testament 
Cyrenius,  had  been  consul  A.r.c.  742,  b.c.  12.  Upon  the  banish- 
ment of  Archelaus  he  was  made  Prefect  c»f 
■yrenin-s.  gyj-ja  to  finish  the  enrolment — the  beginning  of 
the  making  of  which  had  called  Joseph  andMai-y  to  Bethlehem — 
or  to  collect  the  tax  consequent  upon  such  enrolment.  The  pro- 
curator under  Quirinus  was  Coponius,  whose  residence  was  at 
Ca?sarea,  on  the  coast.  Quirinus  himself  came  over  to  Juda?a  to 
look  after  the  late  king's  treasures.  The  enforcement  of  the  tax 
caused  great  disturbance.  To  the  Jews  it  was  always  most  detesta- 
ble on  religious  grounds.  Jerusalem  was  kept  comparatively  quiet 
by  the  wise  influence  of  Joazar,  who  was  for  a  short  time  again 
high-priest.     The  rural  districts,  however,  were  full  of  turbulence. 

There  was  one  Judas  who  came  out  of  Galilee  and  headed  a 

revolt   "  in  the  days  of  the  taxing."  *     According  to  Jogte})hu8 

{Ant.,  x\iu.  1,  §  1)  he  was  a  Gaulonite  of  the  city 

evo  t     un  er    ^£  Qg^j^j^jj^^  g^j^^  ^^^g  called  a  Galilean  probably 

because  his  revolt  first  broke  out  in  that  province. 
The  watchword  of  his  party,  '*  We  have  no  Lord  and  master  but 
God,"  is  a  key  to  the  character  of  this  uprising.  It  was  theo- 
cratic. God  was  king  ;  Caesar  was  not.  To  give  tribute  to  Ciesar 
was  treason  to  God.  Under  God  was  freedom,  under  Ca?sar 
slavery.  lie  taught  all  the  scrupulous  external  and  ceremonial 
morality  of  the  Pharisees,  while  he  ins])ircd  his  followei's  with  an 
intense  love  of  freedoin  and  a  fanatical  disregard  of  life,  so  that 
rather  than  call  any  man  "  master  "  they  should  prefer  to  surren- 
der tliemsclves  and  their  friends  to  the  death.  lie  was  a  man  of 
fiery  eloquence,  and  attracted  large  number  to  his  standaid. 
They  became  lawless,  and  committed  many  depredations  before 
the  Roman  power  suppressed  them. 

•  He  is  referred  to  by  Gamaliel  in  his  speech  before  the  Sanhedrim,  Acts  y.  37 


rUBLIC   AFFAIRS   DURING   THE   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS,  63 

Judas  was  killed,  and  his  immediate  followers,  who  were  called 
Gaulonites,  were  dispersed.  But  the  spirit  of  this  insurrection 
survived  many  years,  and  animated  the  Zealots  and 
®  ^'^'  Sicarii  of  later  days,  to  whose  obstinate  fanaticism 
Josephus  attributes  the  subsequent  troubles  of  his  country  and 
the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  as  in  a.d.  47  two  sons  of  Judas 
renewed  the  revolt,  and  for  twenty  years  their  younger  brother, 
Menahem,  took  the  lead  of  a  band  of  desperadoes,  laid  siege  to 
Jerusalem,  captured  the  city,  assumed  the  name  and  state  of  king, 
and  committed  many  outrages,  when  he  was  slain  by  the  partisans 
of  Eleazar  the  high-priest,  a.d.  66.'^ 

It  was  in  the  procuratorship  of  Coponius  that  Jesus  was  in  the 
Temple,  about  a  year  after  Annas  had  been  made        ^ 
high-priest.. 

Under  his  government  it  was  that  the  Samaritans  polluted  the 
Temple,  after  the  manner  adopted  by  Josiah  toward  the  idolatrous 
shrines,  by  secretly  bringing  dead  men's  bones  and  strewing  them 
in  the  cloisters  during  the  night  of  the  Passover,  when  the  priests 
had  opened  the  temple  gates,  as  their  wont  was,  immediately 
after  midnight.  Thenceforward  the  Samaritans  were  excluded 
from  the  Temple.  It  was  another  matter  of  distress  and  public 
perplexity  and  increase  of  hate  between  Jews  and  Samaritans. 

About  a.d.  10,  Coponius  was  succeeded  in  the  procuratorship 
by  M.  Ambivius,  and  he  was  succeeded  by  Annius  Rufus.  Upon 
the  death  of  Augustus  (a.d.  14),  his  successor,  Tiberius,  ap- 
pointed a  new  procurator,  Valerius  Gratus,  who  held  office  till 
he  was  succeeded  by  Pontius  Pilatus.  There  _  . 
had  been  a  succession  of  high-priests,  whose  his- 
tory is  not  now  important.  Pilatus,  or  Pilate,  as  we  know  him, 
found  Joseph  Caiaphas  in  the  high-priest's  office. 

The  prcBnom en  of  Pilate  is  lost.  Of  his  early  historv  we  have 
no  authentic  information.  There  is  a  German  legend  which  rep- 
resents him  as  the  bastard  son  of  Tyrus,  king  of  Mayence.  The 
story  further  goes  that  having  been  guilty  of  a  murder  in  Rome, 
whither  his  father  had  sent  him  as  a  hostage,  he  was  sent  into 
Pontus,  where,  having  subdued  certain  barbarous  tribes,  he  rose 
to  honor,  received  the  name  of  Pontius,  and  was  sent  as  procura- 
tor to  Judsea.     But  his  name  may  indicate  that  he  was  of  the  gens 


*  Milman's  Illst.  Jews,  ii  152,  231. 


64  THE   BIRTH    AND   CIIILDnOOD   OF   JESrS. 

of  the  Pontii,  whose  first  distinguished  member  was  the  faraong 
Samnite  general  C.  Pontius  Telesimes. 

Pilate  was  the  sixth  Poman  procurator  of  Judtea.  Tlie  usual 
official  residence  was  at  CjEsarea;  but  during  the  festivals  it  was 
the  custom  of  the  procurator  to  be  present  in  Jerusalem,  for  the 
better  ovei-sight  of  the  turbulent  population  who  ordinarily  then 
assembled,  and  were  on  such  occasions  most  easily  excited  to  vio- 
lence. Shortly  after  his  appointment,  Pilate  removed  the  army 
to  Jerusalem  for  winter-quarters,  "in  order,"  says  Josephus,  "to 
abolish    the  Jewish  laws."     In    the  night-time, 

Pilate  outrages  ^^.j|.]jQ^^t  ^lie  knowledge  of  the  people,  the  Poraan 
the  Jews.  .      ,  ,         %      ,  ,       ^        .       ,        . 

standards  were  brought  m  and  set  up  ni  the  city. 

These  standards  bore  the  image  of  Caesar;  and  because  the  re- 
ligious regulations  of  the  Jews  were  so  stringent  against  images, 
foraier  procurators  had  respected  religious  scruples,  which  Pilate 
disregarded  and  defied.  The  infuriated  people  rushed  to  Cajsarea 
in  multitudes  and  interceded  with  Pilate  to  remove  the  offence. 
This  was  continued  for  five  days  with  increasing  vehemence. 
Pilate  refused,  on  the  ground  that  the  removal  would  be  an  af- 
fi-ont  to  Caesar. 

The  people  still  persevered  in  their  pleadings.  On  the  sixth 
day  they  renewed  their  obtestations  before  Pilate,  who  was  seated 
on  a  throne  in  an  open  space,  and  had  troops  so  arranged  that  at 
a  given  signal  they  surrounded  the  suppliants.  Pilate  then  threat- 
ened them  with  immediate  death  unless  they  ceased  disturbing 
him  and  went  to  their  homes.  Upon  this  they  threw  themselves 
upon  the  ground,  made  bare  their  necks,  and  declared  that  they 
would  sooner  die  than  see  their  laws  so  violated.  Their  numbers 
and  the  fii-mness  of  their  resolution  prevailed.  Pilate  ordered 
the  standards  to  be  brought  back  from  Jerusalem  to  Ctesarea. 

Not  warned  by  this,  Pilate  attempted  another  outi-age  on  the 
feelings  of  the  Jews.  In  his  palace  at  Jerusalem  he  hung  up 
certain  gilt  shields  without  images,  but  bearing  the  names  of 
heathen  deities.*  The  people  had  not  forgotten  the  clandestine 
introduction  of  the  standards,  and  this  new  act  greatly  inllamed 
them.  They  appealed  to  the  Emperor  Tiberius,  who  ordered  their 
removal.     This  must  have  weakened  Pilate's  influence  at  Pome. 

The  Corharx  \  among  the  Jews  was  any  oblation,  but  especially 


•  Philo,  Ad  Caium,  §  38,  iL  580.         |      f  ^"^y  B*^-  ^^ch.,  t.  §g  893  894. 


PUBLIC   AFFAIRS    DURING    THE   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS.  65 

in  the  fulfilment  of  a  vow,  which  was  dedicated  to  the  Temple. 
It  mio-ht  be  moiiej,  cattle,  lands  and  houses,  and 
it  became  the  property  of  the  Temple,  only  that  ^^^  ^°''^^"' 
the  land  might  be  redeemed  in  the  year  of  Jubilee.  (Lev.  xxvii. 
1-24.)  It  was,  of  course,  held  as  veiy  sacred.  But  this  treasure 
was  diverted  by  Pilate  to  the  building  of  an  aqueduct  to  bring 
water  into  Jerusalem.  This  so  incensed  the  Jews  that,  in  the 
language  of  Josephus,  "many  ten  thousands  of  the  people  o-ot 
together  and  made  a  clamor  against  him.  Pilate  dressed  a  num- 
ber of  his  soldiers  like  the  Jews,  and  had  daggers  concealed  on 
their  persons.  ^Vlien  the  Jews  would  not  forbear,  he  gave  the 
soldiers  the  signal  agreed  on  beforehand,  and  they  fell  upon  the 
unarmed  and  surprised  populace,  striking  the  innocent  as  well  as 
the  guilty,  so  that  many  were  slain  and  others  wounded."  * 

This  was  the  kind  of  man  under  whose  procuratorship  Jesus 
spent  his  whole  public  life  and  exercised  his  public  ministry 
under  whom  he  suffered  and  died,  as  the  Evangelists  and  other 
historians  relate. 

Tacitus  says:  "Christus,  Tiberio  Imperate,  per  procuratorum 
Pontium  Pilatum  supplicio  adfectus  erat."  f 

The  following  is  the  only  mention  of  Jesus  which  occurs  in  the 
wi'itings  of  Josephus : :}: 

"Now  there  was  about  tliis  time  Jesus,  a  wise  man,  if  it  be  lawful  to  call 
him  a  man,  for  he  was  a  doer  of  wonderful  works,  a  teacher  of  such  men  as 
receive  the  truth  with  pleasure.  lie  di-ew  over  to  him  both  many  of  the  Jews 
and  many  of  the  Gentiles.  He  was  (the)  Clirist.  .Vnd  when  Pilate,  at  the 
suggestion  of  the  principal  men  amongst  us,  had  condemned  liim  to  the  cross 
those  that  loved  him  at  the  first  did  not  forsake  him,  for  he  appeared  to  them 
alive  again  the  third  day,  as  the  divine  prophets  had  foretold  these  and  ten 
thousand  other  wonderful  things  concerning  him.  And  the  tribe  of  Chris- 
tians,  so  named  from  him,  are  not  extinct  at  this  day." 

GALILEE. 

We  turn  now  from  Judaea  to  Galilee.  By  the  first  will  of  Herod 
Antipas  was  to  be  his  successor;  but  a  change  of  the  will  gave 
precedence  to  Archelaus :  and  Augustus  Cgesar 
confirmed  IIerod  Axtitas  as  Tetrarch  of  Galilee,  Herod  Antipas, 
according  to  the  altered  will  of  his  father-  and  o'^' Herod  the  Te- 
hence  he  is  mentioned  by  Matthew  and  Luke  as    *'''''^' 

*  Josephus, ^n«.,  book  xviii.ch.iii     I    t  Josephus,  Ant. ,  book  iviii.  ch.  iii.  S  3 
t  Ann.  XV.  44.  I  ^ 

6 


66  THE   BIETn    AND   CIin.DHOCD   01    JESUS. 

Herod  the  Tetrarch.  The  name  of  "  king,"  given  him  by  Mark, 
(vi.  14)  must  be  regarded  as  a  title  of  courtesy,  Ilis  fii-st  wife 
was  the  daughter  of  Aretas,  king  of  Arabia  Petra^a.  While  liv- 
inc:  with  her  he  fell  in  love  with  Ilerodias,  the  dauirhter  of  Aris- 
tobulus,  who  was  his  own  half-brother.  She  was  then  the  wife 
of  Ilerod  Philip  I.  (another  half-l)rother  of  Ilerod  Antipas),  and 
by  him  had  had  one  daughter,  Salome.  lie  was  living  in  retire- 
ment in  Rome.  Ilerodias  disliked  this  obscurity  and  forsook  him 
and  accej^ted  the  offer  of  Ilerod  Antipas  to  live  with  him.  This 
outraged  Ai-etas,  the  father  of  his  fii-st  wife,  whom  he  had  divorced 
to  please  Ilerodias.  Aretas  made  war  upon  him  and  destroyed  his 
anny,  and  was  restrained  only  by  a  movement  of  the  Emperor 
Tiberius,  who  ordered  Yitellius  to  march  against  Aretas,  which 
command  failed  of  fulfilment  because  of  the  death  of  Tiberius. 
But  the  Jews  regarded  this  disaster  to  Ilerod  Antipas  as  tlie  ven- 
geance of  heaven  for  the  murder  of  Jolm  the  Baptist,  wlio  had 
rebuked  Ilerod  Antii)as  and  Ilerodias  for  the  sinful  lives  they 
were  leadinj;. 

This  Ilei'od  had  quarrelled  with  Pilate  the  procurator  in  Juda?a, 
it  is  supposed  because  of  those  "  Galileans  whose  blood  Pilate  had 

mingled  with  their  sacrifices,"  a  circumstance 
Pii  t^*"^  ^    ^^       mentioned   in  Luke    fxiii.    1,   xxiii.    12).     Tliere 

seems  to  be  no  mention  made  elsewhere  of  this  ; 
but  the  Galileans  were  foremost  in  the  frays  whidi  occurred  at 
the  festivals,  and  these  difficulties  were  so  frequent  that  it  is  not 
to  be  wondered  that  one  of  them  escaped  the  notice  of  Josepluis. 
Herod  would  naturally  resent  Pilate's  punishing  his  subjects, 
whatever  might  have  been  their  guilt;  not  to  mention  the  fact 
that  he  assumed  the  role  of  patron  of  the  Jews.  The  court  he 
paid  the  Jews  is  shown  by  his  attendance  upon  the  Passover  in 
Jerusalem.  That  visit  gave  Pilato  an  opportunity  to  proj)itiate 
him  by  acknowledging  his  jurisdiction  over  Galileans;  so  that 
wiien  he  learned  that  Jesus  was  a  Galilean  he  sent  him  to 
Ilerod  Antipas. 

By  IIer<^)dias  he  was  instigated  to  a  movement  which  ended  in 
his  ruin.     His  nej>hew,  Ilerod   Agrippa  I.   (under  whom,  ycai-a 

i  Iter,   cjime  all    the   territory   which    had    been 

ruled  over  by  liis  grandfather,  Ilerod  the  Gi-eat), 
iras  a  favorite  with  Caligula,  having  been  imprisoned  for  expressing 
a  wish  for  Caligula's   early  succession   to   the   imjjcrial   throne. 


PUBLIC   AFFAIRS    DURING    THE    CniLDHOOD    OF   JESUS.  67 

Upon  liim  CaliguLa  showered  favors.  ATLat  specially  moved 
Herod  Aiitipas  and  Ilerodias  was  that  Herod  Agrippa  had  at 
tained  to  a  royal  estate.  So  they  determined  to  go  to  Eome,  osten- 
sibly to  petition  for  the  royal  title,  but  really  to  intrigue  against 
Agrippa,  who,  on  his  side,  brought  accusation  against  his  uncle 
Antipas,  whom  the  Emperor  Caligula  banished  to  Gaul,  where  he 
died.  Ilerodias  showed  at  least  this  good  trait,  that  she  shared 
his  exile.  Josephus  puts  a  very  pretty  speech  into  her  mouth, 
making  her  say  to  Caius : 

"Thou  indeed,  O  Emperor  1  actest  after  a  magnificent  manner,  and  as 
becomes  thyself  in  what  thou  offercst  me ;  but  the  kindness  which  I  have  for 
my  Imsljand  liinders  me  from  partaking  of  the  favor  of  thy  gift ;  for  it  is 
not  just  that  I,  wlio  have  been  made  a  partner  in  his  prosperity,  should  for- 
sake him  in  his  misfortunes."     (Josephus,  A?it.,  book  xviii.  chap,  viii.) 

The  character  of  this  prince  can  be  easily  gathered  from  the 
record.  He  was  not  so  great  a  tjTant  as  his  father  Herod.  But 
he  was  unscrupulous.  He  shut  up  John  in  prison 
for  no  crime  nor  violation  of  the  peace,  but  Character  of 
because  that  faithful  teacher  reproved  him  for  ^^'"'"'^  ^*'^^'' 
his  adultery  with  Ilerodias,  and  for  his  general  wickedness  of 
life.  He  was  cunning.  Jesus,  generally  so  mild  and  careful  in 
his  speech,  calls  him  a  "  fox."  (Luke  xiii.  32.)  He  was  weak 
and  superstitious.  For  a  time  he  heard  John  gladly  (Mark  vi. 
20),  and  wished  to  see  Jesus,  that  he  might  witness  some  miracle. 
(Luke  xxiii.  8.)  Because  of  a  foolish  oath,  uttered  in  wine,  he 
slew  John,  and  was  afterward  filled  with  remorse ;  and  although 
a  Sadducee,  not  believing  in  spirits  and  the  resurrection,  he  was 
frightened  when  he  heard  of  Jesus,  fearing  it  might  be  John  come 
back  from  the  dead.  (Mark  vi.  14.)  He  Avas  willing  to  have 
Jesus  destroyed,  but  contrived  to  roll  the  responsibility  upon  Pilate. 
He  was  unscrupulous,  capricious,  sensual,  superstitious,  and  weak. 

THE    CHURCH. 

The  office  of  the  High-Priest  had  felt  the  general  unsettling 
effect  of  these  turbulent  times,  so  that  there  seems 
to  be  some  confusion  at  the  date  of  the  openino-    J^e  High -Priest- 
of    the  pubhc  ministry   of   Jesus.       Luke    says    and  Annas, 
(iii.  2)  that  Annas  and  Caiaphas  were  high-priests. 
An  investigation   of   all  available  records  gives  us  the   follow- 
ing   result:     The   real    and    acting    High-Priest   was    Joseph, 


68  THE   BIRTH   AXD   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

snniamed  Caiaphas ;  and  his  Vicar,  or  Deputy,  was  his  father-in 
law,  called  Annas  hy  Luke,  Ananus  by  Josephus,  but  probably 
called  in  his  own  time  and  place  irananiali.  Caiaphas  was  ap- 
l)ointed  to  tlie  office  by  the  procurator,  Valerius  Gratus,  about 
A.D.  25,  and  held  it  through  all  the  procuratorship  of  Pontius  Pi- 
late, and  was  consequently  Iligh-Priest  through  the  whole  public 
ministry  of  John  and  of  Jesus.  He  married  the  daughter  of  a 
former  High-Priest,  Annas,  who  still  possessed  great  influence, 
several  of  his  family  having  held  the  highest  sacerdotal  position. 

The  mention  of  these  two  jointly  by  Luke  has  made  some  per- 
plexity, which  has  given  rise  to  various  explanations,  of  which  it 
is  necessary  to  state  only  that  which  seems  satisfactory,  namely, 
that  of  "Wieseler,  who,  in  his  Chronology^  and  more  recently  in 
an  article  in  Ilerzog's  Real-mjclopadie^  maintains  that  the  two, 
Annas  and  Caiaphas,  were  jointly  at  the  head  of  the  Jewish 
people,  the  latter  being  the  actual  Iligh-Priest,  and  Annas  being 
president  of  the  Sanhedrim.  In  this  latter  position  he  might  have 
acted  as  vicar  to  his  son-in-law,  in  an  office  called  in  the  Hebrew 
*,5D,  Sagan,  and  mentioned  by  the  Talmudists.  This  is  the 
opinion  of  Kuinol.  It  is  suggested  that  such  position  would  not 
be  unworthy  of  one  who  had  held  the  office  of  High-Priest,  since 
the  dignity  of  the  Sagan  was  very  great.  Lightfoot  shows,  for  in- 
stance, that  he  might  on  urgent  occasions  enter  the  Holiest  of  Holies. 
{Ilor.  TIeb.  Luc.^  iii.  2.)  It  is  not  strange  that  having  been  actually 
a  High-Priest,  and  being  now  president  of  the  Saidiedi-im,  lie 
should  still  be  called  by  the  name  of  the  lofty  office  he  had  lillcd. 

We  shall  meet  Caiaphas  as  the  history  shall  progress.  It  may 
merely  be  mentioned  here  that  he  was  a  Sadducee,  and  used  his 
influence  oppressively,  the  Sadducees  usually  being  more  intolerant 
than  the  Pharisees :  and  frequently  it  has  been  remarked  that  no 
people  are  more  illiberal  than  those  who  c\i\\\i\, par  excellence ^i\\e 
name  of  Liberals,  and  that  no  sectaries  have  been  more  intoler- 
ant than  those  who  have  had  no  creed. 

The  word  Sanhedrim — or  more  accurately  Sanhedrin,  conn'ng 

from  the  Greek  avnifiiov  no  Hebrew  etvmology 
The  Sanhedrim.      ,       .        ,  -         i  r      •-       i     •        .      .i     o 

havnig  been  round  tor  it — designates  the  buprcmo 

Council   of   the    Jewish  people   as    it  existed   in   the   times  of 

Jesus  and  long  before.      In  the  Talmud  it  is  called  "  The   Great 

Sanhedrim  ;"  in  the  Mishna,  "  77ie  ITouse  of  Judgment^ 

The  Mishna  traces  the  oi^gin  of  this  assembly  to  the  times  of 


PUBLIC   AFFAIRS   DUEING   THE   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS.  69 

Moses,  who  was  directed  (Num.  xi.  IG,  17)  to  associate  with  him 
seventy  elders  in  the  government.     But  Voratius 
{De  Synhednis,  §  25-40)  seems  to  show  that  the  ^  °^'^^^' 

identity  of  this  Council  of  Moses  and  the  Sanhedrim  of  later  days 
was  a  mere  conjecture  of  the  rabbins,  as  we  find  no  trace  of  the 
continuance  of  the  Council  of  Moses  in  Deut.  xvii.  8, 10,  where 
it  surely  would  have  been  mentioned  if  then  existing,  nor  in  the 
age  of  Joshua  and  the  judges,  nor  in  the  times  of  the  kings  ;  so 
that  that  council  seems  to  have  been  temporary.  The  Greek 
etymology  of  the  word  points  to  a  time  subsequent  to  Alexan- 
der's supremacy  in  Judaea.*  It  has  been  conjectured  that  the 
ysoov^La  jw,  'lovdaiuw  of  2  Macc.  i.  10;  iv.  44;  xi.  27,  designates  the 
Sanliedrim.  If  so,  it  is  the  earliest  historical  trace  of  the  institu- 
tion. Maiiy  learned  men  agree  in  believing  that  it  arose  after  the 
return  of  the  Jews  from  Babylon,  and  in  the  time  of  the  Seleu- 
cidse  or  of  the  Hasmonean  princes.  The  fact  stated  by  Jose- 
phus,t  that  Herod,  when  procurator  of  Galilee,  b.c.  47,  was  called 
before  the  Sanhedrim  on  the  charge  that  he  had  usm-ped  the  func 
tions  of  that  body  in  putting  men  to  death,  shows  how  great  its 
power  was  at  that  day,  and  the  probability  that  it  was  not  then  of 
recent  origin. 

For  the  constitution  of  the  Sanhedrim  we  are  compelled  to 
rely  upon  the  incidental  notices  in  the  Xew  Testament,  namely, 
Matt.  xxvi.  57,  59  ;  Mark  xv.  1  ;  Luke  xxii.  QQ  \   ^, 

J    A    i.  fn        -n  ,1  .  ,     ,  ,  Its  constitutioQ. 

and  Acts  v.  21.  From  these  it  probably  appears 
that  the  body  consisted  of  the  Iligh-Priests  (and  those  M'ho  had 
been  Iligh-Priests)  and  'a^x^B^slg^  chief-priests,  that  is  to  say, 
the  heads  of  the  twenty-four  classes  into  which  the  priests  were 
divided ;  noia^^vTsitoi,  elders,  men  of  age  and  experience ;  and 
ygr/fi}jaiek,  scribcs,  men  learned  in  the  law. 

The  number  was  probably  eeventy-one.  There  was  nearly  perfect 
unanimity  of  opinion  among  the  Jews,  and  that  was  expressed  in 
the  Mishna,  which  says  {Sanedr.  i.  61)  that  there  were  seventy- 
one  judges.  The  reason  assigned  for  this  number  is  not  sound, 
namely,  that  in  Num.  xi.  6,  Moses  is  required  to 
gather  seventy  elders,  who  with  himself  would  ^^  ^^®" 
make  seventj^-one,  as  we  have  shown  it  probable  that  no  connec- 

*  Livy    expressly  states    (xiv.    32) :  I  rfraj  vocant.  legeudos  esse,  quorum  con- 
"  Pronunciatuin  quod  at  statum  Mace-    silio  respublica  adininistraretur. " 
doniae  pertinebat  senatores,  quos  syne-  I      f  Ant.,  xiv.  9,  §  4. 


70  THE   BIETU    AND    CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS. 

tion  existed  betweeu  the  Couucil  of  Moses  and  the  Sanhedrim 
Our  i-eceptiou  of  this  number  is  to  be  based  upon  the  tradition 
of  the  Jews,  which  has  its  probability  increased  by  the  su*^- 
gestion  that  the  modern  Council  would,  as  far  as  possible,  have 
been  formed  upon  the  model  of  that  of  Moses. 

The  President  was  styled  "  Nasi,"  and  was  chosen  on  account 
of  his  eminent  worth  and  wisdom,  and  was  supposed  to  occupy 

Its  P  "d  t  ^^  place  of  Moses.  Sometimes  the  Iligh-Priest 
had  this  honor.  At  the  condenmation  of  Jesus 
the  lligh-Priest  was  presiding,  as  we  learn  from  Matt,  xxvi,  02. 
The  Vice-President  was  called  "  Ab-Beth-Din,"  and  sat  at  the 
right  hand  of  the  President.  The  Babylonian  Gemara  states  that 
there  were  two  scribes,  one  to  record  the  votes  of  acquittal  and 
one  those  of  condemnation.  The  lictoi-s,  or  attendants  of  the 
Sanhedrim,  are  called  vnr,(jnut,  in  Matt.  xxvi.  58,  and  in  Mark  xiv. 
54.  While  in  session  the  Sanhedrim  sat  in  form  of  a  semicircle 
in  the  front  of  the  President. 

The  j)lace  of  the  meeting  of  the  Sanhedrim,  it  is  supposed,  was 

in  a  building  near  the  Temple ;  but  that  it  might  be  assembled 

elsewhere  we  learn   from  Matt.    xxvi.  3.  when 

..  it  seems  to  have  met  in  the   residence   of    the 

meeting. 

Iligh-Priest. 

The  jurisdiction  of  this  body  was  mainly  over  questions  of 

relierion,  as  the  trial  of  a   tribe  for  idolatrv,  the  trial   of  false 

^,   .    .  ^.  ,.        proi»hets,  and  of    the   IIi«>h-Priest,*    and    other 

Its  jurisdiction,     r     i  '  ^  '  i        ■ 

priests.f   Jesus  was  arraigned  as  a  false  proplict,:}: 

and  Peter,  John,  Stephen,  and  Paul,  as  teachers  of  pestilential 
errors.  Its  jurisdiction  seems  to  have  extended  beyond  Palestine. 
The  power  of  capital  punishment  was  taken  from  this  body  forty 
years  before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem.§  It  was  for  this  rea- 
son the  Jews  answei-ed  Pilate :  "  It  is  not  lawful  for  us  to  put  any 
man  to  death."  (J(jhu  xix.  31.)  The  Sanhedrim  arrested,  tried, 
convicted,  and  then  handed  the  condenmed  over  to  the  secular 
power,  represented  by  the  Ilonian  procurator.  There  a})pears  an 
exception  (in  Acts  vii.  50,  etc.)  in  the  case  of  Stei)hen :  but  that 
was    "a    tumultuous    proceeding  or    an   illegal   assumption   of 


*  Mishna,  Sanludr.  L  §  That   is,  according  to   the  Jerusa 

t  Middoth^  V.  lem  Gemara,  (luoted  by  Seldou,    book 

X  John  xi.  47.  ii.,  chap.  5,  11. 


PUBLIC   AFFAIRS   DURING   THE   CHILDHOOD   OF   JESUS.  71 

power,"  as  the  execution  of  James  in  tlie  absence  of  tlie  procura- 
tor is  declared  by  Josephus*  to  have  been. 

The  relioious  se(;ts  of  the  day  were  the  Pharisees,  the  Sadducees, 
and  the  Essenes.     We  shall  soon  see  that  the  ministry  of  Jesus 
was  antagonistic  to  all  these,  and  in  studying  that  antagonism  we 
shall  more  clearly  understand  the  distinctive  tenets  and  tempers 
of  these  several  religionists.      It  is  sufficient  in  this  place  to  ren- 
der a  mere  synopsis.  . 
The  Pharisees  (separatists,  as  their  name  implies)  were  the  i  uri- 
tans  of  the  time,  claiming  superior  sanctity.      They  taught  that 
tradition  was  as  binding  as  the  written  law ;  that       ptarisees. 
God   must   have  communicated   much   religious 
truth  to  Moses  orally,  as  the  people  generally  held,  and  had  from 
time  innnemorial  held,  certain  doctrines  to  be  as  well  settled  as 
the  law,  although  they  are  not  mentioned  in  the  Pentateuch,  of 
which  prayer  and  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  are  notable  in- 
stances, and  that  this  oral  law  was  as  binding  as  the  written  law. 
The  classical  passage  in  theMishna  f  on  this  subject  is  the  follow- 
ino--   "Moses  received  the  (oral)  law  from  Sinai,  and  delivered 
it  to  Joshua,  and  Joshua  to  the  elders,  and  the  elders  to  the  pro- 
phets, and  the  prophets  to  the  men  of  the  Great  Synagogue 
They  held  themselves  to  be  in.  the  succession  and  to  have  the  right 
to  interpret  and  apply  the  law.     They  had  become  the  most  ex- 
treme ritualists.      They  were  formalists.      They  had  smothered 
spiritual  religion  to  death  under  ceremonials.     They  laid  on  the 
conscience  "  burdens  too  heavy  for  men  to  bear." 

The  Sadducees  were  a  sect  owing  their  existence  to  a  reaction 
against  Pharisaic  teaching.  The  Sadducees  held  that  the  oral  law 
was  not  at  all  binding,  that  nothing  was  binding  sadducees. 
except  the  written  law.  To  them  it  was  a  logical 
consequence  to  deny  a  future  state  of  rewards  and  punishments. 
As  in  the  written  law,  in  all  the  pleadings  of  the  great  lawgiver 
for  good  living,  and  in  all  his  threatenings  against  evil-doing, 
Moses  had  never  called  to  his  aid  the  consolation  of  the  doctrine 
of  future  rewards  nor  the  terror  of  future  punishments,  it  seemed 
to  them  inconceivable  that  he  should  have  believed  in  any  such 
doctrine.  They  proceeded  to  deny  the  immortality  of  the  soul, 
and  then  the  existence  of   the  soul  itself.      They  believed  m 

neither  angel  nor  spirit. 

*  Antiq. ,  XX.  9,  §  1.  It  Quoted  in  Smith's  Dktwnary. 


72  THE   BIRTH    AND   CHILDHOOD    OF   JESUS. 

The  Essenes  represented  rather  a  tendency  than  a  sect.     But 
they  grew  into  a  community.      They  separated  tliemselves  from 
J,  the  distraction  of  business.     They  were  Pharisees 

in  doctrine,  in  general  terms ;  but  they  lield  to- 
wards the  Pharisees  very  much  the  relation  whicli  the  Pharisees 
maintained  toward  the  mass  of  the  common  people.  They  were 
the  Quakere  of  the  day  of  Jesus.  They  opposed  wai  and  slavery 
and  connnerce.  They  were  monks,  ascetics,  mystics.  They  ex- 
erted little  influence  on  Christianity,  and  Jesus  made  no  si)ecial 
allusion  to  them.  His  life  and  doctrine  did  not  accord  with  their 
views  and  practices. 

The  Ilerodians  were  a  politico-religious  sect  or  party.  Herod 
the  Great  was  of  foreign  descent,  but  was  a  Jew  in  his  religious 
professions.  There  were  many  Jews  who  saw  no 
way  to  sustain  the  national  independence,  in  face 
of  the  Roman  power,  except  in  the  continuance  of  the  reign  of 
Herod  ;  and,  as  they  believed  that  the  preservation  of  their  nation- 
ality was  necessary  to  the  glory  of  their  destiny,  they  would  sup- 
port Herod,  in  wliom  they  saw  a  protection  against  direct  heathen 
rule.  Othei*s  were  quite  willing  to  have  a  compromise  between 
the  old  Hebrew  faith  and  the  culture  of  the  Pagans,  such  as 
Herod  seemed  to  be  making.  The  political  wing  of  the  Hero- 
diaiis  M-ould  side  with  the  Pharisees,  and  the  religious  wing  with 
the  Sadducees.  Put  the  Uerodians  seem  never  to  have  attempted 
to  harmonize  the  doctrines  of  the  two  sects.  It  is,  perhaps,  more 
nearly  proper  to  call  the  Herodians  a  coalition  than  a  party  or  a 
Beet. 


PART  11. 

INTEODUCTION  OF  JESUS  TO  HIS  PUBLIC 
MINISTEY. 

FROM  A.D.  26  TO  A.D.  27— ABOUT  ONE  YEAR, 


CHAPTER    I. 


JOHN  S   PKEACHING   AND   inNISTRT. 


John,  called  "  the  Baptist,"  performed  a  ministry  in  Judcea 
which  certainly  opened  the  way  for  the  public  work  of  Jesus, 
and  hence  he  is  spoken  of  as  the  Harbinger. 

Of  the  wonderful  circumstances  attendins:  the  .  f'  ,'  ^:.\  ^^ 
birth  01  this  veiy  extraordinary  man  we  have 
already  spoken.  In  his  case,  as  in  that  of  his  cousin  Jesus,  a 
silence  covers  the  years  of  his  youth.  His  marvellous  birth,  and 
the  manner  in  which  he  obtained  his  name,  must  have  had  a  sreat 
effect  upon  the  character  of  the  child,  making  his  very  boyhood 
and  youth  sacred  and  solemn.  He  grew  up  in  the  study  of  the 
law,  grieved  at  the  spiritual  deadness  of  his  times,  and  the  hard 
conventionalities  which  had  enervated  the  heart  of  the  nation. 
Upon  his  spirit  must  have  fallen,  also,  the  influence  of  the  gen- 
eral expectation  of  a  Mighty  One,  a  Messiah,  a  Deliverer.  His 
nation  had  pondered  the  strange  intimations  of  the  prophets,  and 
the  uprising  of  Elijah  in  their  midst  would  not  have  been  to 
them  a  surprising  event. 

H   Moses  be  excepted,  there  was  no   figure  among   all   the 
mighty  men  of  their  earlier  history  who  filled  so  large  space  in 
the  Hebrew  mind,  and  filled  it  so  solemnly,  as 
Elijah.     To  their  imagination  he  was  colossal.    To  ^"'    ' 

the  modern  mind  he  is  "  the  grandest  and  most  romantic  cliarac- 


74  ES'TKODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    TUBLIC    MINISTRY. 

ter  that  Israel  ever  produced."  *  Ilis  liistor}-  fascinates  us.  "  Ilie 
rare,  sudden,  and  brief  appearances, — his  undaunted  couraijeand 
fiejy  zeal, — the  brilliancy  of  his  triumphs, — the  pathos  of  his  des- 
pondency,— and  the  glory  of  his  departure, — threw  such  a  hah^  of 
bi-ightiiet-s  around  him  as  is  equalled  by  none  of  his  compeers  in 
the  sacred  story."  f  lie  has  been  well  called  "Prodigiosus  T/ies- 
hites^^  X — the  prodigious  Tishbite.  It  is  noticeable  that  the  very 
last  sentence  which  fell  from  the  lips  of  Prophecy,  before  they 
M'ere  sealed  into  silence,  contained  the  prediction  of  the  reap- 
pearance of  Elijah  (Malachi  iv.  5,  6) ;  and  whenever  any  man 
of  extraordinary  power  appeared,  it  seemed  to  the  Jews,  in  their 
political  troubles  and  degradation,  that  Elijali  had  come. 

Such  was  their  expectation  when  this  holy  Nazarite,  John,  f(jl- 

lowing  the  example  of  many  good  men  who  were  discouraged  by 

the  degeneracy  of  the  times,  retired  to  the  desert 

rei^ion  beyond  the  Jordan  and  mive  himself  to 
cration.  ^  .     .     .    ,.  «  ,.       . 

the    sell-discipline    of    meditation   and    prayer. 

After  years  of  stern  training  the  hour  of  his  manifestation  came, 

and  he  broke  upon  the  world  with  preaching  that  roused  the  nation. 

His  appearance  was  not  comely.     Ilis  physique  had  none  of  the 

phnnpness,  his  complexion  none  of  the   richness,  which  comes 

fn^m  generous  diet.    His  food  was  locusts  §  and  wild  honey.    Ilis 

dress  was  removed  as  far  as  possible  from  the  elegance  of  fashion 

and  the  pomp  of  office;  it  was  a  vestment  of  camel's  hair,  J]  bound 

about  his  waist  by  a  leathern  girdle.     His  address  was  blunt  and 

brusque.     lie  held  no  office  and  had  no  official  sanction.     lie 

was  not  a  priest,  nor  a  rabbi.     As  Do  Pi-essense  well  says :  "  It 

was  not  priests  or  doctors  that  were  wanting ;  the  very  spirit  of 


*  Stanley,  S.  and  P.,  328. 

\  Smith's  Diet. ,  Art.  Elijah. 

X  Acta  Sanctor. 

§  The  <i<ff)i(,  permitted  to  bo  eaten 


Baptista  probat."  Shaw  found  locusts 
eaten  by  the  Moore  in  Barbary .  ( 7Va  vela, 
p.  1G4.)  See  1  Sam.  xiv.  25.  Here  again 
there  is  no  need  to  suppose  anything 


(Levit.  xi.  22),  was  used  as  food  by  the  else  meant  but  honey  made  liy  wild  bees, 
lower  orders  in  .Tuda;a,  and  mentioned  |  The  gannont  of  caniers  hair  was 
by  Strabo  and  Pliny  as  eaten  by  the  '  not  the  camel's  skin  with  the  hair  on, 
Ethiopians,  and  by  many  other  authore  which  would  be  too  heavy  to  wear,  but 
OS  articles  of  food.  Jerome,  adv.  Jo-  ;  raiment  woven  of  camel's  hair,  such  as 
vinian,  2,  0,  says:  "  Apud  Orientales  et  Josephus  speaks  of  (B.  J.  i.  24,  3). 
Libya3  poi)ulo8  quia  per  desertam  et '  From  Zcch.  xiii.  4.  it  seems  that  such  a 
calidam  eremi  vastitatem  locustarem  dress  was  known  as  the  projthrtic  garb: 
nubes  reperiuntur,  locustis  vesci  moris  :  "  Neither  shall  they  (the  prophets)  weal 
est :  hoc  vcrum   esse  Joannes   quoque    a  rough  garment  to  deceive." 


John's  peeaohing  and  ministry.  75 

Judaism  was  stifled  under  rites  and  traditions.  It  was  this  spirit 
tliat  had  to  be  reanimated  and  freed  from  all  that  oppressed  it." 
For  this  work  John  needed,  as  he  took,  a  free,  broad  space. 

Ilis   ministry   is   remarkable   for  the  absence  of  two  things, 
namel}',   miracles   and   an   organization.     He   pretended   to    no 

miracle :  he  formed  no  school.     Of  the  multitudes 

,  ,  .  .       ,  .     ,  .  .    ,  1  John's  ministry, 

who  came  to  mm,  some  remamed  in  his  neighbor- 
hood and  gained  what  benefit  they  could  from  his  society  and  his 
teaching.     But  he  did  not  add  another  sect  to  the  Pharisees,  the 
Sadducees,  and  the  Essenes.     He  was  simply  a  preacher,  a  herald. 

As  to  his  8tyle^  two  things  are  to  be  noticed : 

1.  His  earnestness.     He  believed  that  he  had  a  great  message 

to  his  generation.     He  could  not  forbear.     He  had  no  specially 

favorable  position  for  its  delivery,  but  it  was  in 

,  .  ,    .  T    • ,    1  ,         T  1  His  style. 

him  and  it  grew,  and  it  became  too  large  and 

strong  for  him  to  hold,  and  there  was  room  in  the  wilderness  and 
he  went  there  "  crying."  One  can  fancy  that  he  cried  and  cried 
until  a  stray  traveller  across  the  wilderness  heard  him,  listened, 
went  and  reported  the  sound ;  and  another  came  and  heard,  and 
reported  the  strange  voice  crying  in  the  wilderness;  and  they 
that  went  alone  hung  timidly  on  the  outskirts  of  the  desert,  and 
held  their  hands  behind  their  ears  to  catch  the  flying  sounds,  and 
trembled  as  they  heard  the  cry,  "  Repent !  Repent !  "  then  drew 
near  in  groups  and  l^eheld  the  strange  wild  man  who,  when  he 
saw  them,  opened  his  great  eyes  wide  ui)on  them,  and  cried,  "  Re- 
pent, for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand."  Frightened,  they 
fled.  But  there  is  a  fascination  in  earnestness.  The  tones  of  the 
prophet's  voice  rang  in  their  ears  whether  they  waked  or  slept, 
and  they  could  not  stay  away.  And  when  they  went  again  he 
cried,  "  Bring  forth  fruits  meet  for  repentance."  He  was  in  full 
earnest.  He  believed  that  before  he  came  Isaiah  heard  him  with 
his  own  prophetic  ears,  and  exclaimed,  "  Hark !  a  voice  is  crying 
in  the  wilderness  !  " 

2.  The  messaa-e  was  indiscriminate.  The  crowds  of  common 
people  drew  the  great  and  learned  to  this  powerful  preacher. 
He  had  no  compliments  for  the  rabbis,  no  gallant  speeches 
for  the  ladies,  no  politic  utterances  for  the  powerful.  lie  saw 
before  him  men  and  women,  full  of  sin,  concealed  from  them- 
selves by  their  conventionalities,  and  he  thundered  the  truth 
at  them  indiscriminately.     They  had  Abraham  to  their  father 


76  INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

luid  needed  no  special  moral  illumination,  certainly  no  spiritual 
regeneration — so  they  thought  of  themselves.     But  he  helieved 
that  they  did  need  spiritual  regeneration,  and  believed  that  that 
regeneration  was  the  most  important  thing  in  all  the  world. 
The  matter  of  his  preaching  we  gather  from  the  few  notices  in 

the  Evangelists. 

Matter    of    his  -^^  **i  *.     i  •  -         u-n  ^ 

, .  ^  Mattliew  reports  Jiim  as  saynig,  "  Kepent  ye : 

for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand."  (iii.  2.) 
"  But  when  he  saw  many  of  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  come  to 

his  baptism,  he  said  unto  them,  '  O  generation  of 
j^  vipers,  who  hath  warned  you  to  flee  from  the 

wrath  to  come?  Bring  forth  therefore  fruits 
meet  for  repentance:  and  think  not  to  say  within  yourselves,  "We 
have  Abraham  to  our  father :  for  I  say  unto  you,  that  God  is  able 
of  these  stones  to  raise  up  children  unto  Abraham.  And  now 
also  the  axe  is  laid  unto  the  root  of  the  trees :  therefo)-e  every 
tree  which  bringeth  not  forth  good  fruit  is  hewn  down,  and  cast 
into  the  fire.  I  indeed  baptize  you  with  water  unto  rejientance: 
but  he  that  cometh  after  me  is  mightier  than  I,  whose  shoes  I  am 
not  worthy  to  bear :  he  shall  baptize  you  with  the  Holy  Ghost, 
and  with  fire:  whose  fan  is  in  his  hand,  and  he  will  thoroughly 
purge  his  floor,  and  gather  his  wheat  into  the  garner ;  but  he  will 
burn  up  the  chaff  with  unquenchal)le  fire.'  "     (iii.  7-13.) 

Mark  says   that   he    preached,   saying,   "There   cometh   one 
mightier  than  I  after  me,  the  latchet  of  whose  shoes  I  am  not 

worthy  to  stoop   down   and   unloose.     I    indeed 

have  baptized  you  with  water :  but  he  shall  baj)- 
tize  you  with  the  Holy  Ghost."     (i.  7,  8.) 

Luke  reports  that  he  said  to  the  multitude  that  came  forth  to 
be  baptized  of  him,  "  '  O  generation  of  vipei*s,  who  hath  warned 

you  to  flee  from  the  wrath  to  come  ?     Bi-ing  forth 

therefore  fruits  worthy  of  re[)entance,  and  begin 
not  to  say  within  yourselves,  AVe  have  Abraham  to  o?/;*  father: 
for  I  say  unto  you,  That  God  is  able  of  these  stones  to  raise  up 
children  unto  Abraham.  And  now  also  the  axe  is  laid  unto  the 
root  of  the  trees :  every  tree  therefore  which  bringeth  not  forth 
good  fruit  is  hewn  down,  and  cast  into  the  fire.'  And  the  ])eo])lo 
asked  him,  saying,  'AVhat  shall  wo  do  then?'  lie  nuswoied 
and  Bai<l  mitu  ilicm,  '  lie  tliat  li:ifli  two  coats,  let  him  iinpiirt  tc 
him  that  hath  none;  and  he  that  hath  moat,  let  him  do  likewise. 


John's  pkeaching  and  ministry.  •  77 

Then  came  also  publicans  to  be  baptized,  and  said  unto  him, 
'  Master,  what  shall  we  do  ? '  And  he  said  unto  them,  '  Exact 
no  more  than  that  which  is  appointed  you.'  And  the  soldiers 
likewise  demanded  of  him,  saying,  '  And  what  shall  we  do  ? ' 
And  he  said  unto  them,  '  Do  violence  to  no  man,  neither  accuse 
any  falsely ;  and  be  content  with  your  wages.'  And  as  the 
people  were  in  expectation,  and  all  men  mused  in  their  hearts  of 
John,  whether  he  were  the  Christ,  or  not ;  John  answered,  saying 
unto  them  all,  '  I  indeed  baptize  you  with  water ;  but  one  migh- 
tier than  I  cometh,  the  latchet  of  whose  shoes  I  am  not  worthy  to 
unloose :  he  shall  baptize  you  with  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire : 
whose  fan  is  in  his  hand,  and  he  will  thoroughly  purge  his  floor, 
and  will  gather  the  wheat  into  his  garner ;  but  the  chaff  he  will 
burn  with  fire  unquenchable.'  "     (iii.  7-17.) 

John  the  Evangelist,  speaking  of  John  the  Baptist,  says : — 
"  And  this  is  the  record  of  John  when  the  Jews  sent  priests  and 
Levites   from   Jerusalem   to  ask  him,  '  Wlio  art 

thou?'     And  he  confessed,  and  denied  not:  but       ,. ,,       ®  7^°' 

IX  ^        r^\     '      1        K      -I      ^  gelist  s  report, 

confessed,   '  I   am   not   the   Christ.       And  they 

asked  him,  '  What  then  ?  Art  thou  Elias  % '  And  he  saith,  '  I 
am  not.'  '  Art  thou  that  Prophet  ? '  And  he  answered,  '  jSTo.' 
Then  said  they  unto  him,  '  Who  art  thou  %  that  we  may  give  an 
answer  to  them  that  sent  us.  What  sayest  thou  of  thyself?' 
He  said,  '  I  am  the  voice  of  one  crying  in  the  wilderness.  Make 
straight  the  way  of  the  Lord,  as  said  the  prophet  Esaias.' — And 
they  which  were  sent  were  of  the  Pharisees.  And  they  asked 
him,  and  said  unto  him,  '  AYliy  baptizest  thou  then,  if  thou  be  not 
that  Christ,  nor  Elias,  neither  that  Prophet  ? '  John  answered 
them,  saying,  '  I  baptize  with  water :  but  there  standeth  one 
among  you,  whom  ye  know  not :  he  it  is,  who  coming  after  me 
is  pi'eferred  before  me,  whose  shoe's  latchet  I  am  not  worthy  to 
unloose.' "     (i.  19-27.) 

It  will  be  seen  that  this  startling  preacher  not  only  trampled 
under  foot  all  prejudices  as  to  appearance  and  style,  but  also  that 
he  spared  no  prejudice  of  national  pride  or  eccle- 
siastical  precedent  or  ancient  creed  or  modern    ^.  "  ^  '''^^^ 

JjlSCOUJ'SGS 

rationalism.     Let  us  analyze  these  very  brief  re- 
ports of  his  discourses  and  see  what  the  substance  was. 

1.  His  most  impressive  discoui'ses  seemed  to  be  of  repentance. 
This  he  pressed  upon  the  people  of  all  classes  vehemently.     It  was 


78  INTEODUCnON   OF   JESUS    TO    HIS   rrULIC    MTNTSTKT. 

not  to  be  a  mere  outward  reformation,  an  abandonment  of  noto- 
rious sin — nor  simply  the  observance  of  striol 
ance.  j.^^]gg  q£  |jfg^  mere  external  purification.  lie  knew 
nothing  of  the  dogma  of  sin  resident  in  the  flesh,  and  of  the 
theor}'  of  purifying  the  life  b}'  lacerating  the  body,  or  by  reduc- 
ing it  by  ascetic  observances.  lie  had  a  mission  to  othere,  not  a 
humiliating  work  to  perform  on  himself,  like  the  Jewish  masses 
that  were  around  him  in  the  desert.  lie  tore  conventionalities 
and  creeds  and  orthodoxies  to  shreds,  and  flung  them  to  the  winds. 
He  went  at  once  into  the  inmost  man,  and  insisted  that  his  hear- 
ers should  make  a  total  change  of  their  minds  in  eveiy  depart- 
ment— in  intellections,  in  emotions,  in  volitions.  He  knew  that  if 
this  internal  rectification  could  be  secured  everything  necessary 
in  the  outward  life  would  follow,  "  fruits  meet  for  repentance." 
So  when  the  people  asked  for  more  distinct  instruction  he  gave 
it  without  vagueness.  lie  had  the  art  of  discovering  just  where 
the  fester  was  in  the  sore,  and  the  great  surgical  talent  of  bold 
yet  skilful  probing.  Even  the  publicans — that  most  hated 
class — were  drawn  to  him.  He  told  them  plainly  that  they 
should  exact  no  more  than  they  were  authorized  to  require.  This 
was  their  besetting  sin,  greatly  nourished  by  their  position,  Avhich 
gave  them  so  much  opportunity  to  enrich  themselves  by  oi)iu-es- 
sing  others  without  being  called  to  account. — There  were  soldiei-s 
in  the  neijrhborhood.  And  they  flocked  to  hear  this  strange 
preacher,  and  asked  for  instruction.  He  warned  them  against 
their  well-kno^wn  vices,  charging  them  to  assault  no  one ;  nor 
accuse  any  of  the  people  to  their  superiors  on  frivolous  pre- 
tences ;  nor  be  discontented  with  their  wages. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  John,  radical  as  he  was,  and  reformer, 
made  no  assault  ujwn  the  existing  institutions  of  society.  He  was 
a  radical  not  in  the  sense  of  tearing  everything  up  by  the  n^ots, 
but  of  improving  all  growing  things  by  purifying  the  roots.  In 
this  particular  we  shall  see  that  Jesus  resembled  him. 

2.  He  preached  against  the  formalism  and  the  scci)ticism  of  the 

times,  the  i>hariseeism  and  sadduceeisin  that  divided  the  ruling 

minds  of  his  nation.     This  led  him  to  deal  roughly 

Against  formal-    ^^.j|.|^  |.|jq  cherished  traditional  religion  of  liis  poo- 

an      8cep  i-      ,^      ^^^  ^^^^^  ^^  ^.^^^^  ai)i)reciation  for  this  as  he 

had  for  sacerdotal  succession.     Men  are  not  to  be 

drilled  and  marched  in  platoons.     The  business  of  life  is  Individ- 


JOim's   PREACHmG    AND   MTNISTEY.  79 

ual  culture  in  holiness.  No  man  does  a  great  thing  in  any  proces- 
sion or  succession.  He  must  step  out.  lie  is  not  to  fancy,  hecause 
it  is  a  fact  that  he  is  descended  from  Abraham,  that  he  is  all  that  he 
should  be.  The  stern  preacher  looked  at  the  shingle  of  pebbles  and 
stones  at  his  feet,  and  laughed  their  traditional  claims  to  scorn  by 
exclaiming,  "  Children  of  xVbraham  are  you  ?  God  can  of  these 
stones  raise  up  children  to  Abraham."  It  is  difficult  to  conceive 
at  this  distance  and  with  our  culture  how  shocking  such  a 
statement  must  have  sounded  in  Jewish  ears.  As  members  of 
the  theocracy  they  held  that  they  had  a  prescriptive  right  to  a 
place  in  the  kingdom  of  the  coming  Messiah  when  he  should 
arrive.  And  they  believed  that  that  kingdom  would  be  restricted 
to  their  nation.  There  was  a  broad  dash  of  liberalism  in  John's 
discourses.  It  hit  the  formal  Pharisee  and  the  unspiritual  Sad- 
ducee  equally  hard  to  be  told  that  God  could,  by  his  Spirit,  out  of 
Btones  raise  up  children  to  Abraham  ;  as  if  he  had  said,  "  God  is 
able  to  transform  the  most  uncultivated  portions  of  the  human 
race  into  a  people  of  highest  spiritual  character  and  prospects." 

3.  He  announced  an  approaching  kingdom,  and  called  it  "  the 
kingdom  of  the  heavens."  If  the  kingdom  were  to  be  such  as 
they  and  their  fathers  had  expected,  there  had 
then  been  no  need  of  "  change  of  mind,"  repent-  ,,^,-,^'^"g^,^^ 
ance.  They  longed  for  a  kingdom  of  earth,  whose 
mighty  Euler  should  be  to  them  a  deliverer  from  every  foreign 
yoke.  He  was  to  be  revealed  from  heaven  with  great  wonders, 
resuscitate  the  race  of  Abraham,  subjugate  the  Roman  power  to  the 
Jewish  theocracy,  carry  a  war  of  triumph  against  all  the  Gentiles — 
all  nations  that  were  not  Jews — and  then  establish  a  personal  reigr. 
of  a  thousand  years,  in  which  the  Jewish  people  were  to  reack 
a  condition  of  unimaginable  splendor.  John  plainly  told  them 
that  that  was  all  nonsense.  That,  so  far  from  that  being  the  case, 
the  axe  was  already  laid  to  the  root  of  the  tree  of  their  nation 
and  religion,  and  that  in  a  little  while,  if  no  sign  of  an  inward 
life  appeared,  that  whole  tree,  deep  as  its  roots  had  struck,  and 
wide  as  its  branches  had  waved,  would  be  cut  down.  It  was 
inward  spiritual  life  which  God  required  in  every  man.  The 
kingdom  was  to  be  a  spiritual  kingdom,  in  which  the  will  of  each 
man  was  to  be  conformable  to  the  will  of  God,  a  kingdom  which 
was  to  cover  earth  with  heaven  and  obliterate  the  distinction  of 
sacred  and  profane. 


80 


INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS    TO    HIS    TUBLIO   MINISTRY. 


Announces 
presence  of 
Ruler. 


the 
the 


4.  lie  declared  the  neaniess  of  that  Idngdom,  and  made  (he 
startling  announcement  to  his  hearei-s  that  the  Kuler  in  that 
kingdom  was  then  actually  standing,  unkno\m, 
in  their  very  midst  1  He  magnified  that  Ruler, 
and  spoke  of  himself  in  contrast  as  quite  the 
most  humble  of  pei-sons.  He  was  not  worthy  to 
antie  aiid  carry  the  shoes  *  of  that  Potentate.  That  Ruler  was 
mightier  than  he,  lie  baptized  only  with  water;  the  Coming  One 
should  baptize  with  fire.  lie  was  no  one, — not  Christ, — not  Elias, 
—  nothing — but  a  Voice.  The  committee  that  waited  on  him  from 
the  Sanhedrim  catechised  him  closely  as  to  the  nature  of  hia 
person^  that  which  is  most  important  to  narrow  people.  He  made 
110  allusion  to  the  subject  of  their  incpiiries  in  his  replies,  but 
always  spoke  of  his  office  and  uoorlc^  as  being,  to  the  broad  view 
of  a  liberal  mind,  a  much  more  important  subject.  The  Coming 
One  stood  with  his  fan  in  his  hand.  He  should  blow  away  from 
the  threshing-floor  of  earth  all  chaff,  all  that — whatsoever  it  was 
— which  had  been  useful  in  the  rearing  of  the  real  wlieat,  but 
being  no  longer  useful,  whether  it  be  ceremonial  or  philosophic, 
he  would  burn  in  a  fire  which  none  that  loved  the  chaff  could  by 
any  means  extinguish.  Chaff  should  not  be.  That  was  settled. 
So,  have  done  with  chaff  and  appreciate  M'heat.  Address  your- 
selves, he  seemed  to  say,  to  practical  living  of  lives  of  inward 
purity,  of  justice,  mercy,  and  humility.  Be  ready  for  tliis  king- 
dom of  heaven  which  lies  all  aljout  you,  like  a  sea  about  an 
island  below  its  level,  an  island  from  which  the  inrush  of  the  sea 
is  prevented  by  dikes.  Make  a  crevasse  in  all  your  old  high- 
piled  traditionary  prejudices,  and  the  kingdom  of  heaven  will 
sweep  in. 

That  seemed  to  be  the  substance  of  the  matter  of  his  i)reach- 
ing. 

To  preaching  he  united  a  rite  of  haptism.     Perhaps  the  origin 
of  baptism  can  never  be  discovered.     The  wash- 
ing of  the  outer  man  seems  always  and  every- 
where to  have  been  considered  as  somehow  emljlcmatic  of  the  purifi 


Baptiem. 


*  The  expression,  "  whose  shoe's 
latchet  I  am  not  worthy  to  unloose," 
bos  its  force  intensified  by  coin])arison 
with  a  passage  in  the  Talmud :   "  Every 


office  a  servant  will  do  for  his  ma.stcr 
a  scholar  should  perform  for  his  teach- 
er, excepting  loosing  his  sandal  thong.' 
— Tract.  KuUlunchin,  xxii.  2. 


JOHN  8   PREACHING   AND   MINISTET. 


81 


cation  of  the  spirit.*  Much  discussion  has  been  had  by  the  learned 
on  the  question  whether  John's  baptism  was  equivalent  to  the  bap- 
tism of  proselj'tes ;  but  it  has  not  been  settled  whether  that  was 
introduced  before  or  after  the  ministry  of  John.  But  through  all 
the  Mosaic  law  and  ritual  there  ran  the  idea  of  a  connection  be- 
tween the  filth  of  the  body  and  the  impurity  of  the  soul,  and  the 
Jewish  mind  was  familiar  with  the  thought  of  effects  attributed 
to  a  rite  which  involved  the  application  of  water  for  the  removal 
of  unhealtliy  taints.  The  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  are  represented 
as  coming  to  the  baptism  of  John, — but  not  the  Essenes.  A  large 
part  of  their  religion  consisted  in  frequent  ablution  of  the  body. 
And  so,  when  John  began  to  preach  spiritual  holiness,  it  is  not  won- 
derful that  he  should  adopt  and  administer  the  rite  of  baptism. 
But  it  was  not  Christian  baptism,  of  course,  as  Christianity  was 
not  yet  inaugurated.  It  did  not  rise  to  the  height  of  a  sacrament. 
But  it  must  have  had  a  deeper  significance  than  any  baptism  pre- 
viously known  to  the  Jews,  and  John's  specific  instruction  must 
have  unfolded  that  deeper  meaning. 

A  very  great  use  of  John's  baptism — perhaps  it  was  so  designed 
— was  that  it  broke  through  all  priestism,  all  churchism,  all  ritual- 
ism. He  was  a  private  person.  He  was,  as  to  his  ministry,  in  no 
"  succession."  He  had  no  ecclesiastical  position,  no  "  authority." 
But  he  baptized.  The  rite,  as  he  administered  it,  was  private.  He 
was  breaking  up  the  soil  for  a  new  kingdom  which  was  to  be  very 
free  and  spiritual,  for  a  new  form  of  the  ever-during  church  that 
was  to  have  no  priesthood,  no  close  corporation  of  authorized  dis- 
pensers of  truth  or  pardon.  And  so  he  baptized.  He  that  had  no 
more  "  right"  than  any  other  man,  used  an  ordinance  indicative 
of  spiritual  purification. 

After  all,  the  ministry  of  John — brief,  vehement,  attractive,  and 
powerful  as  it  was — seemed  to  have  had  little  permanent  effect 
upon  his  generation.    It  was  like  a  rushing  mountain  torrent  that 


*  Milman  says  {Hist.  Christianity, 
Book  i.,  chap,  iii.)  :  "  The  sacred 
Ganges  cleanses  all  moral  pollution  from 
the  Indian  ;  among  the  Greeks  and  Ro- 
mans even  the  murderer  might,  it  was 
supposed,  wash  the  blood  dean  from  his 
hands  ;  and  (in  many  of  their  religious 
rites)  lustrations  or  ablutions,  either  in 

6 


the  running  stream  or  in  the  sea,  puri- 
fied the  candidate  for  divine  favor,  and 
made  him  fit  to  approach  the  shrines  of 
the  gods."  He  quotes  the  lines  of 
Ovid:— 

' '  Ah  nimium  f  aciles,  qui  tristia  crimina 
casdis, 
Tolli  fluroined,  posse  putatis  aqua.' 


82  INTRODUCTION   OF  JESUS   TO   HIS   PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

moved  some  stones  and  floatwood,  and  cut  a  channel  deeper,  but 
soon  passed  away.  "  For  a  season  "  the  mass 
His  ministry  not  of  the  people  rejoiced  in  him;  and  such  a  hold 
SyT^''*'^^  ^^  ^^^^  ^^  secured  upon  the  popular  mind  that  the 
Pharisees  did  not  dare  to  deny  the  divine  au- 
thority of  his  mission  when  they  were  publicly  questioned  by 
Jesus.  But  the  people's  passion  is  not  steady.  They  were  falling 
away  from  the  higli  excitement  to  w^hich  the  sudden  thundere  of 
John's  arousiuf^  preaching  had  flung  them.  Bishop  EUicott  elo- 
quently says  :  "  We  may  with  reason  believe  that  the  harbinger's 
message  miglit  have  arrested,  aroused,  and  awakened  ;  but  that 
the  general  influence  of  that  baptism  of  water  was  comparatively 
limited,  and  that  its  memory  would  soon  have  died  away  if  lie 
that  baptized  witli  the  Holy  Ghost  and  with  fire  had  not  invested 
it  with  a  new  and  more  vital  significance.  Jolin  struck  the  first 
chords,  but  the  sounds  would  have  soon  died  out  into  silence  if  a 
mightier  hand  had  not  swept  the  yet  vibrating  strings." — Histor- 
ical Lectures^  p.  105. 

In  following  regularly  the  career  of  Jesus  we  shall  come  upon 
an  occasion  when  he  gave  his  estimate  of  the  chai'acter  of  John. 


CHAPTEE    II. 

JESUS   DESIGNATED   AT   HIS   BAPTISM   BY  JOHN. 

Jesus  now  comes  forward  from  his  long  obscurity.     We  have 

Been  him  only  once  before  since  his  infancy.     Now  he  comes  to 

the  Jordan  to  be  baptized  of  John.     Let  us  col- 

,  ,  ,  Jesus  reappears. 

late  the  records.  Matt,  iii;  Mark  i. 

Matthev)'s  account  (iii.  13)  is  this:  "Then  cometh  Jesus  from 
Galilee  to  Jordan  unto  John,  to  be  baptized  of  him.  But  John 
forbade  him,  saying :  '  I  have  need  to  be  baptized  of  thee,  and 
comest  tliou  to  me?'  And  Jesus  answering  said  unto  him,  'Suffer 
it  to  be  so  now :  for  thus  it  becometh  us  to  fulfil  all  righteousness.' 
Then  he  suffered  him.  And  Jesus,  when  he  was  baptized,  went 
up  straightway  out  of  the  water :  and,  lo,  the  heavens  were  opened 
unto  him,  and  he  saw  the  Spirit  of  God  descending  like  a  dove, 
and  lighting  upon  him:  and  lo  a  voice  from  heaven,  saying,  'This 
is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased.' " 

Mark  (i.  9)  says:  "It  came  to  pass  in  those  days,  that  Jesus 
came  from  IN  azareth  of  Galilee,  and  was  baptized  oi  John  in  Jor- 
dan. And  straightway  coming  up  out  of  the  water,  he  saw  the 
heavens  opened,  and  the  Spirit  like  a  dove  descending  upon  him: 
and  there  came  a  voice  from  heaven,  saying,  'Thou  art  my  be- 
loved Son,  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased.'  " 

Luh^s  narrative  (iii.  21)  is  this:  "Now  when  all  the  people  were 
baptized,  it  came  to  pass,  that  Jesus  also  being  baptized,  and  pray- 
ing, the  heaven  was  opened,  and  the  Holy  Ghost  descended  in 
a  bodily  shape  like  a  dove  upon  him,  and  a  voice  came  from 
heaven,  which  said,  'Thou  art  my  beloved  Son;  in  thee  I  am  well 
pleased.' " 

Luke  adds  (verse  23) :  "And  Jesus  himself  began  to  be  about 
thirty  years  of  age." 

John  does  not  give  a  narrative  of  the  ceremony  of  the  baptism, 
but  records  the  testimony  of  John  the  Baptist  (i.  29). 

Here  is  the  fact  that  Jesus  was  baptized  of  John  in  Jordan.  To 
this  all  the  four  Kew  Testament  historians  testify.     They  give  nc 


84  mTEODrcnoN  of  jesus  to  nis  pubuo  ministkt. 

intimatiou  of  the  place.     That  was  not  important.     In  the  open- 
ing of  the  public  ministry  of  Jesus  we  may  take 
Jesns  comes  to    occasion  to  say  that  nowhere  do  we  find  these  four 
John.  writers  striving  to  make  out  a  case,  striving  to 

agree  in  details  of  narrative,  or  ministering  any- 
thing to  supei-stition.  Ko  portrait,  no  autograph,  no  desci'iptiou  ol 
the  pliysique  of  Jesus  is  preserved  by  them.  They  do  not  attempt 
to  invest  any  place  in  which  he  did  anything  with  a  sacrednesa 
which  sh(juld  make  it  the  focus  of  su})erstition.  But  they  tell 
their  story  with  the  artlessness  of  guileless  children,  and  leave  the 
impression  to  deepen  and  brighten  in  the  mind  of  the  reader. 
"We  shall  strive  to  deal  with  the  case  in  the  same  spirit  of  simple 
unaffected  reverence  for  Nature  and  Supernature,  feeling  that  we 
have  no  more  right  to  ignore  the  one  than  to  set  aside  the  other. 

The  fact  that  Jesus  submitted  voluntarily  to  John's  baptism  is 
wholly  unaccountable  on  certain  dogmas  long  assumed  to  be  un- 
questionable.   The  commentators  who  adopt  these 

Why  Jesus  waa    ^j^^orj^as  follow  One  another  in  a  dreary  march 
baptized.  .    ,        "  . 

around  what  they  suppose  to  be  a  difficulty,  which 

they  really  make  into  a  difficulty  for  other  minds,  but  which  they 

do  not  remove.     The  simple  statement  of  John  himself  ought  to 

throw  much  light  on  the  subject,     lie  says,  ''Hhat  he  should  he 

made  known   to   Israel;    therefore   am   I   come  baptizing  with 

water."     That  seems  quite  explicit.     The  hope  of  a  Messiah  was 

intensifying   its   element  of  expectation  when  John's   ministry 

opened.     lie  felt  the  depths  of  his  great  nature  stirred  with  a 

call  to  airouse  his  people  to  a  preparation  of  heart  for  the  great 

Advent.     lie  did  not   entertain   those   thoroughly  sjii ritualistic 

views  of  the  Messiah's  kingd<mi  which  have  since  obtained.     lie 

believed  in  his  pereonal  reign,  a  great  spiritual  improvement,  a 

discrimination,  a  dividing,  a  burning  u]>  the   chafT  of  his  ovn\ 

nation,  a  cleansing  of  the  Jewish  peoi)le  for  the  establishment  of 

a  purified  theocracy  to  be  administered  by  The  Christ  in  proper 

person. 

It  was  not  simply  the  kingdom  he  was  to  announce,  but  the 

king.     S<jmething  in  this  man's  soul  told  him  that  in  the  course 

of  his  ministry  of  heralding   the    kingdom    the 

Certain  miBtakes.  ,.  ,        ,,,  ii-i-  j'/       i       u 

kmg  should  be  revealed  to  mm,  and  he  sliould 

point  out  that  being  to  his  people,  and  that  there  lu's  ministry  waa 

virtually  to  cease.     Upon  the  inauguration  of  Jesus,  John  was 


JESUS   DESIGNATED   AT   HIS   BAPTISM   BY   JOHN.  85 

functus  officio.  Jesus  did  not  come  to  John  for  instruction,  surely. 
Every  reader  of  the  history,  who  reads  it  even  in  the  most  com- 
mon human  way,  must  see  that  as  a  teacher  the  man  Jesus  wag 
superior  to  the  man  John.  lie  did  not  come  to  him  to  be  bap- 
tized with  a  baptism  of  repentance,  change  of  mind,  for  he  had 
held  these  views  of  the  spiritual  tlieocracy  as  long  as  John  had. 
He  was  at  least  John's  fellow-prophet  of  the  coming  kingdom. 
He  had  thrown  no  obstacles  in  the  way.  He  was  not  a  priest,  a 
conventionalist,  a  ritualist,  a  fossilized  conservative  of  decent 
heterodoxes.  It  was  not  a  sacrament  that  John  was  to  administer 
to  him.  It  was  not  an  induction  into  a  priestly  ofBce.  The  bap 
tism  administered  by  John  to  Jesus  had  no  precedent  and  was 
not  a  precedent.  It  was  a  singular  act  and  fact  in  human  his- 
tory. The  Man  who  was  to  be  the  Ruler  of  the  human  mind  in 
the  ages  to  come,  and  was  to  ascend  to  the  highest  throne  in  the 
kingdom  of  thought;  the  Man  who  was  to  be  the  Ruler  of  the 
human  heart  in  the  ages  to  come,  so  that  no  one  was  to  be  so 
deeply,  highly,  tenderly,  reverently  loved  as  He, — this  man  was 
the  Son  of  Mary.  He  had  been  ordained  to  this  place  in  the 
harmonious  arrangement  of  the  universe,  and  hence  is  called  the 
Cheistus.  The  time  for  his  inauguration  had  come.  He  was  to 
be  revealed  to  the  world  through  the  ministry  of  John. 

One  needs  to  be  "S'cry  tender  and  thoughtful  as  one  studies  this 
great  passage ;  great  not  only  in  the  history  of  Jesus,  but  in  the 
history  of  the  world ;  for  the  history  of  all  humanity  was  from 
this  time  forth  to  be  changed  by  him. ,  AVliatever  tliere  is  of  fact 
should  be  studied  with  historical  discrimination,  and  whatever 
thefi-e  is  of  poetry,  wonder,  awe,  and  beauty,  should,  if  possible, 
be  studied  with  poetic  appreciation. 

It  has  been  well  said  that — 

"It  is  of  manifest  importance  that  what  we  see  we  should  see  clearly.    "We 
are  not  indeed  to  require,  as  an  al^solute  condition  of  faith,  that  we  should  be 
able  to  see,  or  even  to  image  distinctly  to  the  mind,  tlie 
thine;  in  which  we  are  to  believe.     Because  tliere  are  things        ecessity  o     is 

"  °      mental  picture. 

whicli,  from  their  very  nature,  do  not  admit  of  being  pic- 
tured even  to  the  imagination,  such  as  God  or  one's  own  soul.  (See  Edinburgh 
Rev.,  vol.  xlvi.,  p.  339,  Eng.  ed.)  But  Tvhen  the  matter  proposed  is  confessedly 
an  object  of  sense,  a  scene  that  addresses  the  eye,  clear  vision  is  supremely 
desirable.  We  may  not  ask  to  see  those  things  which  eye  hath  never  seen  and 
can  never  see.  But  of  tliat  which  professes  visibility,  let  us  have  the  distinct- 
est  sight     Accordingly,  it  is  necessary  to  a  due  faith  in  the  Baptism  of  Jesua, 


86  INTRODUCTION   OF  JESUS   TO    HIS   PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

with  its  attendant  circumstances  as  a  fact,  that  it  should  be  distinctly  rcpre 
sentcd  to  the  mind.  With  this  understanding,  and  a  single  desire  to  a])pre- 
hend  the  actual  state  of  the  case,  what  it  was  that  occurred  on  this  occasion, 
let  us  examine  the  above  account." — Jenus  and  his  Biographers,  by  Fumess,  p. 
147. 

Jesiis  came  roluntarily  to    John's  baptism  uninvited.      Had 
John  seen  him  before  ?     Possibly  several  times :  they  were  kins- 
men.    Probably  seldom:   they  lived   apart  in  a 

John's  previous  .,  -x    -        ^     •       ^ 

acquaintance.  country   not  vcry  easily  ti-avereed  in  tlieir  day. 

Possibly  never.  There  is  no  history.  John  says 
(John  i.  31),  "I  knew  him  not."  This  may  mean  one  of  two 
things :  either  that  he  had  no  knowledge  of  the  person  of  Jesus, 
so  that  he  should  recognize  him  on  sight,  or  that  he  did  not  know 
that  this  was  the  wonderful  Being  whose  arrival  his  great  life- 
work  was  to  announce  ;  did  not  know  that  he  was  the  ^^Erkome- 
nos"  the  Coming  Man,  until  certain  wonderful  phenomena  made 
the  whole  plain  to  his  mind. 

The  submission  of  Jesus  to  the  baptism  of  John  was  another 
blow  at    churchism,  priestism,  and  all  that  form    of    thought 

which  attempts  to  run  the  streams  of  God's  gra- 
A  blow  at  church-       .  , ,  ,  i     .     ,  •     i  i      ,         t 

ciousness  tlirough  ecclesiastical  aqueducts.    Jesus 

was  a  layman.  So  was  John.  Jesus  was  about 
to  begin  the  Ministry  of  Grace,  to  assume  the  kingliness  of  the 
Power  of  Purity.  lie  did  not  order  the  conduct  of  the  pomp 
of  the  inauguration  at  Imperial  Rome,  nor  at  Sacerdotal  Jerusa- 
lem. Kot  in  palace,  not  in  temple  !  lie  went  out  into  the  open 
air,  under  the  open  sky,  beside  the  running  stream.  He  would 
not  have  lictors  and  chamberlains  and  priests  about  him.  A 
rough,  unlearned  layman,  exhorting  the  people  to  be  ready  for 
him,  that  was  a  suflicient  herald.  lie  was  going  to  lay  the  world 
open  to  goodness  and  to  God.  lie  was  going  to  rend  the  veil  of 
the  temple  and  of  all  temples.  lie  was  going  to  abolish  heredi- 
tary religions  and  tear  away  whatever  stood  between  God  and 
man,  whether  it  were  temple  veil  or  erroneous  tliought,  a  chancel 
rail  or  a  dogma,  or  a  rubric  or  a  canon, — whatever  stood  between 
the  Father  and  the  Child  he  wius  to  destroy.  lie  was  never  to  use  the 
phrase  "  The  Church "  in  all  his  ministry.  His  kingdom  was  to 
be  inclusive,  not  exclusive.  His  pcoj)lc  were  to  be  every  man  a  king 
and  every  man  a  priest,  a  royal  priesthood,  a  lioly  generation  that 
should  know  no  distinction  between  "  clergyman  "  and  "  la}Tnan." 


ism. 


JESUS   DESIGNATED    AT   HIS   BAPTISM   BY   JOHN".  87 

When  Jesus  approached  John  for  baptism,  the  latter  liesitated. 

If  he  had  never  seen  him  before,  or  not  since  early  childhood 

there  was  somethino-  in  the  appearance  of  Jesus 

1  •   1  ,     T    1  •        ,-        •  TT  ^    Ti  John    declines 

which  arrested  his  attention.      He  was  not^  like    ^^  ^^^^.^^  j^^^^ 

the  people  who  usually  flocked  to  his  ministry. 

There  must  have  been  a  remarkable  absence  of  traces  of  world- 

liness, — world-care,  world-sorrow,  world-passion, — on  the  brow  of 

this  rare  young  man,  who  had  grown  up  under  influences  so  pure 

from  a  birth  so  marvellous.     lie  must  have  looked  like  one  who 

had  always  been  in  "  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,"  the  coming  of 

which  John  was  preaching.     Why  should  he  be  baptized  ?     With 

all  his  vehemence  and  power,  the  great-hearted  John  was  modest. 

When  he  looked  at  Jesus  he  declined  to  baptize  him,  and  said, 

"  I  have  need  to  be  baptized  of  you :  and  do  you  come  to  me  ?  " 

The  reply  of  Jesus  was  simple  and  decisive:  "Suffer  it  now : 

for  thus  it  becomes  us  to  fulfil  all  righteousness."     As  though  he 

had   said,    "Whatever  you  perceive  which  you    ,,    ,     .  ^ 

'       ,  .   .  .         Reply  of  Jesug. 

think  is  against  yoiir  baptizing  7ne,  proceed  with 
the  rite,  and  you  shall  then  know  something  beyond.  If  you  are 
divinely  moved  to  believe  that  in  the  regular  discharge  of  your 
ministry  of  preparation  the  Anointed  One  is  to  be  revealed  to 
you,  your  obvious  duty  is  to  go  forward  baptizing  every  comer 
until  HE  come.  If  there  be  anything  in  me,  in  all  my  previous 
growth,  in  all  the  development  of  my  soul,  that  predicts  for  me 
and  to  myself  a  great  and  solemn  destiny,  I  must  not  refuse  a 
baptism  of  heralding  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  If  your 
work  be  of  God,  O  humble  layman,  and  I  have  come  from  God, 
I  must  make  no  divergence,  and  no  opposition,  but  go  through 
with  it,  and  then  it  shall  come  to  pass  that  I  shall  be  revealed  to 
you,  and  shall  be  certified  in  my  own  soul  of  that  calling  of  which 
from  earliest  childhood  I  have  had  growing  intimations." 

How  much  of  this  Jesus  said,  or  whether  he  said  merely  ^liat 
is  recorded  in  the  text,  and  looked  the  rest,  we  cannot  know.  But 
John  knew  the  history  of  his  birth  and  the  marvels  thereon  at- 
tending.    And  he  baptized  him. 

It  was  a  momentous  crisis  for  both  parties.     John  was  to  have 
a  sign  of  the  Messiah  when  the  IMessiah  should 
appear.     Jesus  was  to  come  to  the  fulness  of  the     Momentous 

crisis 

perception  of   his  place    in  the  world    and  the 

world's  history.     Others  went  down  to  the  water  confessing,  and 


88  INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS    TO    HIS    PUBLIC   MINISTKY. 

came  up  shouting.      He  descended  in  solemn  silence,  and   as 
cended  from  the  river  with  face  upturned  in  worship. 

Then  occurred  a  phenomenon  mentioned  by  all  the  histoi-ians. 
SoynetJiing  like  a  dove  descended  \ijpon  Jesus.      That   much  is 
patent,  what  else  we  may  discover  by  rereading 
,  the  passages.     We  must  either  accept  these  books 

as  histories  or  reject  them.  I  accept.  They  must 
then  be  dealt  with  as  other  histories,  and  what  is  marvellous  must 
no  more  be  explained  away  than  what  is  commonplace.  "\Yliat 
was  this  that  appeared  "  like  a  dove  ? "  All  the  four  liistorians 
use  that  same  phrase,  whatever  may  be  their  variations  elsewhere. 
I  believe  it  was  actually  a  dove.  If  I  were  to  read  four  accounts 
of  the  coronation  of  a  king,  in  all  which  there  was  represented 
that  something  "  like  a  dove  "  descended  upon  him,  I  should  say 
"  It  was  a  dove."     I  say  so  here. 

Now,  let  us  bring  the  scene  and  the  personages  clearly  before 

QS.   We  are  standing  beside  Jordan.     Here  is  a  powerful,  masterly 

man  proclaiming  a  coming  kingdom.      And  here 
John  and  JesuB.     ,  i  .  »         ,        ,      i      ^     <•    n  .1  ij» 

IS  a  man  wlio  is  to  take  the  lead  of  all  the  world  s 

men,  upon  whom  as  never  upon  any  other  there  had  come  gifts 
of  insight,  pnrity,  and  elevation  of  character.  John  does  not 
know  this  of  Jesus,  as  later  men  shall  know  it.  lie  knows  him 
a  child  miraculously  born,  in  whose  early  history  there  had 
been  passages  not  common  in  human  biography.  He  is  looking 
daily  for  the  Christ  of  God,  the  Anointed  of  Jehovah.  He  feels 
that  Jesus  is  his  superior.  On  sight  he  acknowledges  that  superi- 
ority. A\niat  must  have  been  the  face  of  that  man  whose  pres- 
ence hushes  the  outspoken  John,  that  John  whom  mobs  of  sol- 
diers and  peasants,  and  crowds  of  rabbis,  and  connnittees  of 
Sanhedrims  only  roused  into  intenser  flame  of  hatred  against  sin  ! 
lie  that  is  higher  than  John  is  on  the  pinnacle  of  all  that  is  hu- 
man. The  man  that  overawes  John  has  the  mastery  of  humanity. 
With  what  intense  excitement  iiuist  John  have  gazed  upon 
Jesus !  And  when  Jesus  came  up  from  the  water,  praying,  trans- 
figured with  his  own  intense  intellectual  and  spir- 
Johnthediscov-  .^"^^^^  excitement,  it  was  a  moment  of  rapt  awe 
erer  of  Jesus.  ,      ,  .        ,  .  .  -i  i  11 

to  both.     At  that  instant  a  dove  descended  on 

Jesus.  Whence,  no  one  saw.  It  seemed  to  come  from  heaven. 
John  had  had  the  assurance  that  a  sign  should  be  given  him  when 
tlie  Messiah  rose  to  his  vision.     He  was  advancing  along  the  line 


JESUS   DESIGNATED   AT   HIS   BAPTISM   BY   JOHN.  89 

of  his  ministry  when  this  remarkable  state  of  affairs  was  come 
upon,  namely ;  a  man  of  wondrous  sanctity  of  appearance  comes 
to  his  baptism ;  John  feels  that  this  is  his  superior,  and  is  com- 
pelled to  acknowledge  it;  the  candidate  makes  no  confession  ;  he 
comes  fi'om  the  water  in  a  state  of  great  spiritual  exaltation ;  a 
dove  from  parts  unseen  descends  upon  him.  It  was  to  John  the 
Holy  Spirit  of  the  great  Jehovah  designating  the  expected  and 
Anointed  Deliverer,  according  to  previous  intimations.  Now,  if 
the  presence  of  Jesus  could  have  produced  such  an  uprising  of 
the  mind  of  John,  there  must  have  been  something  divinely  pow- 
erful in  Jesus.  It  was  John  who  was  selected  to  discover  the 
Messiah  and  to  declare  him  to  his  generation. 

There  was  not  only  the  appearance  of  a  dove  out  of  the  opening 
heavens,  but  the  sound  of  a  voice.  The  voice  was  not  a  mere 
rumble,  as  of  thunder.  There  could  have  been 
no  thunder-storm.  It  was  clear  in  a  rare  degree, 
for  the  "  heavens  "  were  "  opened."  The  sound  was  articulate. 
It  was  the  vouchsafed  sign.  John  heard  it :  "  This  is  my  heloved 
Son,  in  whom  I  am  well  jpleasedP  Jesus  heard  it:  "  Thou  art 
my  heloved  Son,  in  \ohom  I  am  well  jpleasedP 

Any  theory  may  be  set  forth,  but  here  are  the  facts.  It  may 
be  said  that  it  was  an  intense  state  of  mental  excitement  which 
made  these  men  hear  what  they  supposed  to  be  a 
voice.  Suppose  that.  If  God  speak  to  j'ou  ar- 
ticulately, just  as  a  human  being  does,  or  prefer 
so  to  cpiicken  your  inward  being  that  you  receive  thereon  precise- 
ly such  impressions  as  come  to  you  ordinarily  and  normally 
through  your  senses,  it  is  to  you  precisely  the  same.  There  is  no 
difference  in  the  result.  All  great  souls  that  have  dedicated 
themselves  to  great  deeds  of  self-abnegation  and  heroism  have 
felt,  seen,  heard  powerful  communications  from  the  Great  Cre- 
ator. Impressions  are  frequently  made  directly  upon  the  mind 
without  intervention  of  the  organs  of  sense;  and  they  seem  just 
such  as  men  are  accustomed  to  receive  through  those  organs ;  and 
then  they  are  spoken  of  as  visions  or  \'oices,  as  the  case  may  be.  It 
is  not  a  question  of  such  vast  concern  in  which  way  came  this  con- 
firmation to  John.  lie  was  not  a  cold,  hard  materialist.  He  was 
a  man  of  high-wrought  spirituality.  And  Jesus  was  the  finest 
piece  of  human  organism  of  which  any  history  gives  us  any  ac- 
count.    These  men  met  in  a  circle  of  circumstances  described  by 


90 


DaT?ODUCnON   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PrBLIC   MINISTRY. 


one  of  them.  John  says:  '■^  I  saw  ^  and  hare  record  that  this  is 
the  Son  of  GodP  If  he  was  satisfied,  surely  we  (>ught  to  be.  It 
is  as  imphilosopliie  to  be  incredulous  as  to  be  superstitious.  Men 
have  no  reward  when  they  exert  their  intellects  to  reason  them- 
selves out  of  their  faith.  Faith  of  what  can  be  believed  is  aa 
important  as  science  of  what  can  be  known. 
Jesus  thus  inaugurated  his  public  ministry. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE   TEMPTATION. 

Immediately  after  the  exciting  scene  of  his  baptism,  Jesns  en- 
tered upon  a  fearful  season  of  spiritual  trial  and  depression.  It 
is  usually  known  as  The  Temptation.  The  history  is  given  by 
Matthew  and  Luke,  a  brief  statement  being  made  by  Mark  also. 

Matthew's  narrative  is  this :  "  Then  was  Jesus  led  up  of  the 
Spirit  into  the  wilderness  to  be  tempted  of  the  devil.     And  when 
he  had  fasted  forty  days  and  forty  nights,  after- 
ward he  hungered.     And  when  the  tempter  came        *     ews  ac- 

^3  i  count, 

to  him,  he  said,  '  If  thou  art  the  Son  of  God,  com- 
mand that  these  stones  be  made  bread.'  But  he  answered  and 
said,  '  It  is  written,  Man  shall  not  live  on  bread  alone,  but  on 
every  word  proceeding  through  the  mouth  of  God.'  Then  the 
devil  taketh  him  up  into  the  holy  city,  and  setteth  him  on  the 
battlement  of  the  temple,  and  saith  to  him,  '  If  thou  art  the  Son 
of  God,  cast  thyself  do\vn :  for  it  is  written.  He  shall  gi\'e  his 
angels  charge  concerning  thee :  and  upon  their  hands  they  shall 
bear  thee  up,  lest  at  any  time  thou  dash  thy  foot  against  a  stone.' 
Jesus  said  unto  him,  'It  is  written  again.  Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the 
Lord  thy  God.'  Again,  the  devil  taketh  him  up  into  an  exceeding 
high  mountain,  and  showeth  him  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world,  and 
the  glory  of  them  ;  and  said  to  him,  *  All  these  things  will  I  give 
thee,  if  falling  down  thou  wilt  do  me  homage.'  Then  saith  Jesus 
unto  him,  '  Go  away,  Satan :  for  it  is  wiitten,  Thou  shalt  do  hom- 
age to  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him  only  shalt  thou  worship.'  Then 
the  devil  leaveth  him,  and,  behold,  angels  came  and  ministered 
imto  him."     (Matt.  iv.  1-11.) 

All  that  Mark  records  is  in  ch.  i.  w.  12,  13 :  "  And  immedi- 
ately the  Spirit  driveth  him  into  the  wilderness. 

And  he  was  there  in  the  wilderness  forty  days       J^   s  account, 

*'        •'       and  Luke  s. 
tempted  of  Satan ;  and  was  with  the  wild  beasts ; 

and  the  angels  ministered  unto  him." 


92  INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PrBLTC   MINISTRY. 

St.  Lul^e  (iv.  1-13)  gives  an  account  of  this  transaction  wliicli 
Is  substantially  the  same  as  that  of  Matthew. 

It  cannot  now  be  known  in  what  place  this  passage  in  the  his- 
tory of  Jesus  occurred.  Tradition  assigns  it  to  one  of  the  moun- 
tains opposite  Jericho,  called  now  Quarantania, 

ace  0    t  e     f j.^jy^  |]iq  fortv  days  of  fastinrr.  a  name  i)robably 
Temptation.  .  ..,"'„  ^' 

given  it  in  the  times  of  the  Crusades.     Thomson 

{Land  and  Book^  vol.  ii.  p.  450)  thus  describes  it: — 

"Directly  west,  at  a  distance  of  a  mile  and  a  half,  is  the  high  and  precipi- 
tous mountain  called  Quarantania,  from  a  tradition  that  our  Saviour  here 
fasted  forty  days  and  nights,  and  also  that  this  is  the  'high  mountain'  from 
whose  top  the  tempter  exhiljited  *  all  the  kingdoms  of  this  world,  and  the 
glory  of  them.'  The  side  facing  the  plain  is  as  perpendicular  and  apparently 
as  high  as  the  rock  of  Gil>raltar,  and  upon  the  very  summit  arc  still  ^^sil)le 
the  ruins  of  an  ancient  convent.  ]\Iid\vay  below  are  caverns  hewn  in  the  per- 
pendicular rock,  where  hemiits  fonnerly  retired  to  fast  and  pray,  in  imitation 
of  the  '  forty  days,'  and  it  is  said  that  even  at  the  present  time  there  is  to  be 
found  an  occasional  Copt-or  Abyssinian  languishing  out  his  Quarantania  in 
tliis  doleful  place." 

The  general  reader  would  be  amazed  to  see  the  immense  amount 
of  literature  there  is  upon  the  subject  of  the  Temptation  of  Jesus. 
Through  much  of  it  we  have  painfully  waded,  to  come  back  to 
the  conclusion  that  the  simplest  way  is  to  read  the  liistory  in  the 
light  of  common  sense,  and  derive  what  lessons  our  present  scien- 
tific culture  may  enable  us  to  educe. 

It  is  obvious  tliat  the  narrative  is  substantially  made  by  Jesus. 
The  historians  could  have  gathered  it  from  no  other  source.     Un- 
less they  made  great  blunders  In  understanding 
e  narra  ive      j^jg  gtatements,  or  in  recordiufr  tlicin,  we  have  the 
made  by  Jesus.  i    i       «■  •     i     /•  •  -i  •    j 

whole  affair  before  us  as  it  appeared  to  the  mind 

of  Jesus,  quite  as  nearly  indeed  as  language  can  convey  thought 
from  one  mind  to  another. 

It  may  be  instructive  to  see  liow  many  views  have  been  taken 

of  this  portion  of  the  history  of  Jesus.     They  show  how  men 

allow  themselves  to  intei-pret  facts  by  dogmas, 

.xp  ana  ory        ^^^^  ^j^^^  ^|^jg  j^  quite  RS  common  among  sceptics 

f  hconcs 

as  mnoTijj  the  crc(lul(»ns, — no  more  cliaractcristic 

of  the  one  than  of  the  other,  altliongli  generally  charged  vehe 

mently  upon  the  latter  by  the  former. 

1.  It  lias  been  regarded  as  an  external  occurrence,  and,  as  such, 


THE   TEMPTATION. 


(a)  as  real,  the  literal  apparition  of  Satan  in  the  form  of  a  man  or 
of  an  angel ;  *  (b)  as  a  myth,t  in  which  tradition  invests  the  sym- 
bolical idea  of  a  contest  between  Messiah  and  Satan ;  or  (c)  as  a 
narrative  in  sj-mbolical  language,  the  real  tempter  being  a  man,:{: 

2.  It  has  been  regarded  as  an  internal  occurrence;  in  other 
words,  a  vision :  and,  as  such  («),  as  excited  in  the  brain  of  Jesus 
by  the  Devil  ;§  {h)  as  created  by  God;|  (c)  as  produced  by  natu- 
ral causes,!"  oi"  {d),  as  "a  significant  morning  dream."  ** 

3.  It  has  been  considered  an  inward  ethical  transaction,  or  a 
psycJiologioal  occurrence ;  and,  as  such  (a),  a  conflict  in  the  imag- 
ination of  Jesus ;  f  f  (b)  an  inward  conflict  excited  by  the  Devil ;  XX 
(c)  a  subjective  (inward)  transaction,  to  which  the  JSTew  Testament 
historians  gave  an  objective  (outward)  form;  or  (d),  as  a  frag- 
mentary, symbolical  representation  of  transactions  in  the  inner 
life  of  Jesus,  grouped  into  one  statement.  §§ 

4.  It  has  been  considered  as  a,  parable,  to  instruct  the  disciples 
of  Jesus  as  to  their  spiiitual  perils  and  remedies.  ||| 

5.  It  has  been  pronounced  a  mj/th.^^ 

This  classification  and  these  references  are  given  so  that  if 
there  be  any  readers  having  time,  patience,  and  curiosity  enough, 
they  may  make  a  study  of  this  subject  for  themselves.  To  many 
minds  the  refutation  of  these  positions  must  have  occurred  as 
they  have  been  stated.     In  all  of  them  there  are  difficulties. 

The  theories  which  involve  tlie  appearance  of  Satan  in  bodily 
form,  whether  of  man  or  angel,  are  open  to  the  objections  (1),  That 


*  This  is,  I  think,  the  view  of  most  of 
the  commentators  who  consider  them- 
selves orthodox. 

f  I  need  hardly  say  that  this  is  the 
view  of  Dr.  Strauss. 

X  The  man  being,  as  some  hold,  a 
member  of  the  Jewish  Sanhedrim.  Ben- 
gel  says :  "  The  tempter  did  not  wish  it 
to  be  known  that  he  was  Satan,  yet 
Christ,  at  the  conclusion  of  the  inter- 
view, calls  him  Satan,  after  that  Satan 
had  plainly  betrayed  his  satanity. "  He 
adds:  "  The  tempter  seems  to  have  ap- 
peared under  the  form  of  a  7pa;i/iaTei'/s, 
a  scribe,  since  our  Lord  thrice  replies  to 
him  by  the  word  yeyfia-TTui,  it  is  tcritteii. " 
See  Gnomen  N.  T.,  vol.  i.  p.  149. 

J5  This  view  was  held  by  Origen,  Cy- 


prian, Theodoras  of  Mopsuestia,  01s- 
hausen,  and  Hiibner. 

II  Set  forth  by  Farmer  in  his  '■'■Inquii'y 
into  the  Nature  and  Dexign  of  Chrisfs 
2\mptation  in  the  Wilderness."  Lon- 
don, 1761. 

^  Prof.  Paul  us  and  many  others. 

**  Meyer,  in  the  Studieii  u.  Kritiken 
for  1831,  p.  319. 

f  f  Eichhorn,  Weisse,  and  others. 

XX  Ki-abbe. 

§§  This  is  Neander's  view.  It  may  be 
regarded  as  a  specimen  of  what  Strauss 
well  calls  "  the  palliative  theology." 

II II  The  opinion  of  Schleiermacher, 
Baumgarten-Cmsius,  etc. 

■[^  Strauss,  Meyer,  De  Wette,  and  all 
that  school  of  course  give  this  solution 


94 


INTRODUCTION    OF   JESUS   TO    EIS   PUBLIC   inXISTEl. 


Satan  nowhere  else  is  so  represented  by  tliese  historians,*  which, 
I   acknowledge,   may  be  very  feeble  as  an  ob- 

^    ^    iection,  but  is  noticeable  in  this  connection ;  and 
form"  theory.  ,  ^v    mi  »  •      i  •     •  -,  ■,        •  ^     y 

(2),  ihat  this  theory  is  incompatible  with  the  nar- 
rative; as,  for  instance,  the  taking  of  Jesus  to  the  pinnacle  of  the 
Temple  and  to  the  top  of  the  mountain,  and  showing  him  all  the 
kingdoms  of  the  world  in  a  moment,  which  no  member  of  the 
Sanhedrim  and  no  "scribe"  would  have  essayed  to  do.  The  per- 
son who  could  have  done  so  would  have  assumed  the  role  of  the 
Messiah  himself,  made  aerial  excursion  in  the  presence  of  the 
multitude,  and  won  all  the  eclut  of  a  thaumaturgist.  Moreover 
(3),  According  to  this  view,  the  Devil  knew  that  the  person  he  was 
tempting  was  divine;  and  this  fact  greatly  embarrasses  the  idea 
of  a  pei'sonal  conflict  between  the  two.  So  that  it  seems  we  must 
give  up  that  theory. 

The  idea  of  any  myth  forming  itself  in  the  Augustan  age,  be- 
tween the  times  of  Livy  and  Tacitus,  and  especially  that  of  a 
theologic  myth  forming  itself  among  the  Jews,  at 
the  time  of  their  histor}'  which  is  so  near  its  close 
as  this,  is  perfectly  preposterous.  One  may  safely  cliallenge,  I 
humbly  think,  any  man  of  any  amount  of  learning  to  point  out 
any  myth,  or  sign  of  a  myth,  M'hich  had  its  origin  in  any  notable 
centre  of  political  influence  in  any  portion  of  tlie  Roman  Empire 
after  the  accession  of  Augustus  to  the  imperial  throne.  One  may 
challenge  the  whole  school  of  myth-philosophers  to  indicate  any- 
thing, aside  from  the  history  of  Jesus,  which  gives  evidence  of 
mythical  tendency  even  among  the  people  of  the  Jews,  at  any 
time  of  their  history  after  the  beginning  of  the  third  century 
before  the  Christian  era.  Wliy  then  sliould  the  liistory  of  Jesus, 
and  that  alone,  be  interpreted  agaimt  all  known  laws  of  mental 
progress?  Does  any  man  ever  apply  the  myth  theory  to  the  times 
of  Julius  Caesar  or  Pompey?  A  myth  is  tlic  prodtict  of  the  child- 
hood of  a  i)eople,  and  never  survives  the  maturity  of  a  nation,  as 
a  matter  of  belief,  any  more  than  the  traditionary  stories  of  fai- 
ries, wherewith  we  still  allow  the  children  of  Europe  and  America 
to  be  amused,  liave  power  over  the  consciences  of  the  people. 


The  myth  theory. 


♦  If  the  reader  recalls  John  vi.  70,  he 
must  be  reminded  that  Je.sus  calls  Judas 
8iaj8o\o(,  which  is  the  generic  substan- 
tive, "a  devil,"  in  the  sense  of  "devil- 


ish." I  do  not  recollect  any  case  of  a 
mon  being  called  <5  Sia/SoAof,  tlii  devil. 
Alford  {Or.  Tat.  in  loco)  says  that  no 
such  case  can  be  adduced. 


THE   TEMPTATION.  95 

Among  the  Greeks  and  Romans  the  theologic  myths  which  their 
early  ancestors  had  originated  were  fast  losing  all  respect  among 
the  uncultivated  masses  and  the  lower  orders,  as  they  had  long 
before  ceased  to  be  regarded  by  the  learned  and  the  tasteful  as 
worth  more  than  merely  the  poetical  element  that  was  in  them 
The  Jewish  nation  never  were  much  o^iven  to  that  form  of  thoufjht. 
Perhaps  the  infancy  of  no  community  known  to  history  was  freer 
from  myths  than  the  early  life  of  the  Hebrew  people.  How  im- 
practicable, then,  must  it  have  been  to  generate  a  myth  under 
Herod  and  Pontius  Pilate,  in  Judaea,  just  before  or  soon  after  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  by  people  who  had  been  bred  Jews  and 
were  scattered  over  the  Roman  Empire ! 

These  general  remarks,  applying  to  the  biography  of  Jesus  in 
the  mass,  are  equally  forceful  as  to  any  particular  passage  in  his 
history.  We  must  give  up  the  myths.  Those  who  earnestly  held 
to  them  a  few  years  ago  are  forced  by  the  advancing  spirit  of 
critical  investigation  to  abandon  them. 

As  for  the  theories  which  involve  visions  and  "  significant  morn- 
ing dreams,"  perhaps  nothing  shorter  or  better  can  be  said  than 
Lano-e's  sentence :  "  Decisive  ethical  conflicts  do 

.  The    "dream' 

not  take  place  in  the  form  of  dreams ;  "  a  state-    ^^q^ 

ment  which  will  probably  be  confirmed  by  the 

consciousness  of  many  a  reader. 

Let  all  dogmas  be  laid  aside  and  the  record  of  these  historians 
be  examined  to  see  what  they  teach  any  fair-minded  reader. 

In  general  they  give,  us  the  knowledge  of  what  Jesus  tliought 
of  a  supreme  passage  in  his  own  mental  and  spiritual  history. 
As  no  man  who  existed  before  his  time,  or  has  risen  since,  has  so 
influenced  the  intellectual  and  moral  condition  of  the  world,  this 
piece  of  autobiography  becomes  to  us  a  history  of  unspeakable  im- 
portance. "We  wish  to  ascertain  his  views  of  the  subjects  involved, 
and  compare  them  with  what  we  believe  to  be  ascertained  laws  of 
psychology. 

It  is  first  to  be  noticed  that  this  imj^ortant  and  testing  occur- 
rence enters  his  history  just  at  the  moment  we  should  naturally 
look  for  it.  He  was  a  man.  Marvellous  and  won- 
derful, in  birth  and  growth,  he  was  a  man.  From  ^  J^^j^  j^^J^' 
perhaps  an  earlier  period  than  even  the  beginning 
of  conscious  self-inspection  there  had  been  a  sense  of  spiritual 
idiosyncrasy  present  with  him.      It  may  have  been  at  firet  the 


96  mTRODUcnoN  of  jesus  to  nis  public  MiNiSTEr. 

glimmer,  tlieu  the  dawTi,  tlieu  the  growing  light.  It  consisted 
with  a  perfect  human  consciousness.  The  sense  of  manness^  of 
humanness,  never  left  him.  It  was  as  present  to  him  as  it  ever 
was  to  any  other  human  being.  His  whole  history  shows  that ; 
and  from  a  review  of  his  whole  life  we  must  recall  that  fact  in 
the  study  of  his  pi-eparation  for  his  life-work.  lie  had  an  increas- 
ing conviction  tliat  he  was  set  in  the  universe  for  some  unique 
work,  lie  had  a  growing  ability  for  that  work.  "  He  grew  in 
wisdom."  As  he  approached  the  hour  in  the  world's  history  and 
his  own  when  his  mission  was  to  be  ostensibly  and  operatively 
begun,  he  felt  within  himself  the  keen  and  mastering  desire  to 
enter  upon  and  accomplish  his  work. 

The  baptism  was  a  crisis.     John  was  to  have  therein  a  sign  of 

the  Messiah,  the  Sent  One,  the  real  Man  of  Destiny,  the  Anointed 

Deliverer.     If  he  were  that  One, — and  his  belief 

Excitement  of    jj^^g^  have  grown  with  his  growth, — what  should 
Jesus  at  his  bap-  ,  •,  iii-         iriTi  u 

j.j^^  occur  when  he  presented  hnuselr  to  John  would 

settle  the  question  definitely.  It  would  also  be 
his  own  voluntary  dedication  to  the  loftiest  and  the  largest  work 
ever  enterprised  by  man.  The  phenomena  at  the  baptism  con- 
spired with  his  own  sentiments  to  produce  in  him  the  most  in 
tensely  exciting  and  exalting  state  of  feeling  consistent  with  the 
continuance  of  life.  Through  that  state  he  had  just  passed.  It 
was  his  Eubicon.  It  was  his  voluntary  devotion  to  what  he  never 
could  afterward  abandon  without  spiritual  shipwreck  and  self- 
ruin.  Every  other  great  soul  has  passed  through  precisely  in 
kind  that  crisis  of  the  mind  and  spirit  proportioned  to  each 
man's  soul  and  work.  Jesus  is  admitted  by  all  healthy  minds  to 
have  been  the  greatest  soul  in  all  our  human  brotherhood,  and  the 
work  he  was  about  to  undertake,  whether  he  should  succeed  in 
accomplishing  it  or  not,  to  be  the  greatest  of  all  the  enterprises 
known  in  the  record  of  holy  daring.  He  was  making  for  himself 
an  investiture  of  himself  with  the  office  and  dignity  of  royal  rule 
over  all  humanity.  The  excitement  had  been  indescribably  be- 
cause inconceivably  intense. 

Then  folUnved  in  his  what  has  followed  in  every  other  known 
human  history, — a  collapse,  a  depression,  an  awful  desolation,  a 

^        „  plunjre  from  the  altitudes  of  liuman  sensationp, 

percci)tioiif*,  and  spiritual  conditions  to  the  depths 

that  lie  separated  by  thin  and  weak  flooring  from  the  bottomlesg 


THE    TE^rPTATION.  97 

pit  of  despair.  Every  man  that  has  gone  npon  a  hnge  work  has 
had  these  alternations, — transitions  from  the  high  excitement  of 
emprise  to  the  depths  of  doubts  and  misgivings, — that  dread  in- 
terval of  chill  between  commitment  to  a  cause  and  tlie  first  l)low, 
—the  season,  brief  by  the  clock  but  long  by  the  heart,  which  the 
soldier  passes  through  between  the  formation  of  the  line  of  battle 
and  the  roar  of  the  first  artillery  discharge  which  annonnces  the 
beginning  of  the  action  which  must  then  be  fought  through  to  the 
result  of  victory  or  defeat. 

Such  seems  to  have  been  the  passage  of  the  temptation.  Full 
of  the  Holy  Ghost,  Jesus  returned  from  Jordan,  where  he  had 
been  baptized,  and  was  led  by  God's  Spirit  into  a 

wilderness,  where  he  was  to  endure  another  trial    , 

'  Jesus. 

and  have  shoM'n  whether  he  could  as  well  preserve 
liis  unsinningnessin  depression  as  in  exaltation,  when  hell  mocked 
him  as  well  as  when  heaven  eulogized  him..  This  was  absolutely 
necessary  for  him.  It  M'as  possible  for  Jesns  to  sin  :  *  quite  as 
possible  as  for  Adam,  or  Moses,  or  you,  or  me,  or  any  other  man. 
Any  other  view  reduces  this  portion  of  his  history  to  such  a  fable 
or  paralile  as  would  be  more  ridiculous  than  any  farce  we  ever 
read  ;  for  even  in  the  fable  Jesus  would  be  represented  as  liable 
to  a  spiritual  lapse,  which  is  inconsistent  with  any  dogma  of  his 
impeccability.  He  might  have  attempted  an  indulgence  of  him- 
self in  what  was  attractive  but  sinful.  It  would  have  ruined  him. 
But  if  he  could  not,  then  he  was  no  man  in  any  reasonable  sense 
of  that  word  ;  then  he  had  no  freedom  of  will,  and  could  not  have 
been  even  virtuous ;  then  his  history  is  of  no  kind  of  moral  sig- 
nificance or  spiritual  import  to  any  man  whatever;  then  he  was  a 
monster,  lieing  not  God,  not  angel,  not  demon,  not  man,  an  ano- 
malous drift,  floating  lawlessly  and  disorderly  among  the  things 
of  God,  an  entity  having  no  reference  to  God  whatever.  Tliis  is 
not  to  be  supposed. 

Jesus  was  tempted  just  as  any  other  man,  and  tells  the  story  of 
his  temptation  just  as  any  other  intelligent  person  would  narrate 
the  fearful  passage  of  his  supreme  spiritual  trial.     His  narrative 

*  The   old  distinction  is  of  the  rum,    to  Adam  and  to  Jesus.    Neither  had  any 
posse  percfire  and  the  posse  non  pecenre  ; 
the  former,  the  inherent  inability  to  sin, 
belongs  to  God  alone  ;    the  latter,  the 
inherent  ability  to  keep  from   sinning, 

7 


traditional  bad  blood.  That  is  their 
chief  human  distinction  from  other  men. 
This  is  the  scholastic  view. 


98  rxTRODUCTioN  OF  Ji:?rs  to  his  rrnLic  >nxiSTRT. 

follows  known  psychol(><;ie  law?.  "  Iiiuncdiately,"  he  tells  us, 
the  Spirit  which  had  led  him  to  John,  to  the  part- 
His  narrative  jj^g  Jordan,  to  the  opening  heaven,  to  the  descend- 
given  uman  y.  .^^^  dove,  to  the  divine  benediction,  compels  him, 
*' drives"  him  into  tlie  wilderness  "  to  be  tempted  of  the  devil." 
Just  BO  any  autobiographer  would  state  it.  It  was  the  actual  con- 
flict of  Jesus  with  the  Power  of  Evil. 

Tlie  ex(;itement  of  the  Jordan  scene  was  followed  by  a  fast  of 
forty  days  and  forty  nights.     "We  are  not  prepared  to  say  that 
this  was  literallv  a  period  of  forty  times  twenty- 
Fast  of    forty    f,,,„.  i,,,„,.s,     "Forty  days"isaliebraismf.)r  an 

indefinitely  long  time.  We  have  no  record,  (nit- 
side  the  Bible,  so  far  as  I  know,  of  any  fast  having  been  continued 
this  long  and  life  retained.  And  if  Jesus  was  miraculously  sus- 
tained, it  takes  much  fi-om  the  power  of  moral  instruction  which 
this  passage  otherwise  contains. 

As  in  the  cases  of  Moses  (Exod.  xxxiv.  28)  and  Elias  (1  Kings 
xix,  8),  this  period  was  filled  with  a  spiritual  ecstasy  and  a  trial 
of  his  powers  which  suspended  the  ordinary  wants  of  the  body. 
When  at  last  hunger  broke  through  upon  him,  and  exhaustion 
ensued,  Satan  is  represented  as  having  come  to  him  presenting 
the  tests  of  his  virtue  which  searched  him  through  all  those  open- 
ings of  the  human  being  as  yet  discovered  on  the  side  f»f  <hsire, 
namely,  the  desire  of  pleasure,  the  desire  of  praise,  and  the  desire 
of  power, — an  approach  through  the  body,  through  the  intellect, 
and  through  tlie  soul,  to  the  inner  man,  the  spirit,  the  real  I, — or, 
as  the  writer  (.f  the  First  Epistle  General  of  John  (ii.  IG)  classifies 
them,  "  the  lust  of  the  flesh,  the  lust  of  the  eyes,  the  i)ride  of 
life."     The  temptation  through /mr  was  reserved. 

In  the  history  of  Jesus  we  shall  come  upon  some  other  teaching 
in  regard  to  Satan.    Here,  for  the  first  time  in  that 
Satan.  liiptory,  this  name  is  assigned  to  a  personal  being. 

In    advance,    there   is    nothing   preposterous,   nothing    ridicu- 
lous, notliing  unreasonable,  we  may  even  say  nothing  im]>roba- 
l)le  in  the  supposition    that    there   is   an    entity 
Nothing prepos-    ^,„,|„,,.p,|   .^^i^),  intelligence  and  moral  (lualities, 
^'^°^'  specially    and    actively   evil ;    intelligently   and 

persistently  evil ;  thoroughly  and  ceaselessly  evil.  The  probabil- 
ities, ai)art  from  any  special  revelation  from  Almighty  (iod,  are 
in  favor  of  the  existence  of  such  a  person,  although  it  is  mani- 


THE   TEMPTATION.  99 

festly  out  of  the  power  of  the  human  reason  to  determine  the 
conditions  of  his  existence  or  the  modes  of  his  action,  while  pro- 
bable characteristics  could  be  reasonably  conjectured. 

Every  intelligent  man  who  devotes  any  time  to  self-inspection 
finds  that  his  violations  of  any  code,  which  he  believes  to  be  the 
moral  law,  come  either  from  certain  emotions  of 

his  own  inner  nature— excited  he  cannot  tell  how,     ^'^'^^^^^^^^  P^^^ 
-  ,  .  sure  on  the  soul. 

Bpontaneous  so  rar  as  he  knows — actmg  upon  his 
will,  making  such  a  pressure  upon  that  will  as  amounts  to  a  temp- 
tation ;  or,  that  such  excitation  of  the  emotions  and  such  pres- 
sure upon  the  will  is  fi-om  something  without.  In  the  latter  case 
it  is  some  perception  of  some  object  which  he  sees,  or  of  some 
sound  which  he  hears,  or  some  report  of  some  of  the  senses,  unde- 
signed, coming  incidentally  upon  him,  or  designed,  brought  to  bear 
upon  him  by  some  intelligent  being.  Among  the  undesigned  se- 
ductions to  evil,  or  what  may  at  least  be  called  evil  influences,  are 
those  attractions  or  repulsions  created  in  the  individual  man  by  the 
"  spirit  of  the  age,"  a  general  air  and  temperature  generated  by 
all  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  motions  about  him,  and  coming 
upon  his  soul  not  from  any  individual's  design  to  be  specially 
Imrtful  to  him,  but  just  as  deleterious  air  destroys  where  no  man 
is  attempting  to  poison  another. 

But  we  are  conscious  of  sinister  and  wicked  designs  ujwn  us 
concocted  and  operated  by  wicked  men.  Some  men  are  adroit, 
some  skilful,  some  surpassingly  influential  for 
evil.  Some  of  these  are  really  so  acute  in  their  ^^^'^^^  V^es- 
perceptions,  so  rapid  in  their  motions,  and  so  per-  ^^^' 
sistent  in  their  efforts,  that  to  speak  of  them  as  compassing  sea  and 
land  seems  hardly  an  exaggeration.  Artists  of  the  pen  sometimes 
paint  these  far-sighted,  near-sighted,  telescopic,  microscopic,  almost 
ubiquitous  weavers  of  the  webs  of  deceit  and  treachery,  and  paint 
them  with  a  power  that  appals  us.*  The  body  is  at  once  a  help 
and  encumbrance  to  these  spirits.  We  easily  reach  the  proba- 
bility that  there  are  spirits  without  the  clog  of  flesh  who  operate 
upon  one  another,  and  upon  the  spirits  of  men,  having  learned  the 
approaches  to  the  soul  through  the  flesh,  some  of  them  having 
probably  been  in  the  flesh.  As  among  men  there  are  those  who 
gain  the  mastery,  and  "get  the  start,"  and  take  the  lead  in  the 


•  Perhaps  Sue's  Le  Juif  Errant  might  be  cited  as  furnishing  an  example. 


100  INTKODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

march  "of  this  majestic  world,"  so  among  them  it  is  not  difficult 
t(»  believe  there  may  be  spirits  ambitious  of  chieftainship  and 
(•a]>iible  of  lifting  themselves  over  the  masses  to  a  throne  of 
power,  and  of  establisliing  principalities  in  spiritual  places. 
Whoso  could  reach  the  czarship  in  this  rule,  or  secure  and  keep 
skill  to  hold  the  genei-al's  post  in  this  Propaganda,  would  be  The 
Devil,  Satanas,  Satan. 

These  are  merely  the  probabilities  reached  by  reasonings  on 

the  facts  of  human  nature  and  society;  but  are  not  proofs  of  the 

existence  of  a  Personal  Spii-it  of  Evil.     That  is 

Rational  proba-    ^^^  ^f  those  subiects  upon  which  men  can  have 

bilities  of  the  ex-  .  .        ,  i     i        i  i       i  i       -r<     i  r 

istence  of  Satan.     ^^'^  positive  knowledge  beyond  what  the  ratlicr  oi 
all  spirits  should  choose  to  reveal.     But  if  there 
be  such  a  being,  the  probability  is  that  some  revelation  of  liis 
existence  would  be  made,  if  God  ever  reveals  anything  to  man. 

The  statement  that  Jesus  employed  the  superstition  of  his  coun- 
trymen to  advance  his  own  good  and  praiseworthy  design  of  ac- 
quiring influence  over  them  for  their  benefit — a 
Satan  of  New  ^.^^^  unworthy  course  for  any  great  man  to  pur- 
Testament  not  '  .  .  ,,  .  •  '4.  i.  i.1  1  £ 
,  .  ,  sue — IS  especially  inaiipropriate  to  the  case  betore 
Jewish.                                TT.                  "            r    1  •                      •  1 

us.     Ills   narrative   01   his   temptation,   together 

with  his  other  teachings,  actually  made  a  revelation  to  the  Jewish 
mind.  They  had  no  conception  of  such  a  being  as  the  Satan  of 
the  New  Testament. 

The  statement  that  the  Jews  obtained  their  idea  of  Satan  from 
the  East  during  the  "Captivity,"  is  wliolly  iinsustained  by  any- 
thing known  of  their  literature.     Their  concep- 
Jewish  idea  of     ^j^^^  ^^^  g^^^^^^  ^^,,^^  ^^.j^^l^^.  ^^^^^j,.^  ^j,^  PcM-siau  idea 
Satan  not  obtained        -.  ^,      -r>  •  f  c-  ^'ri     ^     1  1  AT      •   1  1 

in  the  Captivity.  ^^^  ^'^^  1  nucc  OI  Sin.  Ihat  old  iManichivan  doc- 
trine traced  the  existence  of  evil  to  one  creator, 
as  it  did  the  existence  of  good  to  another,  and  these  creatoi-s  were 
equally  powerful ;  their  Satan  was  always  as  grand  and  influen- 
tial a  person  as  their  God.  No  man  can  read  Jewish  sacred  lite- 
rature without  seeing  how  totally  absent  is  this  idea.  It  seems 
never  to  have  had  a  place  among  them.  Among  the  writei-s  (»f  the 
Old  Testament  the  7ia7ne  seldom  occui-8,  and  \\\{iword\\o\,  very  fre- 
qucntlv.  "Wlierc  the  name  is  used  thepei-son  so  designated  has  no 
attribute  of  grandeur  or  terribleness  or  extensive  power.  lie  is 
always  at  the  control  of  Jehovah.  This  is  (piite  difi"erent  from  the 
doctrine  of  Ahriman  and  Ormnzd,  the  Persian  co-ordinate  deities 


THE    TEMPTATION.  101 

The  name  occurs  first  in  the  book  "Job  "  (i.  G  ;  ii.  1-7),  in  pas- 
sages so  familiar  that  they  need  not  be  quoted.     But  it  is  worth 
while  to  remind  the  reader  that  in  this  powerful 
dramatic  sketch  Satan   is   not   represented  with    _ 
any  characteristic  of  splendor  or  terror,     lie  is  a 
mischievous  vagabond,  who  is  allowed  by  Almighty  God  to  exert 
his  influence  for  evil  upon  the  body  and  the  estate  of  Job,  but 
not  upon  his  soul.     lie  is  chained,  and  the  chain  is  not  long.     It 
is  to  be  recollected  that  this  book  was  most  probably  written 
before  the  Captivity. 

In  the  next  place,  we  find  the  following  in  Ps.  cix.  6  :  "  Set 

thou  a  wicked  man  over  him :  and  let  Satan  stand  at  his  right 

hand."     This,  fairly  translated,  seems  to  be  only  a 

-,',.,,•'  1  J,       '   .,     ,.  .  ,.   ,  The    Satan    of 

statement  or  God  s  law  oi  retribution,  in  winch    jjg^^^ 

the  word  Satan  may  be  translated  "  adversary,"  * 
so  that  it  simply  says  that  when  one  has  behaved  wickedly  towards 
his  friend,  "  A  wicked  man  shall  be  set  over  him,  and  an  adver- 
sary shall  stand  at  his  right  hand."  But  if  the  word  be  taken  as 
the  name  of  the  Chief  of  Evil,  to  which  there  seems  to  be  no  ob- 
jection, here  is  marked  inferiority.  Satan  is  limited  and  subordi- 
nate, a  being  totally  different  from  the  Ahriman  of  the  East  and 
the  Satan  of  the  Xew  Testament. 

The  third  citation  is  in  1  Cliron.  xxi.  1 :    "  And  Satan  stood  up 
against  Israel,  and  provoked  David  to  number  Israel."    Supposing 

this  to  be  the  personal  Devil,  the  remark  in  the 

,  f    1  T  1  Ti  The    Satan    of 

last  sentence  of  the  preceding  paragraph  equally    ^^^  chronicles. 

applies. 

The  only  other  passage,  so  far  as  I  know,  in  which  the  word  is 
translated  "  Satan  "  in  our  versicm,  is  in  Zechariah  iii.  1 :  "And  he 
showed  me  Joshua  the  high-priest  standing  before 
the  angel  of  the  Lord,  and  Satan  standing  at  his    2    u    -IJ 
right  hand  to  resist  him."  This  is  a  dream  or  vision. 
As  such  I  admit  it  may  safely  be  taken  as  the  writer's  idea  of  Satan, 
as  even  embodying  the  popular  idea.     It  was  Avritten  after  the  Cap- 
tivity.   Can  any  man  find  in  tliis,  and  in  the  text  from  Chronicles, 
the  slightest  trace  of  Persian  origin  ?     And  this  is  all,  except  a  few 
passages  such  as  2  Samuel  xix.  22,  and  1  Kings  v.  4,  in  which 
the  word  satan  is  admittedly  properly  translated  "  adversary'." 

*  I  believe  the  Septuagint  generally,  I  "  adversaiy." 
p  u-haus  invariably,  translates  the  word  I 


102  mTEODUCnON   of   JESUS   to   his   public   MDnSTKY. 

Tlie  Jews,  then,  did  not  find  their  conception  of  Satan  in  the 
Captivity.  They  never  adopted  the  Oriental  mythology.  Nor 
did  Jesus  adopt  their  notions.  The  Satan  of  his  teaching  is  a 
revelation,  as  we  shall  see  as  we  make  progi*ess  with  this  history. 
We  shall  find  that  Satan  is  a  j^erson  spoken  of  as  thoroughly 
individualized  in  the  mind  of  Jesus,  and  subsequently  of  liis  fol- 
lowers, and  his  existence  repeatedly  referred  to,  "  asserted  or  im- 
plied as  a  familiar  and  important  truth." 

Jesus  believed  himself  to  have  been  assailed  by  Satan,  and  aa 
we  know  nothing  to  the  contrary,  we  believe  so  too.  But  he  no- 
where states,  and  we  have  no  right  to  aflirm,  (mi-. 
jjg^gj  tainly  no  right  to  consider  it  an  article  of  faith, 

that  Satan  appeared  to  him  in  bodily  form  as 
a  man,  a  "  member  of  the  Sanhedrim,"  or  a  "  Scribe."  "When  a 
cunning  evil  man  discovers  a  pure  and  great  spirit  about  to  en- 
gage in  a  great  work,  he  ofi^ers  resistance  and  presents  obstacles. 
The  attractions  of  the  univei*se  bring  them  face  to  face,  as  a  neg- 
atively electrified  body  is  drawn  towards  one  that  is  positively 
electrified.  Satan  found  Jesus  as  he  finds  you  and  me,  and  he 
instantly  opened  an  attack  on  his  virtue. 

Wliether  Jesus  saw  Satan  or  not,  and  held  this  colloquy  in  ar- 
ticulate words,  or  had  the  suggestion  presented  to  him,  and  from 
his  inmost  spirit  made  the  response,  we  caimot 
u      1        T«i   7    know.     Nor  is  it  imi)ortant.      The  s])iritual  his- 

has    less   uiincul-  ^  ^     . 

tjeg  tory  of  Jesus  comes  forward  as  well  on  either  the- 

ory ;  and  on  either  we  have  all  the  lessons  neces- 
sary for  our  instruction.  The  latter  is  free,  however,  from  the 
embarrassments  of  the  former,  as  before  mentioned,  such  as  the 
l)odily  visil)le  tempter  taking  the  person  of  Jesus  to  the  battle- 
ments of  the  Temjile  and  the  top  of  the  moimtain.  But  if  Al- 
mighty God  gave  Satan  temporary  power  to  do  these  things,  as 
he  is  represented  in  tlie  book  "  Jol)  "  to  have  done,  it  need 
give  trouble  only  to  such  historians  as  strive  to  read  the  history  of 
God's  world  with  God  totally  ignored.  The  writer  of  these  pages 
believes  as  much  in  the  existence  of  God  as  he  does  in  the  exis- 
tence of  man. 

The  first  tem]>tation  of  Jesus  was  through  the  body,  by  "  the 
hist  of  the  flesh."  The  Tcnq)ter  said  :  "  If  you  be  the  Son  of 
God,  command  that  these  stones  be  made  bread."  It  was  well  put. 
Jesus  had  just  received  at  Jordan  a  marvellous  confirmation  of 


THE    TEMPTATION.  103 

his  opinion  of  himself  as  the  Son  of  God.      If  he  was  the  Son 

of  God  he  was  the  Messiah.     If  the  Messiah,  he 

could  work  miracles.     Here  was  a  case  where  a       '^^^  ^^^*  *®™P' 
,  7  ■,    ^       T,    .   .  .  ,    ^-  tation:   the  "  lust 

miracle  aee/nea  ueeded.     iiut  it  was  a  temptation    ^^  ^-^^  ^^^^^  „ 

to  place  himself  out  of  the  harmony  of  the  uni- 
versal order,  and  to  do  so  for  a  selfish  purpose.  He  replied  in  the 
laiignao-e  of  the  holy  books  :  "  It  is  written,  Man  shall  not  live  by 
bread  alone,  but  by  every  word  that  proceedeth  out  of  the  mouth 
of  God."  It  was  a  human  and  a  manly  response.  Whatever  may 
have  been  his  inmost  thoughts  of  himself,  whatever  profound  and 
inscrutable  self-consciousness,  he  always  knew  himself  to  be  a 
man.  He  meets  the  tempter  on  the  platform  of  common  hu- 
manity, and  there  fights  out  the  battle  of  virtue.  The  passage  he 
quotes  in  reply  is  from  Deuteronomy  viii.  3,  and  occurs  in  the  his- 
tory of  the  t«!Muptation  of  the  people  of  Israel,  in  which  tempta- 
tion they  fell,  even  as  Adam  fell  when  he  was  tempted.  It  im- 
plies, not  that  men  are  to  put  aside  the  ordinary  food  of  the  body, 
but  that  when  a  man  is  in  the  discharge  of  duty  he  may  depend 
upon  God's  providential  arrangements.  "  Word  "  does  not  occur 
in  the  original.  It  is  "  every — [thing] — that  proceedeth  from 
God's  mouth,"  every  expression  of  Ilis  will.  Even  when  men 
eat  "  bread,"  they  do  not  live  by  bread  alone.  There  is  a  vitality 
maintained  by  the  Father  of  spirits  in  men  which  makes  the 
bread  productive  of  growth  or  reparative  of  decay. 

Jesus  might  have  yielded  to  the  temptation.  Then  had  he 
parted  with  his  Messiahship,  his  ordination  to  the  leadership  of 
those  strivinc:  to  be  braveh'  good.  He  would  no  longer  have  been 
a  Deliverer.     lie  would  himself  have  been  a  captive  of  his  lusts. 

The  second  temptation*  addressed  the  spirit  of  Jesus  through 
the  intellect,  "  the  lust  of  the  eye."     Jesus  was  present  bodily  or 
by  vivid  mental   representation,  it  matters   not 
which,  in  Jerusalem,  and  "on  the  pinnacle  of       Second  tempta- 
,  1     ,,      mi  •  ,    •        /  ^     tion:  "the  lust  of 

the  temple.       Ihe  precise  spot  is  oi  course  not    ^.j^ggyg" 

ascertainable,  but  a  probable  suggestion  f  is  that 
Jesus  was  placed  on  the  lofty  porch  which  overhung  the  valley 
of  the  Ivedron,  where  the  steep  side  of  the  valley  was  added  tc 
the  height  of  the  temple-wall,  as  described  by  Josephus,:]:  and 


*  It  will  be  perceived  that  I  follow 
the  order  of  Luke  rather  than  of  ]Mat- 
thew,  as  being  more  logicaL 


t  Smith's  iV.  T.  Hist. 
tAnt,  XV.  11,  §  5, 


104  INTEODUCnON   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS   PUBLIC   MENISTRT. 

made  a  depth  do^vn  which  it  was  terrific  to  gaze.  Then  the 
tempter  said,  "  Cast  thyself  down."  He  followed  up  the  sug- 
gestion liy  an  abbreviated  but  verbatim  quotation  from  the  sacred 
book,  namely  the  91st  Psalm  :  "  It  is  written.  He  shall  give  His 
angels  charge  over  thee,  to  keep  thee  ;  and  in  their  hands  they 
shall  bear  thee  up,  lest  thou  dash  thy  foot  against  a  stone."  An 
assurance  given  to  the  children  of  the  Almighty  God  in  general 
must  a  fortiori  apply  to  the  Son  of  God,  one  who  had  been  pro- 
nounced so  by  a  voice  out  of  the  heavens.  "  Now,  then,"  said 
the  tempter,  "  perform  a  brilliant  miracle.  Fling  thyself  from 
this  lieight,  and  wlien  thou  touchest  the  ground  the  peoj)le  will 
ftock  to  thee,  and  without  question  hail  thee  as  the  Messiah."  It 
addressed  itself  principally  to  the  imagination  of  Jesus.  It  was 
one  form  of  mii-acle  which  the  Messiah,  such  as  the  Jews  looked 
for,  was  traditionally  expected  to  perform.  Jesus  replied,  "  It  is 
written  again,  *  Thou  shalt  not  tempt  the  Lord  thy  God."  +  To 
obey  the  seductive  suggestion  would  have  been  so  grateful  to  a 
selfish  vanity.  But  he  repels  it.  The  Divine  Providence  must 
never  be  invoked  for  selfish  ends. 

The  third  form  of  temptation  assailed  Jesus  through  the  pas- 
sions,— "  the  pride  of  life,"  ambition,  "  the  last  infirmity  of  noble 
minds."     Satan  made  to  ])ass  before  the  mind  of 

Third    tempta-    j^^^^g  ^  panorama  of  the  kingdoms  of  the  world, 
tion :   ' '  the  pride      ,     .  i     i     •        i  tt  p  i        i 

Qf  2^g  „  tlieir  power  and  then*  glory.     He  professed  to  be 

owner  and  master  of  these.  He  tendered  them 
to  Jcsns  on  the  s<jlitary  condition  that  Jesus  should  pay  him 
homage.  As  if  he  had  said:  You  came  to  be  the  Messiali.  You 
can  a('('om])lish  your  message  better  l)y  a  ])artnership  witli  me. 
You  can  at  once  go  to  tlie  head  of  the  world.  You  are  tlie  Son 
of  God:  join  me:  acknowledge  my  world-sovereignty,  and  then 
I  will  remove  all  obstructions  from  your  path  to  supi-eme  power 
and  glory !  It  was  a  proposition  to  use  physical  force  for  the 
accomjjli.shment  of  moral  results — to  turn  from  the  path  of  suffer- 
ing and  labor  and  martyrdom  for  the  truth.  It  was  tlie  State 
proposing  an  alliance  with  the  Cluirch,  for  the  accomplishment 
of  a  go(i(l  end  l)y  sinister  means.  I>ut  it  involved  homage  to  Evil, 
tribute  to  the  Chief  of  Evil, 

Whatever  may  be  said  of  the  other  temptations,  this  nuist  be 

*  The  word  nuhv^  translated  "again,"  I  rather  "  in  another  place." 
4oe8  not  sig-iiify  "on  the  contrary,"  but  I      \  Deut.  vi.  10. 


TOE   TEMPTATION.  105 

admitted  to  have  been  internal.  The  physical  conditions  of  the 
planet  arc  such  that  there  cannot  possibly  be  an  elevation  from 
which  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  world  could  be  seen,  and  there  is 
no  conceivable  position  in  which  their  "  power "  and  "  glory " 
could  have  been  visible. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  this  temptation  assailed  Jesus  on  the 
Messiah  side  of  his  nature  and  expectations.  lie  now,  if  never 
before,  believed  himself  to  be  the  Messiah.  lie 
was  about  to  exhibit  himself  as  such  to  his  nation.  Assault  on  the 
The  people  of  the  Jews,  as  he  knew^,  held  that  j^^^ 
the  Messiah  upon  his  arrival  should  first  break 
the  Roman  yoke,  and  then,  by  a  series  of  conquests,  military  and 
moral,  reduce  all  the  nations  to  the  rule  of  the  Jews  and  to  the 
religion  of  Judaism.  Why  slioidd  not  Jesus  satisfy  this  natural 
expectation  ?  Why  not  abandon  the  method  of  leavening  the 
world  by  the  sure  but  very  slow  process  of  the  operation  of  truth, 
and  transmute  it  at  once  by  a  single  stroke  of  divine  power,  such 
as  he  could  have  exercised  if  he  were  the  Sou  of  God  ?  The  very 
attempt  would  have  been  homage  to  Satan,  a  bending  of  the  knee 
to  Evil.  He  was  willing  for  this  wonderfully  endowed  young  man 
to  exercise  all  the  authority  and  enjoy  all  the  glory  of  the  most 
splendid  viceroyalty  of  the  world,  w^hile  he  retained  supreme 
dominion. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  is  :  "  Get  thee  hence,  Satan,  for  it  is  writ- 
ten, Thou  shalt  do  homage  to  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  him  only 
shalt  thou  worship."  The  answer  shows  that  Jesus  now  certainly 
recognized  the  instigator  of  his  evil  thoughts.  The  suggestion 
of  idolatry  of  a  very  foul  kind,  the  worship  of  the  Spirit  of  Evil, 
unveils  the  Satanic  character  of  the  tempter,  and  Jesus  repels 
him. 

There  is  an  expression  in  Luke  (iv.  6)  worth  notice.     Satan 

says :  "  All  this  power  will  I  give  thee,  and  the  glory  of  them ; 

for  that  is  delivered  to  me,  and  to  whomsoever  I 

•n  T     •        -J.  «      rni     i   i        1  •   1  •   1      .,       .•  Satan's  admission. 

Will  i  give  it.       ihat  to  which  special  attention 

is  called  is  the  acknowledgment  of  his  inferiority  by  the  Cliief 

of  Evil    Spirits,  amid    intense  braggadocio.      He   had  not  this 

dominion  of  personal  natural  right,  but  had  been  permitted  to 

enter  upon  it.     The  whole  statement  is  a  falsehood,  when  asserted 

by  the  Evil  One  ;  but  the  subservience  and  limit  which  he  admits 

is  a  characteristic  of  the  Satan  of  whom  Jesus  speaks,  which  dis- 


106  INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PUBLIC    MINISTRY. 

tinguishes  liiia  from  the  Aliriraan  of  the  Magian  mythology^ 
from  which  Jesus  and  the  Jews  are  said  to  have  derived  their 
notion  of  Satan,  and  is  very  miportant  in  this  beginning  of  our 
examination  of  what  Jesus  teaches  as  to  the  Chief  of  Evil. 

Another  treneral  remark  must  be  made.  It  is  observable  that 
Jesus  never  attempts  to  rebut  temptation  with  logic.     He  has  no 

argument  with  Satan.  He  confronts  him  with 
Jesus  repels  with  ^^^  ^y^^.^  ^f  (.  ^^^  jj^  ^^^^^^  ^j^^  ^^^^.^^  ^^^^^^^  ^^ 
bcriptiire.  ,  ^ 

his  people.  This  homage  paid  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment Scriptures  by  a  mind  eixlowed  naturally  with  greater  gifts 
than  that  of  Moses,  or  David,  or  any  of  the  prophets,  or  any  other 
human  being,  gives  those  books  an  exalted  and  enduring  impor- 
tance. 

The  history  tells  us  that  when  the   tempter    departed  angels 

"came  and  ministered"  to  Jesus.     We  have  seen  the  statement 

of  the  announcement  of  his  birth  by  angels,  both 
Ministry  of  an-    ,0  1      p         •  1       m^     •      •  1  • 

,  beiore  and  alter  it  occurred.     Iheir  immediate 

gels. 

attendance  upon  Jesus  brings  them  nearer  to  this 
biography,  and  as  this  portion  is  taken  to  be  autobiographic,  it  is 
the  first  mention  made  by  Jesus  of  these  superior  beings.  It  is 
the  proper  place  to  institute  an  inquiry  into  the  position  which  they 
held  in  Jewish  literature  and  thought  before  the  birth  of  Jesus, 
as  preparatory  to  what  he  himself  teaches  upon  the  subject. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  how  little  is  given  in  the  Old  Testament 
writings  to  gratify  the  curiosity  of  man.  Of  that  with  which  he  is 
supposed  to  have  immediate  and  great  concern  there  is  much 
stated.  The  heavenly  world,  the  residence  of  good  spirits,  is  fre- 
quently spoken  of,  and  many  things  told  of  its  inhabitants,  not  as 
doctrines  of  relij^ion  but  as  facts. 

They  are  regarded  as  the  highest  order  of  created  intelligences, 
all  other  creatures  being  below  them  in  dignity  and  station.  The 
]>rophet  Isaiah  says :  "  In  the  year  that  king 
est  of^creatures.  ^^^^^^i'th  tlicd  I  saw  also  Jehovah  sitting  upon  a 
throne,  high  and  lifted  up,  and  his  train  filled  the 
Temple.  Above  it  stood  the  seraphim:  each  one  had  six  wings. 
And  one  cried  to  another,  and  said,  Holy,  holy,  holy,  is  Jehovah 
of  hosts  !  the  whole  earth  is  full  of  his  glory  !  "  This  nearness  to 
the  central  throne  of  the  universe  is  set  forth  also  in  Ezekiol,  and 
Daniel.     The  former  says  (x,  1):    '' Tiien  I  looked,  and,  behold. 


THE   TEMPTATION.  107 

in  the  fii-mainent  that  was  above  the  head  of  the  cherubim,  there 
appeared  over  them  as  it  were  a  sapphire-stone,  as  the  appearauc^e 
of  the  likeness  of  a  throue."  Also  (in  xxviii.  14) :  "  Tlum  art  the 
anointed  cherub  that  covereth  ;  and  I  have  set  thee  so :  thou  wast 
upon  the  holy  mountain  of  God  ;  thou  hast  walked  up  and  down 
in  midst  of  the  stones  of  fire."  In  Daniel  x.  13,  the  angel  Michael 
is  called  "one  of  the  chief  princes  ;  "  and  in  xii.  1,  "  the  great 
prince."  In  2  Chron.  x\'iii.  18,  it  is  written:  "Again  he  said, 
Therefore  hear  the  word  of  the  Lord  :  I  saw  the  Lord  sitting  upon 
His  throne,  and  all  the  host  of  heaven  standing  on  His  right  hand 
and  on  His  left."  In  2  Kings  xix.  15,  Jehovah  is  represented  as 
dwelling  among  the  cherubim. 

They  are  represented  as  powerful  creatures.  In  Psalm  ciii.  20, 
David  exclaims :  "  Bless  the  Lord,  ye  angels  that  excel  in 
strength."      Evidence  of   their  strength  is  sup- 

1,1  .  •       ,1         ,    ,  ,1     ,   .      .1  They  are   pow- 

posecl  to  be  given  m  the  statements  that  m  three  ^^^^  creatur 
days  an  angel,  as  an  agent  of  God,  destro^^ed 
seventy  thousand  persons  out  of  Israel  and  Judah  (2  Sam.  xxiv.) ; 
and  that  in  one  night  an  angel  destroyed  tlie  army  of  Sennache- 
rib, numbering  one  hundred  and  eighty-five  thousand  men  (2  Kings 
xix.).  But  in  the  latter  case  certainly  the  "  Angel  of  Jehovah " 
is  meant,  and  of  him  we  shall  find  more  hereafter. 

Their  activity  is  set  forth  in  such  expressions  as  (Ps.  civ.  4) : 
"  Who  maketh  Ilis  angels  spii'its,  and  his  ministers  a  flame  of  fire." 

Many  thinirs  are  ascribed  to  cherubim  and  sera-  „, 

■.  .  T^  .  p  .  J-  "6y  ^^^  active, 

phiui.     In  the  ninth  chapter  of    Daniel  we  are 

told  that  during  the  time  it  refpiired  to  utter  a  j^rayer  the  angel 
Gabriel  came  to  him  from  the  supreme  heaven.  Dr.  Dwight 
says  {System  of  Theology,  vol.  i.) :  "  This  is  a  rapidity  exceeding 
all  the  comprehension  of  the  most  active  imagination;  surpass- 
ing the  amazing  swiftness  of  light." 

Their  intelligence  was  set  forth  in  the  ascription  to  them  of 
"  eyes,"  and,  as  in  Ezekiel,  of  the  "  face  of  man,"  the  usual  orien- 
tal symbol  of  intelli'ience.     The  name  "cherub"   mu  •  •  .  „• 

*^  Their  inteUigence. 

means  "  fulness  of   knowledge."     In  the  speech 
of  Mephibosheth  to  David  the  wisdom  of  the  angels  is  implied  : 
"  But  my  lord  the  king  is  as  an  angel  of  God  :  do  therefore  what 
is  good  in  thine  eyes."     (2  Sam.  xix.  27.) 

In  every  mention  of  them,  or  allusion  to  them,  their  holiness 
seems  to  be  implied,  as  in  Daniel  iv.  13,  23 ;  viii.  13 ;  and  Genesia 


108  INTRODUCTION    OF   JKSl'S    TO    HIS    PlIJLIC    MINBTRV. 

xxviii.  12.     More  tluui  in  tiny  pivci>e  statement  does  the  air  of 

^   .  ,   ,.  this  thou'T'ht  pervade  all  the  Jewish  holv  books, 

Their  holiness.  .  ,  ,.  ,        ,  -.         -,•,.".        r 

written  by  men  diversely  educated  and  living  fm- 

apart. 

Their  numbers  are  described  as  immense.  In  Genesis  xxxii.  2, 
Jacob  is  said  to  have  called  the    place    Mahanaim,  signifying 

Their  numbers  "  ^^^*^  hosts  or  camps,"  for  when  he  met  the  an- 
gels of  God  he  said,  "  This  is  Jehovah's  host." 
The  same  idea  is  in  1  Chron.  xii.  22  :  "  For  at  that  time,  day  by 
day,  they  came  unto  David  to  help  him,  until  it  was  a  great  hc.t, 
like  the  host  of  God."  The  Supreme  Being  is  repeatedly  called 
"  Jehovah,  God  of  Hosts."  David,  in  Psalm  Ixviii.,  exclaims : 
"  The  chariots  of  God  are  twenty  thousand,  even  thousands  of 
angels." 

But  whatever  spirituality,  intelligence,   power,   activity,   and 

holiness  are  ascribed  to  them,  there  is  always  implied  an  infinite 

distance  between  them  and  Jehovah.      The  well- 
Infinitely  below    ,  •      T  1     •      I .-.    •  1    .  ■ 
Q^^                        known  passage  m  Job  iv.  Ih,  is  very  emphatic  : 

"  His  angels  he  charged  with  folly."  "We  some- 
times find  angels,  in  their  terrene  manifestations,  eating  and 
drinking  (Gen.  xviii.  S ;  xix.  3) ;  but  in  Judg.  xiii.  1.'),  ir.,  the 
angel  who  appeared  to  Manoah  det-lined,  in  a  very  j)ointed  man- 
ner, to  accept  his  hospitality.  The  manner  in  which  the  Jews  ol)- 
viated  the  apparent  discrepancy,  and  the  sense  in  which  they  un- 
derstood such  [)assages,  api)ear  from  the  apocryphal  book  of  Tobit 
(xii.  19),  where  the  angel  is  made  to  say:  'It  seems  ti»  you,  in- 
deed, as  though  I  did  eat  and  drink  with  you  ;  but  I  use  invisible 
food  which  no  man  can  see.'  This  intimates  that  they  were  sup- 
posed to  simulate  when  they  ai>peared  to  partake  of  man's  food, 
but  that  yet  they  had  food  of  their  own  proper  to  their  natures. 
INnitoii,  who  was  deeply  read  in  the  'angelic'  literature,  derides 
these  (piestions  {Par.  Lost^  v.  433-430).  But  if  angels  do  vot 
need  food;  if  their  spiritual  bodies  are  inherently  ?/?o</jfMiZ6' of 
waste  or  death,  it  seems  not  likely  that  they  gratuitously  j^erform 
an  act  designed,  in  all  its  known  relations,  to  promote  growth,  to 
repair  waste,  and  to  sustain  existence."  (See  McClintock  and 
Strong's  Cyc,  in  loco.) 

There  are  onl}'  dim  suggestions  of  their  employment  in  hea\eii 
(as  in  1  Kings  xxii.  19  ;  Isa.  vi,  1-3;  Dan.  vii.  9,  10),  intimating 
most  profound  worehip  and  adoration.     But  they  are  everywhere 


THE   TEMPTATION.  109 

Bpoken  of  as  the  agents  of  God's  pro%adence  when  he  discharges 

the  functions   of   Supreme   Moral   Governor   in 

...  ,  .   1      1         T    T         .  1  1         1     Agents  of  God. 

punishnig  the  wicked  and  directnig  the  good  and 

sustaining  the  despondent ;  as  when  they  destroyed  the  first-born 
of  Egypt  (Exod.  xii.  23),  guided  Abraliam's  servant  (Gen.  xxiv. 
7,  40),  and  cheered  Jacob  at  Bethel  (Gen.  xxviii.  12).  In  the 
earlier  history,  the  intercourse  of  the  angels  with  men,  repeatedly 
hallowing  familiar  domestic  life,  is  destitute  of  awfulness.  This 
is  illustrated  by  the  story  told  in  Genesis  xviii.  For  a  season  they 
are  not  so  frequently  mentioned ;  but  in  the  times  of  the  Judges, 
when  the  people  were  deprived  of  prophetic  guidance,  and  in  the 
time  of  the  Captivity,  when  they  were  especially  exposed  to  the 
influences  of  heathenism,  these  angelic  visitations  reappear,  and 
seem  to  have  constituted  God's  special  agency  for  communicating 
M-ith  His  chosen  people.  They  then  inspired  awe.  More  and 
more  that  feeling  deepened.  With  xibraham's  dignified  and  nat- 
ural entertainment  of  the  angels,  as  so  graphically  given  in  Gen- 
esis xviii.,  contrast  Gideon's  apprehension  (Judges  vi.  22),  and  the 
fright  of  the  sons  of  Oman  (1  Chron.  xxi.  20),  and  David's  fear 
(1  Chron.  xxi.  30),  and  the  quaking  and  fiight  of  Daniel's  friends 
(Dan.  X.  7),  and  Daniel's  own  speechlessness  and  swooning  (Dan. 
X.  8,  15,  17).  This  sentiment,  as  we  shall  see,  prevailed  in  the 
popular  mind  in  the  times  of  Jesus,  and  always  prevails  in  times 
of  materialistic  tendencies  and  among  peoples  made  gross  by  de- 
votion to  mere  animal  results. 

In  this  connection  there  is  a  presentation  in  the  Old  Testament 
writings  which  has  of  late  years  attracted  great  attention.  Among 
the  angelic  revelations  we  find  the  phrases,  "5<^'? 
fn'^x,  3falak  ^lo/nm,  and  n"'""";  M'"*^^?  Malah  Ye-    jehovah  °^^ 
horah — the  Angel  of  God,  and  the  Angel  of  Jeho- 
vah— repeatedly  occurring,  especially  the  latter.     Whatsoever  or 
whosoever  may  be  meant  by  this,  it  is  certainly  a   personage 
very  different  from  others  who  are  ordinarily  called  angels.     For 
no  dogmatic  pui-pose,  l)ut  simply  to  show  what  views  were  held 
among  learned  and  indearned  Jews  when  Jesus  appeared,  we  pro- 
pose to  present  a  condensed  history  of  this  word,  for  which  we 
shall  be  largely  indebted  to  Ilengstenberg's  Christology. 

In  Genesis  xvi.  7-13,  the  Angel  of  Jehovah  is  said  to  have 
found  Hagar,  and  a  prerogative  of  the  Supreme  Creator  is  as- 
cribed to  him,  namely,  the  vast  increase  of  her  posterity.     Ilagai 


110  INTRODrCTION   OF   JESUS    TO   HIS   rUELIC   ^rI^^STKT. 

recognized  him   as   God,  and  expressed  snrprise  that  she  had 

seen  God  and  lived.      In    the  account    ah-eady 

Instances  in  Gen-    i-efei-i-ej  to,  in  Genesis  xviii.,  one  of  Abraham's 

three  guests,  distinguished  by  tlie  dignity  of  his 

person,  announces  himself  as  the  Angel  of  Jehovah.     In  Genesis 

xxii.  Abraham  receives  a  command  fi-om  God  {Elohim  is  the  word 

here)  to  offer  np  his  son.     In  the  act  of  obedience  he  is  stopped  by 

Malak  Jelio\'ah,  the  Angel  of  Jehovah,  who  says  :  "  Now  I  know 

that  thou  f  earest  God,  since  thou  hast  not  withheld  thy  son,  thine  only 

son  from  mey    Abraham  called  the  place  Jehovah-jireh, "  Jehovah 

will  provide,"  which  shows  that  he  believed  that  he  had  seen  Jehovah. 

In  Exodus  iii.  the  Angel  of  Jehovah  appears  to  Closes  in  the 

flamins  bush,  and  ascribes  to  himself  all  the  attributes  of  the 

true  God.     Moses  covers  his  face,  being  afraid  to 
Instances  in  Ex-    ,,  ••    .^       k         ^      n 

,  look  upon  God.     In  Lxodus  xxxu.  the  Angel  oi 

Jehovah  refuses  to  be  any  more  the  guide  of  the 

people  Israel,  after  their  sin  in  worshipping  the  golden  calf.     lie 

afterwards  relents. 

In  Judges  ii.  the  Angel  of  Jehovah  appears  to  the  Israelites  in 

a  place  which  is  afterwards  called  Bochim,  and  makes  himself 

_    ,  ,  known  as  their  deliverer  from  E<?viit.      In  chap- 

In  Judges.  ^'^  ^ 

ter  vi.  he  appears  to  Gideon,  and  ni  verse  l-i  he 

is  called  unqualifiedly  Jehovah.  In  verse  22  Gideon  exi)i-csses  a 
fear  lest  he  might  die,  having  seen  the  Angel  of  Jehovah.  Be- 
ing pacified  by  the  august  Being,  he  erects  an  altar  which  he 
calls  "  Jehovah-shalom,"  JeliovaKs  Peace.  In  chapter  xiii.  is 
the  interesting  story  of  Manoah.  When  the  wonder-working  vis- 
itor disappeared  in  the  flame,  "  then  Manoah  was  convinced  that 
he  was  the  Angel  of  Jehovah; "  and  in  ver.  22  he  says  to  his  wife  : 
"  "We  shall  surely  die,  because  we  have  seen  GoiV 

In  2  Kings  xix.  the  Angel  of   Jehovah  destroyed  the  Assy- 

,   .„..  rian  host,  which  threatened   destruction   to   the 

In  Kings.  ' 

theocracy. 
In  Isaiah  Ixiii.  9,  the  Angel  of  Jehovah  is  called  "  the  angel  of 
J   J    .  ,  His  presence,"  that  is,  the  angel  of  His  face. 

In  Zechariah  "Malak  Ychovah"  is  very  fre- 
quently mentioned.    The  j)r(iphet  receives  all  his  revelations  from 
I   7    h    •  h      *^"^  wonderful  Being.     In  chajiter  ii.  (12-15)  lie 
is  distinguished  from  Jehovah  of  Hosts,  by  whom 
he  represents  himself  as  sent.  Yet  the  prophet  seems  to  give  him  the 


THE   TEMPTATION. 


Ill 


Intthe  Psalms. 


name  of  Jehovah  of  Hosts  in  chapter  vi.  15.  The  8th  verse  of  chap- 
ter xii.  is  remarkable.  There  Malah  Yehovah,  the  Angel  of  Jehovah^ 
is  spoken  of  as  being  eqnal  in  dignity  and  glory  with  Elohbn,  God. 

Compare  Psalm  xxxiv.  7  with  Psalm  xxxv.  5,  where  the  protec- 
tion'of  the  good  and  the  punishment  of  the  wick- 
ed are  ascribed  to  the  Angel  of  Jehovah,  an  ad- 
ministration of  moral  government  which  is  elsewhere  ascribed  to 
Jehovah  himself.* 

These  remarkable  passages  show  that  while  the  Jews  lield  the 
doctrine  that  there  was  one  uncreated  Supreme  Being,  God,  Jeho- 
vah, Eloliim,  Uncreated  One,  Creator,  they  believed  that  tliere 
was  One  who  was  the  lievealer  of  the  Jehovah,  Head  of  the  World, 
Ruler  of  the  Princes  of  the  Angels,  Metratron,  Mediator.  That 
they  could  not  have  borrowed  the  remarkable  idea  from  the  Per- 
sians is  apparent  from  the  fact  that  it  pervades  all  their  books  re- 
garded as  sacred,  those  written  before  as  well  as  those  wi'itten 
after  they  had  been  submitted  to  the  influence  of  Orientalism.f 

To  Jesus,  when  he  fainted  in  his  bodily  collapse  after  his  fast, 
and  his  mental  exhaustion  after  the  severe  spiritual  conflicts 
through  which  he  passed  in  his  temptation,  there 
came  angels,  ministering  to  him  what  he  needed, 
— wliatever  was  necessary  to  refresh  him  in  body 
and  in  soul — food,  and  tenderness,  and  sympathy. 


They 
to  Jesus. 


minister 


*  It  must  be  noticed  that  in  all  the 
passag-es  cited  above  the  original  is  re- 
ferred to,  and  not  the  English  version, 
which,  however,  is  ordinarily  quite  close 
enough  for  all  practical  purposes. 

f  Hengstenberg  uses  the  facts  in  this 
case  to  show  that  this  angel  of  Jeho- 
vah was  Christ,  a  Being  equal  in  dignity 
and  glory  with  the  great  God. 

A  remarkable  little  book  by  Prof. 
MacWhorter,  of  Yale  College,  is  enti- 
tled ' '  Yahveh  Christ ;  or,  The  Memorial 
Name."  It  holds  (1),  That  the  name  is 
not  Jehovah,  signifying  I  AM,  but  Yah- 
veh, The  Oxe  to  Come,  equivalent  to 
the  Greek  &  Epxonevos,  Ho  Erkomenos, 
The  Onk  Comfng,  the  difference  being 
in  the  vowels,  the  Jewish  prejudice  mak- 
ing the  former  reading,  while  the  latter  is 
eorrect.     (2),  That  the  right  reading  is, 


"  The  Angel  Jehovah,"  not  "  The  Angel 
of  Jehovah,"  the  latter  word  being  appo- 
sitional ;  and  that  this  Memorial  Name 
is  complete  in  Christ. 

Readers  who  wish  to  examine  this 
subject  more  thoroughly  are  referred 
to  ChriMology  of  Old  TeMament,  by 
Hengstenberg,  vol.  i.,  chapter  3,  in 
which  he  will  find  a  very  able  and 
learned  treatise  on  the  Z^Ietratron,  with 
an  interesting  comparison  of  Jewish  and 
Persian  teaching  on  these  questions; 
also.  Prof.  MacWhorter's  book  just 
mentioned;  and  Bibliotheca  Sacra,  vol. 
for  1859,  p.  805,  an  article  on  "  The 
Angel  of  Jehovah ;  "  also.  Bib.  Sac. , 
Jan.,  1857,  p  98.  These  we  have  used 
only  so  far  as  they  bore  upon  the  object 
we  have  in  view  in  this  biography  of 
Jesus. 


CHAPTER    LY. 


TITE   FIRST   DISCIPLES. 


In  the  mean  time  the  Sanhedrim  at  Jerusalem  hearing  of  John's 

proceedings  sent  a  deputation  of  priests  and  Levites  to  catechise 

him  as  to  the  office  which  he  supposed  liimself  to 

.x.^r"^'*?"^"''™  he  filling.  The  first  question,  as  history  stands  in 
the  Sanhednm.  '^  p  t  i       ^in 

the  first  chapter  or  John,  was  general,     \v  ho  are 

you  ? "  But  he  knew  the  Messianic  expectancy,  and  promptly  and 
frankly  said,  "  I  am  not  the  Messiah,  the  Christ,  the  ordained 
One."  They  held  the  tradition  that  the  Messiah  was  to  be  pre- 
ceded by  a  powerful  prophet,  endowed  as  Elijah  was — ])erhaps 
by  Elijah  himself.  This  was  the  usual  interpretation  of  Malachi 
iv.  5.  So  they  asked  John  if  he  was  Elijah.  He  asserted  that 
he  was  not  Elijah,  nor  the  prophet  whose  coming  had  been  pre- 
dicted by  Moses  in  Deuteronomy  xviii.  15,  a  prediction  which  the 
Jews  interpreted  to  signify  the  resurrection  of  Jeremiah,  or  some 
other  ancient  prophet,  who  was  not  the  Messiah,  as  appears  from 
Matt.  xvi.  14. 

The  whole  passage  from  John  i.  10-28,  has  already  been  given 

at  p.  77.     The  interview  with  the  committee  of  the  Sanhedrim 

appears  to  have  taken  place  as  the  terrible  trial  of 

o  ns  es  imony  j^^^^^g  j^^  ^j^^  wilderness  was  rcaohin<]r  its  conclu- 

tO  Jesus.       John   l.  tti  r  -r    i  •      r,  ^        ^  "  i     i 

sion.  We  learn  from  John  i.  20,  that  "  the  next 
day  John  saw  Jesus  coming  unto  him,  and  said,  '  I'ehold  the 
Lamb  of  God,  who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world!  This  is 
he  of  whom  I  said,  After  me  comcth  a  man  wliich  is  prefei-rcd 
before  me;  for  he  was  before  me.  And  I  knew  him  not:  but 
that  he  should  be  made  manifest  to  Israel,  tlierefore  am  I  come 
baptizing  with  M-ater.'  And  John  bare  record,  saying,  '  1  saw  the 
Spirit  descending  from  heaven  like  a  dove,  and  it  abode  upon 
him.  And  I  knew  him  not:  but  he  that  sent  me  to  baptize  with 
water,  the  same  said  unto  me.  Upon  whom  thou  shalt  see  the 
Spirit  descending,  and  remaining  on  liim,  the  same  is  he  which 


^Ml^Ai 


TITE   FIRST   DISCIPLES.  113 

baptizeth  with  the  Holy  Ghost.  And  I  saw,  and  bare  record  that 
this  is  the  Son  of  God.'" 

This  is  substantially  the  testimony  of  John  the  Baptist :  "  Yon- 
der is  the  Man  who  is  '  Ho  Erkomenos,'  the  '  Coming  One,'  of 
whom  I  spoke  yesterday.  I  did  not  myself  at  first  recognize 
him,  but  He  who  commissioned  me  to  baptize  gave  me  a  token 
whereby  I  should  be  able  to  recognize  Jehovah's  Anointed,  and  1 
do  declare  that  those  signs  were  displayed  at  his  baj)tism,  and  I 
now  discharge  the  other  function  of  my  office  by  announcing  him 
the  very  Messiah !  "  Why  Jesus  afforded  John  the  opportunity 
to  bear  this  testimony  we  cannot  tell.  If  the  temptation  took 
place  on  the  Quarantania,  according  to  tradition,  then  Jesus  must 
have  gone  a  little  out  of  his  way  to  have  another  interview  with 
the  Baptist.  If  the  mountains  of  Moab  were  the  scene,  then, 
on  his  homeward  journey,  Jesus  would  pass  near  the  place  where 
John  was  baptizing. 

But  John's  speech,  whatever  may  have  been  its  general  effect 
upon  the  minds  of  his  scholars,  does  not  seem  to  have  penetrated 
any  one  in  a  special  manner.     The  next  day  Je- 
sus ao;ain  was  seen,  and  then  John  said  to  two  of    ^  , ,,  ®    ^™    ° 

.     .  .  God.  ' 

his  disciples  who  were  standing  near,  "  Behold 

the  Lamh  of  God !  "  Something  in  the  manner  of  their  teacher 
arrested  their  attention.  They  certainly  could  not  have  formed 
any  very  distinct  theologic  or  metaphysical  idea  from  this  descrip- 
tion. It  may  be  doubted  whether  the  Baptist  himself  knew  what 
his  words  meant.  They  were  an  utterance  of  the  heart,  in  an 
ecstatic  moment,  springing  past  the  intellect  into  speech.  John 
probably  did  not  attach  to  them  the  idea  of  vicarious  suffering, 
which  is  a  Christian  thought ;  and  John  probably  had  only  Judaic 
ideas. 

But  whatever  may  have  been  their  meaning,  the  two  disci- 
ples who  heard  John's  words  followed  Jesus  as  he  walked.  He 
turned  and  saw  them,  and  spoke  graciously  to 
them.  "What  do  you  seek?"  As  if  he  had  said,  ^wo disciples. 
"Do  you  wish  to  ask  anything  of  me?"  They  called  him 
"Rabbi,"  giving  him  tlie  Hebrew  designation  of  teacher,  ac- 
knowledging him  to  be  their  superior.  They  inquired  his  place 
of  lodging,  doubtless  that  they  might  have  a  private  interview, 
which,  if  satisfactory,  would  lead  them  to  attach  themselves  to 
him  permanently.  Jesus  invited  them  to  accompany  him,  which 
8 


114  INTROBrCnON   OF   JESUS   TO   niS   rrBLTC   MINISTRY. 

they  did,  and  spent  the  remainder  of  the  day  witli  liim,  it  being 
al)ont  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  wlien  tliey  began  tlie  conver- 
sation.    (See  Jolm  i.  39.) 

These  two  men  were  Andrew  of  Bethsaida  and  John  the  Evan- 
gelist.    The  latter  is  not  positively  named  in  the  narrative,  but  a 

.    ,  ,  T  ,       comparison  of  statements  in  John's  gospel  makes 

Andrew  and  Jonn.  -^  . 

it  quite  plain  who  is  meant.*     Of  the  former  we 

do  not  know  very  much,  except  that  he  always  seemed  to  have 
a  high  place  among  the  apostles  of  Jesus.  His  brother  Simon 
was  a  more  marked  character,  as  we  shall  see.  There  are  various 
traditions  concerning  Andrew.  Eusebins  says  that  he  preached  in 
Scythia;  Jerome  and  Theodoret,  that  his  ministry  was  in  Achaia; 
Kicei)horus,  that  it  was  in  Asia  Minor  and  Thrace.  He  is  said 
to  have  been  crucified  in  Patra3,  in  Achaia,  on  a  cross  decus- 
sate (X),  hence  called  St.  Andrew's  Cross.  An  apocryphal 
book  called  "  Acts  of  Andrew "  is  mentioned  by  some  ancient 
writers. 

Andrew  and  Jolm  sitting  with  Jesus  make  a  group  worth  ]mus- 
ing  to  contemplate.  "Whatever  may  have  been  the  design  of  this 
marvellously  endowed  young  teacher,  this  is  the  beginning  of  a 
ministry  which  is  to  spiritualize  the  philosophies  of  the  world. 
This  was  a  society  composed  of  earnest  seekers  after  the  true  and 
the  holy,  with  a  true  and  holy  teacher.  From  this  hut  0!i  the 
Jordan  went  forth  a  conquering  power  beside  whose  achieve- 
ments the  deeds  of  the  Alexanders  and  Ca?sars  and  Isapoleons 
grow  pale  and  insignificant. 

A  third  disciple  was  almost  immediately  added  to  this  company, 

namely,  Simon,  Andrew's  brother.     When  Andrew  loft  Jesus  he 

found  his  brother,  and  so  powerfully  had  the  pri- 

Simon,    after-  .1.  /-t  •  ii'^iii^ 

wards  called  Pe-    ^'^^^  discoui-se  of   Jesus  impressed  him  tliat  he 

ter.  did  not  hesitate  to  declare   to   him,   "  AVe  have 

found  the  Messiah!"      Simon  was  not  naturally 

disposed  to  be  a  sceptic.     His  temperament  was  ardent.     lie  had 

probably  been  a  disciple  of  John,  and  was  one  of  the  devout  Jews 

wlio  were  earnestly  looking  for  the  Lord's  Christ,  the  Anointed 


*  Alford's  reasons  are  (a),  Tliat  the 
Evangelist  never  names  himself  in  his 
gospel ;  (b),  That  this  account  is  so  mi- 
nute (mentioning  specifications)  that  it  j  pressing  the  name 
most  have  been  made  by  an  eye- witness;  I 


and  (c),  That  the  other  disciple  certainly 
would  have  been  named  if  the  writer 
had  not  had  some  special  reason  for  sup- 


THE   FIRST   DISCIPLES. 


115 


of  Jeliovah,  the  great  Deliverer,— looking  no  doubt  not  very  spir 
itually,  rather  with  eyes  full  of  Jewish  prejudice,  and  hoping  for 
material  splendors  and  conquests,  nevertheless  looking  and  ex- 
pecting, and  deeply  stirred  by  the  ministry  of  the  Baptist.  As 
soon  as  he  came  into  the  presence  of  Jesus,  and  received  the 
searching  glance  of  the  new  Master,  he  was  saluted  by  name. 
"Your  name  is  Simon.  It  shall  be  Cephas."  The  latter  is 
Syro-Chaldee,  signifying  Rock,  and  is  equivalent  to  the  Greek 
name  Peter,  by  which  the  Apostle  was  afterward  commonly  known. 

The  next  day  Jesus  started  for  his  home  in  Galilee,  and  met 
Philip,  whom  he  invited  to  add  himself  to  the  companionliood  of 
those  whom  he  was  gathering  about  him  to  be  his  pj^j^p 

confidential  friends,  and  the  nucleus  of  that  dis- 
ciplehood  which  he  intended  to  make  the  depository  and  agency 
of  his  teaching  and  iirfluence.  Philip  was  of  Bethsaida,  the  city 
of  Andrew  and  Peter,  and  appears  to  have  been  of  the  number 
of  Galilsean  peasants  whom  John's  preaching  had  attracted. 
There  seems  to  have  been  a  previous  friendship  between  him  and 
the  sons  of  Jonas  and  of  Zebedee,  and  this  band  of  young  men  may 
have  been  in  devout  fellowship  and  looking  for  the  Messiah.  Jesus 
probably  had  seen  him  before,  if  "  finding  "  here  implies  seeking. 

It  is  quite  natural  to  suppose  that  the  open  eye  of  Jesus  took  in 
the  men  whom  he  met  from  time  to  time  at  feasts  or  usual  social 
gatherings,  and  marked  those  whose  characteristics  struck  him  as 
favorable.  Philip  was  affectionate,  simple-liearted,  and  childlike. 
We  shall  see  these  characteristics  as  the  history  advances.  He  is 
usually  named  at  the  head  of  the  second  four,  as  Peter  is  of  the 
first  four,  disciples ;  and  when  the  Apostles  were  selected  he  was 
one.  From  Acts  i.  13  we  learn  that  he  was  with  the  company  of 
disciples  after  the  Ascension,  and  on  the  day  of  Pentecost.  All 
other  trace  of  him  is  somewhat  uncertain.  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria says  that  he  had  a  wife  and  children ;  and  he  is  accounted 
among  the  martyrs.  Polycrates,  bishop  of  Ephesus,  speaks  of 
him  as  having  "fallen  asleep"  in  the  Phrygian  Ilierapolis.  (Euseb., 
H.  E.,  iii.  31.)  A  certain  apocryphal  book,  entitled  "Acta  Philippi," 
contains  many  monstrous  and  foolish  things  attributed  to  Philip. 

Philip  accepted  the  invitation,  and  was  as  nnich  convinced  of 
the  Messiahship  of  Jesus  as  the  other  disciples.       j^^tj^anael 
In  his  turn  he  went  out  and  found  Nathanael, 
and  told  him,  saying,  "We  have  found  him  of  whom  Moses  in 


116  INTEODUCnON   OF  JESUS   TO   HIS   PUBLIC   MINISTRT. 

the  law  and  the  prophets  did  write,*  Jesus  of  Xazareth,  the  son 
of  Joseph."  This  address  seems  to  imply  that  these  two  men  had 
had  ])revious  conversation  about  the  Expected  One.  All  this  cir- 
cle of  acquaintances  appeai-s  to  have  been  on  the  l(X)k-out.  In  his 
joy  at  the  discovery  he  goes  with  child-like  gushingness  to  com- 
municate the  good  news  to  his  friend.  His  allusion  to  iVIoses  was 
probably  made  with  the  passage  in  Deuteronomy  xviii.  IS  in  his 
mind.  His  calling  Jesus  the  son  of  Joseph  proves  only  that  Jo- 
seph was  commonly  reputed  to  be  his  father,  as  we  naturally  sup- 
pose would  be  the  case,  even  amid  the  circumstances  which  the>e 
historians  say  surrounded  his  birth.  It  does  not  prove  that  Jo- 
seph was  his  father. 

To  the  enthusiastic  announcement  by  Philip,  Nathanael  re- 
plied :  "  Can  there  any  good  thing  come  out  of  Nazareth  ? " 
Nathanael  was  a  Galilajan:  it  cannot  be  supposed  that  he  intended 
to  throw  reproach  upon  his  own  province  in  general,  nor  upon 
Nazareth  in  particular.  Ilis  question  means  simply  Avhat  it  seems 
(o  mean,  namely,  that  Nazareth  was  so  insignificant  a  ])lace  that 
it  was  not  reasonable  to  expect  the  Messiah  to  spring  therefrom. 
It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  neither  in  the  books  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament nor  in  Josephus  is  any  mention  made  of  Nazareth  ;  of  so 
little  historical  importance  was  this  place. 

Philip's  reply  is,  like  most  simple  utterances  of  guileless  souls, 
wonderfully  philosophical :  "  Come  and  see."  Spiritual  discov- 
eries, as  all  thinkers  know,  are  exceedingly  difficult  to  report. 
Each  one  must  for  himself  pass  through  the  processes  of  thought 
and  emotion  which  are  necessary  for  spiritual  growth.  No  man 
can,  \\]xm  the  rc]»r('scntation  of  another,  believe  in  the  adapted- 
ness  of  any  spii-it  to  his  own  spirit.  He  must  try  it  for  himself. 
In  nothing  do  we  need  to  be  more  practical  and  to  exercise  more 
common  sense  than  in  the  affaii-s  of  religi<m. 

Nathanael  readily  went.  As  he  api>roached,  Jesus  said  to  the 
bystandei-s,  "Pehold  an  Israelite  indeed,  in  whom  is  no  guile !  " 
These  are  plain  words   that   need   no   explanation.     Nathanael 

♦  Reference  is  made  to  Ps.  ii.  0-9 ;  I  these  passages  critically  may  differ  in 
Isa.  ix.  0;  xi.  l-."),  10;  liii.  2-12;  Jer.  their  estimates  of  their  Messianic  vol- 
xxiii.  5,  0;  xxxiii.  15;  Ezekiel  xxxiv.  ue,  but  can  hardly  fail  to  find  in  them 
2:5 ;  Dan.  ix.  25  ;  Mic.  v.  2  ;  Hap.  ii.  7  ;  sufBciont  basis  for  the  expoctations  of 
Zechari.ih  iii.  8;  ix.  l» ;  xiii.  7;  Mai.  these  men  and  the  Jewish  people  gen- 
iii.  1  ;    iv.   2.      Headers   who   examine  ,  erally. 


THE   FIRST   DISCIPLES.  117 

Beems  to  have  overheard  this  speech,  and,  without  presuming  to 
appropriate  to  himself  the  fine  quality  mentioned,  saw  that  the 
remark  naturally  intimated  a  pre%'iou3  knowledge.  lie  frankly 
asked  Jesus:  "Whence  did  you  know  me?"  And  Jesus  replied : 
"  Before  Philip  saw  you,  when  you  were  under  the  fig-tree,  I  saw 
you,"  Xathanael  exclaimed :  "  Rabbi,  you  are  the  Son  of  God  ! 
You  are  the  King  of  Israel !  " 

This  sudden  admission  on  Nathanael's  part,  of  the  claim  of 
Messiahship  made  for  Jesus  by  Philip,  seems  a  little  strange. 
What  Jesus  said — if  we  have  it  all  recorded  here — amounts  to 
very  little.  He  might  easily  have  seen  him  sitting  in  meditation 
under  his  fig-tree.  There  must  have  been  something  more  implied 
in  look  or  tone,  or  both,  that  went  directly  to  Xathanael's  heart. 
He  was  somehow  searched.  There  came  into  his  soul  a  feeliuof 
of  the  presence  of  a  superior  spirit.  By  word  or  deed  Jesus 
made  him  feel  that  he  knew  what  was  in  Nathanael's  mind  when 
he  sat  under  the  fig-tree.  The  sight  of  his  pei-son  was  no  proof 
of  divine  or  even  extraordinary  power. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  is  remarkable  :  "  Because  I  said  unto  you 
that  I  saw  you  under  the  fig-tree,  do  you  believe  ?  You  shall 
see  greater  things  than  these."  And  to  the  company  present  he 
added :  "  Verily,  verily,*  I  say  unto  you,  hereafter  ye  shall  see 
heaven  open,  and  the  angels  of  God  ascending  and  descending 
upon  the  Son  of  Man."  So  far  as  we  know,  this  was  never  liter- 
ally f  ullllled  to  those  to  whom  it  was  spoken.  It  has  been  sug- 
gested that  the  disciples  frequently  saw  around  Jesus,  as  he  talked, 
or  prayed,  or  wrought,  or  slept,  appearances  of  angelic  creatures. 
But  this  is  mere  conjecture.  They  never  said  so.  It  is  poetry 
and  not  history.  The  words,  then,  must  have  been  symbolic :  if 
literal,  the  fulfilment  would  most  surely  have  been  recorded.  They 
do  symbolize  that  series  of  wonderful  deeds  wherewith  afterwards 
his  life  became  adorned  and  made  the  most  marvellous  of  human 
histories ;  and  that  spiritualizing  of  human  modes  of  thought  by 
Jesus,  in  which  heaven  has  been  opened ;  and  that  more  active'flux 
and  reflux  of  celestial  powers  which  have  marked  the  Christian  era. 

But  now  for  the  first  time  Jesus  applies  to  himself  that  name 
which  seems  to  have  been  his  favorite  mode  of  self -designation, 
"  The  Son  of  Man."     Others  spoke  of  him  usually  by  the  name 

•This  ant'-v,  autjv,  translated  "  ver-  I  similar  asseverations  the  other  biogra- 
ily,   verily,"    is  peculiar  to  John.     In  I  phers  use  auriv  only  once. 


118  INTRODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS    PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

which  Xathauael  had  employed — "  Son  of  God."  In  NathanaeFs 
ease  we  must  suppose  tlie  speaker  to  liave  liad  little 
^^  e  on  0  conception  of  the  meaning  of  the  phrase.  Philip 
had  probably  told  him  tliat  John  had  called  Jesus 
"  Son  of  God,"  and  it  was  to  liis  mind  significant  vaguely  of 
something  very  great  and  glorious,  but  how  great  and  how  glori(.)US 
he  knew  not,  taking  it  for  granted,  however,  that  it  included  all 
Messianic  functions  and  magnificence.  But  Jesus  almost  invari- 
ablv  *  calls  himself  "  The  Son  of  Man,"  a  name  never  throuirh 
his  whole  life  applied  to  him  by  any  other  person.f 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  in  the  original  the  article  is  very  rarely 
omitted.:}:  lie  styles  himself,  with  obvious  intention  to  make 
the  name  pei"Sonally  distinguishing,  "  the  Son  of  Man."  It  was  a 
title  not  common  among  the  Jews,  and  not  understood  by  them 
when  Jesus  employed  it  and  applied  it  to  himself. 

The  phrase  occui-s  in  the  Old  Testament,  M'here  it  appears  to 
have  had  its  origin.  It  is  in  Daniel  vii.  13,  where  it  has  been 
noticed  that  the  word  is  not  Ben-ish  or  Ben-Adam,  but  Bar-Enosh, 
which  represents  humanity  in  its  greatest  frailty  and  humility. 
Ezekiel  is  repeatedly  called  Son  of  Man,  but  never  calls  himself 
so.  It  may  have  been  to  keep  him  from  undue  exaltation  on 
account  of  his  many  great  and  glorious  visions.  But  he  is  not 
called  the  Son  of  Man.  The  Old  Testament  writers  may  be  said 
to  have  used  the  phrase  to  designate,  generally,  huiaanitu  in  its 
highest  ideal.  It  was  certainly  not  a  customary  designation  of 
the  Messiah,  else  some  false  Messiah  would  have  used  it.  !More- 
over,  the  people  woidd  sometimes  at  least  have  applied  it  to 
Jesus,  as  they  frequently  did  the  name  "Son  of  David,"  which 
latter  name  Jesus  accepted,  and  upon  which  he  was  accustomed 
to  base  an  argument  for  the  superior  dignity  of  the  Messiah. 
(See  Matt.  ix.  27 ;  xii.  23 ;  xv.  22  ;  xx.  30,  31  ;  xxi.  0,  15  ;  xxii. 
42,45.) 

It  was  jis  the  "  Son  of  David  "  that  the  people  implored  his 


*  In  Johu's  "  Gospel,"  however,  Jesus    of  dying  Stephen,      See  also   Rev.   i. 
is  frequently  represented  as  calling  him-  |  13. 

self  the  "  Son  of  God,"  with  a  pregnant  1      %  T  now  discover  only  one  passage  in 
meaning.  which  it  is  omitted,  namely,  John  v.  27, 


f  In  Acts  vii.  50  it  occurs,  and  has 
special  reference  to  the  bodily  appear- 
ance of  Jesus,  aa  it  seemed  to  the  eyes 


perhaps  for  a  reason  we  may  present 
when  we  reach  the  disuui)ision  of  th* 
passage. 


THE   FIRST   DISCIPLES.  119 

help,  and  as  the  "  Son  of  David  "  he  did  help  them.     The  prophets 
had  foretold  that  the  Messiah  was  to  come  of 
David's  line,  and  frequently  nsed  the  name  of    j^    .,  „ 
David  to  imply  the  Messiah,     The  Jews  cher- 
ished the  name  and  fame  of  David  as  their  most  glorions  mon- 
arch, the  king  who  had  done  most  to  extend  their  dominions. 
And  so  they  naturally  came  to  associate  ideas  of  secular  splendor 
and  conquest  with  the  thought  of  the  Messiah. 

Perhaps  it  was  on  this  account  that  Jesus,  when  he  wislied  to 
comiect  his  person  with  the  Messianic  idea,  preferred  to  call  him- 
self "  The  Son  of  Man."  It  lifted  him  from  the  sphere  of  secu- 
lar to  that  of  spiritual  and  everlasting  life;  it  enlarged  him  from 
the  representative  of  one  family — a  royal  family — to  the  repre- 
sentatiN'e  of  all  humanity.  It  realized  Messiah,  it  idealized  man. 
And  the  mission  of  Jesus  was  to  break  bands — bands  of  church- 
ism,  bands  of  monarchy,  bands  of  caste,  prejudice,  conventional- 
ities. In  his  work  he  was  to  bring  himself  down  to  all  the 
weaknesses,  wants,  and  sympathies  of  man  :  in  the  results  of  that 
work  he  was  to  lift  man  up  to  himself. 

In  regard  to  Kathanael,  it  may  be  further  stated  that  he  is 
believed  by  many  to  be  the  same  as  Bartholomew.  The  reason 
assigned  is,  that  in  the  fii-st  three  gospels  Xatlian- 
ael  is  not  mentioned,  while  Philip  and  BartTiolo- 
meio  are  constantly  named  together ;  whereas  in  John,  Philip  and 
Nathanael  are  constantly  coupled,  but  Bartholomew  is  never 
mentioned.  We  may  consider  his  real  name  as  Xathanael,  while 
Bartholomew,  which  signifies  "  Son  of  Tolmai,"  is  his  surname. 
We  learn  from  John  xxi.  2,  that  he  was  a  riative  of  Cana,  in 
Galilee.  Bernard  and  Abbot  Rupert  were  of  opinion  that  he 
was  the  bridegroom  at  the  marriage  in  Cana.  He  is  reported 
among  the  witnesses  of  the  resurrection  and  of  the  ascension  of 
Jesus,  and  as  returning  to  Jerusalem  with  the  other  Apostles. 
(See  Johii*xxi.  2,  and  Acts  iv.  12,  13.) 

The  apocryphal  statements  are,  that  he  was  subsequently  an 
Apostle  to  the  Indians,  whoever  they  may  have  been,  the  ancient 
Nvi-iters  using  the  word  indefinitely.  The  place  of  his  death  is 
not  well  ascertained.  Albanopolis,  in  Armenia  Minor,  and 
Urbanopolis,  in  Cilicia,  are  mentioned.  He  is  said  by  one  author 
to  have  died  in  Lycaonia.  They  all  agree  that  he  was  crucified 
with  his  head  downward.     A  spurious  "  gospel "  beai-s  his  name. 


CHAPTER   V. 


IN    CAN  A    AND    rAI'KRNAIM. 


KANA  i:i.  .iir.ir.. 


Cana  of  Galilee. 


Having  accompjislied  liis  proposed  journey,  we  next  find  Jesus 
in  Cana  of  Galilee.  Tliis  village  is  not  named  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. Accordinp:  to  Joseplnis  ( Vita,  c.  16),  it  lay 
half  a  day's  journey  from  the  sea  of  Gennesaret, 
and  ahout  two  days  from  the  Jordan,  where  Jesus  had  had  his  in- 
terview \y\\\\  Nathanaol,  who  pn)l)al)ly  accompanied  hijn  to  Cana. 
In  liis  lii'xearches  (iii,  204),  Dr.  Robinson  estahlishcs  it  as  Kana- 
el-Jelel,  3^  hours  N.  ^  E.  from  Kazareth. 

Here  Jesus  ])orf()nnod  his  first  miracle,  whidi 
is  thus  reported  in  John  ii.  1-10: 

"And  the  third  day  there  was  a  marriafre  in  Cana 
of  Galileo;  and  the  nK)theiT>f  Josns  was  there:  and  hotli  Jesus  was 
called  [invited],  and  his  disciples,  to  the  marriage.     And  when 


The  first  miracle 
John  ii. 


m   CANA    AND   CAPERNAUM.  121 

they  wanted  wine,  the  mother  of  Jesus  saith  unto  him,  *  They  have 
no  wine.'  Jesus  saith  unto  her,  'Woman,  what  have  I  to  do  with 
thee?  mine  horn*  is  not  yet  come.'  His  mother  saith  unto  the  ser- 
vants, 'Whatsoever  he  saith  unto  you,  do  it.'  And  there  were  set 
there  six  water-pots  of  stone,  after  the  manner  of  the  pimfying 
of  the  Jews,  containing  two  or  three  firkins  apiece.  Jesus  saith 
unto  them, '  Fill  the  water-pots  with  water.'  And  they  filled  them 
up  to  the  brim.  And  he  saith  unto  them,  '  Draw  out  now,  and 
bear  unto  the  governor  of  the  feast.'  And  they  bare  it.  Wlien 
the  ruler  of  the  feast  had  tasted  the  water  that  was  made  wine, 
and  knew  not  whence  it  was  (but  the  servants  which  drew  the 
water  knew),  the  governor  of  the  feast  called  the  bridegroom, 
and  saith  unto  him,  'Every  man  at  the  beginning  doth  set  forth 
good  wine ;  and  when  men  have  well  drunk,  then  that  which  is 
worse :  but  thou  hast  kept  the  good  wine  until  now.'  " 

The  particularity  with  which  minutiae  are  mentioned  renders  it 
probable  that  the  historian  John  was  one  of  the  party ;  that  he,  and 
Andrew,  and  Peter,  and  Philip  went  forward  with 

their  new  Ilabbi,  detachino;  themselves  from  John        ,,        ,,. 

'  »  orable  wedding. 

and  attaching  themselves  to  Jesus.  From  Betha- 
bara  on  the  Jordan,  where  the  last  incident  is  mentioned,  to  Cana 
in  Galilee,  there  M^ould  be  parts  of  three  days  consumed  in  the 
journey.  Jesus  would  pass  through  Nazareth  by  the  most  natural 
route.  Perhaps  there  he  would  be  told  that  his  mother  had  gone 
to  Cana,  to  the  wedding  of  some  familiar  friend  of  the  family, 
and  that  an  invitation  had  been  left  for  him,  and  any  friend  who 
might  be  with  him,  to  follow  her  as  speedily  as  convenient.  Ilis 
friends  continue  M'ith  him,  and  they  go  in  a  body  to  Cana.  There 
an  event  in  the  life  of  Jesus  occm'S  which  makes  this  tlie  most 
memorable  wedding  upon  record.  The  marriage  of  no  imperial 
parties  has  been  so  frequently  mentioned  as  this  of  these  unknown 
peasants  of  Galilee.  No  wedding  has  invoked  from  genius  so 
many  poems  and  so  many  passages  of  eloquence.  "Who  the  bride 
and  bridegroom  were  we  have  no  means  of  knowing.  They  were 
simple  people,  of  the  rank  of  Mary,  and  probably  poor,  as  we  learn 
that  the  wine  fell  short. 

Jesus  had  heretofore  performed  no  miracle.  That  we  are  ex- 
pressly told  by  the  historian  John  (ii.  11),  who  thus  sets  aside  all 
those  grotesque  and  monstrous  things  which  are  related  of  Jesus 
in  the  Apocryphal  books.     But  Mary  knew  his  miraculous  con- 


122  INTRODUCTION   OF   .lESUS   TO    HIS   PUBLIC   MINISTRY. 

ceptidii  .111(1   tlie  marvels  attending  his  birth.     She  had  watched 

his  growth  in  wisdom  and  power,  and  althou<;h 
The  mother  of      i      i      ,  .,  ,  •        i       i      i      i     i      "' 

J  she  had  never  witnessed  a  miracle,  she  had  ahvavi 

found  him  a  wise  adviser  in  times  of  domestic 
emergencies.  IIow  far  he  had  communicated  to  lier  his  views  of 
his  mission  we  cannot  know.  They  must  have  had  long  conver- 
sations and  deep  communings  about  himself;  and  if  he  had  nevei 
given  her  any  hints  about  his  Messiahship,  the  Jewish  woman  had 
Jewish  hopes  in  her  heart,  and  she  connected  them  with  the  sacred 
secrets  of  his  birth  and  brooded  over  them  with  her  maternal  love. 
There  is  a  great  probability  that  the  disciples  who  were  witli 
Jesus  told  her  how  they  had  come  to  form  that  brotherhood,  on  the 
ground  of  the  Baptist  John's  having  proclaimed  him  as  the  Mes- 
siah. The  Baptist  was  the  highest  authority  then.  So  now  Mary 
received  him,  after  his  absence,  in  the  double  character  of  son  and 
Messiah.  And  she  knew  that  the  Messiah  was  to  work  miracles. 
The  hour  seemed  to  have  arrived;  the  wine  failed.  She  spoke 
to  Jesus,  very  delicately,  merely  iiift inning  him  of  the  fact.     It 

was  very  natural.     The  reply  of  Jesus  seems  un- 
rep  y  o     naturally  hai-sh.     That  somehow  it  was  a  reijroof 

Jesus.  ,  ,  *^  *■ 

is  obvious.  That  some  rebuff  should  come,  we 
might,  upon  reflection,  expect.  Our  knowledge  of  Jesus  after  all 
we  have  read  makes  it  natural.  He  would  do  nothing  at  tlie  mere 
]>ronipting  of  pride  or  vanity.  And  if  Mary  believed  or  suspected 
him  to  be  the  Messiah,  she  should  wait  until  his  own  spirit  prompt- 
ed the  extraordinary  act. 

And  yet  the  words  are  not  as  harsh  as  they  seem  in  our  English 
version.  l\vui,  "  Woman,"  is  an  Oriental  method  of  salutation  to 
women  of  the  highest  rank,  and  Jesus  used  it  upon  the  cross,  in  the 
season  of  his  extreme  suffering,  and  when  he  was  exhibiting  the 
most  tender  and  unselfish  regard  for  his  mother.  (See  John  xix. 
26).*  Substitute  "Lady,"  and  see  how  different  is  the  sound.  But 
the  fact  that  he  chose  to  say  "My  Lady,"  instead  of  "My  ]\Iother," 
is  significant,  lie  had  entered  his  work.  This  was  his  fii-st  meet- 
ing with  INfary  after  his  baptism,  and  he  seems  to  have  made  her 
then  feel  the  barrier  which  must  ever  thereafter  be  between  them. 
l\Lary  was  to  learn  what  many  a  woman  has  learned,  how  a  great 
life-work  interferes  with  the  afTecti(»ns.     She  is  to  be  "  woman  " 

*  See  also  John  xx.  15. 


m  OANA   AND   CAPERNAUM.  123 

to  him, — a  very  dear  mother,  ever  to  be  honored,  but  woman. 
Her  husband  had  not  been  his  father.*  He  knew  himself  now  as 
the  son  of  the  God.  His  whole  treatment  hereafter,  as  we  shall 
see,  is  on  this  platform. 

"What  have  I  to  do  with  thee?"  is  the  translation  of  a  difficult 
phrase.  It  seems  to  imply  that  they  had  different  positions  from 
which  to  see  the  demands  of  this  occasion.  She 
had  a  neighboi^'s  and  a  mother's  feelings.  He  had 
the  sentiments  becoming  the  Messiah,  the  Sent  of  God,  and  was 
to  do  what  was  necessary  to  make  himself  known  in  this  work, 
and  no  more.  It  was  not  an  ugly,  rough,  unfilial  speech ;  but  it 
did  reprove  Mary,  and  stands  forever  against  all  that  superstition 
which  elevates  her  into  a  goddess  who  has  power  to  command  her 
son.  We  shall  find  that  nowhere  does  Jesus  encourage  supersti- 
tion. 

The  mother  still  felt  that  her  great  son  would  do  something 
great.  Perhaps  he  had  intimated  as  much,  and  all  that  he  checks 
in  Mary  is  her  too  great  forwardness.  She  tells  the  ser\'ants  to  be 
on  the  alert,  although  he  had  said  what  she  could  hardly  have 
understood,  what  perhaps  we  do  not  understand — "  My  hour  has 
not  yet  come."  Gregory  of  Nyssen  gives  a  turn  to  this  which 
may  be  the  solution  of  difficulties.  He  regards  it  as  a  question  : 
"Has  not  ray  hour  come?"  He  used  it  afterward  on  another 
memorable  occasion.  He  will  hasten  nothing,  he  will  delay  noth- 
ing. But  does  not  her  speech  to  the  servants  show  that  Mary  had 
had  some  intimation  of  what  Jesus  was  going  to  do? 

The  ceremonial  punctuality  of  the  Jewish  religion  was  ob- 
served by  this  poor  family.  They  had  six  water-pots,  each  hold- 
ing from  two  to  three  "firkins."  This  word 
signifies  a  measure  of  8  gallons  and  7.4:  pints.  If  ^  ^^  ^^  ^°  ^' 
we  assign  two  firkins  and  a  half  {fieTpijTr}^  is  the  original)  as  the 
average,  then  they  held  133  gallons.  They  were  2oat€r-po%  not 
wine-jars.  They  were  filled  with  water  at  the  command  of  Je- 
sus. He  directed  the  servants  to  draw  and  carry  to  the  "  gover- 
nor of  the  feast,"  a  person  called  in  the  original  at'ohiirichinus, 
who  held  something  like  the  place  of  the  sy?nposiarch,  the  master 
of  ceremonies,  the  7'ex  cojivivii,  probably  a  guest  who  had  kindly 
by  request  undertaken  the  office  for  the  occasion.     The  servants 

*  As  Augustine  says,  "  That  in  me  which  works  miracles  was  not  bom  of  thee.' 


124 


INTEODUCTION   OF   JESUS   TO    HIS   PUBLIC   MINISTET. 


The  miracle. 


dipped  and  bore  it  to  the  ruler  of  the  feast,  wlio,  when  he  had 
tasted  it,  not  knowing  whence  it  was,  called  his  friend  the  bride- 
groom, and  pleasantly  reminded  him  that  it  was  customary  to  pr<->- 
duce  the  best  wine  at  fii-st,  and  when  men  had  rather  cloyed  their 
palates  by  frequent  potations,  then  to  produce  the  inferior  wine. 
"  But,"  said  he,  "  you  have  kept  the  good  wine  until  now,"  until 
the  very  last. 

The  historian  pronounces  this  a  miracle.     It  certainly  is,  or  it 
is  a  contemptible  farce  played  out  by  cunning  collusion,  or  the 

whole  history  is  false.     We  have  no  more  right 

to  suspect  this  history  than  most  of  Caesar's  Com- 
mentaries on  the  AVar  in  Gaul,  or  the  Aiinah  of  Tacitus.  "We 
must  accept  this,  or  reject  almost  every  line  of  these  histories. 
Accepted,  the  narrative  shows  that  John,  who  seems  to  have  been 
present,  believed,  so  far  from  this  being  a  trick,  that  it  was  really 
a  miracle. 

There  is  nothing  gained  by  any  explanations  of  the  palliative 
class,  such  as  Xeander's  idea  that  Jesus  "  intensijied  (so  to  speak) 

the  powers  of  water  into  those  of  wine."  *     X<»r 
la  iveexp  a-    -j^^,  Auffustine's  idea  that  such  a  miracle  is  wrouirht 
nations.  .  "■  .  . 

in  our  vineyards  yearly,  and  Jesus  simply  has- 
tened the  processes  of  nature  by  which  water  becomes  wine.f 
This  view  is  indorsed  by  Trench  {On  Miracles,  p.  91),  Mhen  that 
usually  judicious  writer  compares  this  to  "  the  unnoticed  miracle 
of  every-day  nature,"  and  speaks  of  the  difference  lying  in  "  the 
power  and  will  by  which  all  the  intervening  steps  of  these  tardier 
processes  were  overleaped  and  the  result  obtained  at  once." 
There  is  no  comparison.  There  is  in  this  act  of  Jesus  in  Cana 
no  such  basis  as  soil  and  germ,  vine  and  grape,  through  which  to 
propel  the  wine.  It  was  a  clear  and  sheer  miracle,  the  simple 
basis  being  water  and  the  result  being  wine.  It  was  a  miracle  or 
nothing.  We  do  no  credit  to  our  intellects  by  dodges  or  subterfuges. 


*  One  cannot  ridicule  so  respectable 
and  goo^l  a  man  as  Neander  ;  but  the 
pressure  of  the  si)irit  of  German  criti- 
cism upon  his  excellent  mind  may  be 
measured  by  a  note,  m  which  he  says : 
"Compare  as  analogies  the  mincrdl 
$pringf>,  in  which,  by  natural  processes, 
new  powers  are  given  to  water;  and 
the  ancient  accounts  of  springs  which 


sent  forth  waters  like  wine — intoxica- 
ting waters."  We  cannot  wonder  that 
Dr.  Straiis.s  laughs  at  Dr.  Neander  for 
such  passages. 

f  His  words  (in  Er.J«/i..  Tract.  8) 
are  :  '*  Dlud  autcm  non  miranmr  quia 
omni  anno  fit  :  assiduitate  amicit  ad- 
mirationem. " 


m   CANA   AND   CAPERNAUM.  125 

Trouble  is  given  some  commentators  by  the  abundance  of  wine 
which  Jesus  made.     It  looks  like  "  putting  temptation  in  men's 
way,"  it  is  said.     But  does  not  the  All-Father  do 
that  perpetually  and  plentifully  ?     There  is  noth-    ^^  ^^^  ^^^^ 
ing  about  us  which  is  not  open  to  that  objection. 
Why  does  God  allow  grapes  to  grow  ?     ^^7  di^  Grod  give  men 
appetites  ?     All  life  is  a  submitting  of  the  human  spirit  to  thd 
discipline  of  trial. 

The  lesson  to  the  disciples  and  to  the  world  is  wholesome 
They  had  been  in  the  ascetic  school  of  John.  In  the  very  open- 
ing of  his  public  career  Jesus  teaches  them  that 
all  the  courtesies  of  life  are  to  be  respected ;  that 
no  man  is  to  be  so  great  as  not  to  give  a  portion  of  his  time  to 
the  demands  of  society ;  that  indulgence  in  innocent  pleasures 
should  have  the  sanction  of  the  loftiest  and  grandest  natures ; 
that  marriage  is  not  to  be  discouraged  because  the  work  of  some 
men  in  the  w'orld  forbids  them — as  his  forbade  him — to  partake 
the  blessed  sweetnesses  of  married  love ;  and  that  he  came  not 
to  destroy  but  rectify,  not  to  sadden  but  to  transfigure  all  life  by 
heightening  the  spiritual  part  of  man  and  connecting  his  ordinary 
drudgery  with  the  highest  hopes ;  by  turning  the  water  of  ordinary 
existence  into  the  wine  of  a  generous,  rich,  and  exliilarating  life. 

"  And  his  disciples  believed  on  him."     (John  ii.  11.) 

After  this  Jesus,  with  Mary  and  her  other  sons,  the  half-broth- 
ers of  Jesus,  accompanied  by  the  disciples,  went  down  to  Caper- 
naum, which  lay  on  the  western  side  of  the  Sea 

of  Galilee,  a  place  where  we  shall  find  him  doing         ^^^     °    ^^^  ' 
'_     ^  _  _  _    ^    naum. 

many  of  his  mighty  works,  and  which,  according 
to  his  prediction,  has  been  lost  from  human  geography  so  thor- 
oughly that  no  ecclesiastical  tradition  ventures  to  fix  its  site.  Dr. 
Robinson  exposes  the  views  of  all  previous  travellers  in  their  at- 
tempts to  identify  the  locality.  (See  Bibl.  Researches^  iii.  288- 
294.)  The  "  not  many  days  "  seems  to  signify  his  eagerness  to  be 
about  his  work,  rather  than  to  indicate  any  chronological  space. 


PART  III. 

FEOM  THE  FIEST  TO  TIIE  SECOND  PASSOVER  IN 
THE  PUBLIC  LIFE  OF  JESUS. 

ONT:  year— probably  from  APRIL  of  A.D.  27  TO  APRIL  OF  A.D.  28. 


CHAPTER  L 

CLE.\JS'SING    TIIE   TEMl'LE. 

A  Passover  approached.  This  great  festival  drew  Jews  to  the 
Temple  not  only  from  all  parts  of  Palestine,  but  fi-om  distant 
lands.  Jesus  went  up  to  Jerusalem.  On  enter- 
ing the  Temple  he  found  in  the  Court  of  the 
Gentiles  persons  selling  oxen,  sheep,  and  doves,  for  sacrifices,  and 
near  them  sat  brokers  making  exchange  of  money  for  those  who 
wished  to  purchase  offerings.  Perhaps  these  brokers  also  changed 
the  foreign  money  of  Jews  from  a  distance  into  the  sacred  half- 
shekel,  which  alone  was  allowed  to  be  paid  in  for  the  Temple 
capitation-tax,  levied  annually  on  every  Jew  of  twenty  years  old 
and  upwards.  (Compare  Matt.  xvii.  24  with  Exod.  xxx.  13 ;  2 
Kings  xii.  4 ;  2  Chroii.  xxiv.  0,  0.)  *     Jesus  had  witnessed  this  dese- 


*  According  to  Hug,  ' '  the  ancient 
imposts  which  were  introduced  before 
the  Roman  dominion  wore  valued  ac- 
cording to  the  Greek  coinage,  e.g.,  the 
taxes  of  the  Temple.  Matt.  xvii.  24; 
Joseph.,  B.  I.,  VTi.  6,  0.  The  offerings 
were  paid  in  these.  Mark  xii.  42 ; 
L\ike  xxi.   2.     A  payment  which  pro- 


mon  business,  trade,  wages,  sale,  etc., 
the  aJisiM  and  denarius  and  Roman  coin 
were  usual.  Matt.  x.  20  ;  Luke  xii.  G ; 
Matt.  XX.  2  ;  Mark  xiv.  5  ;  John  xii.  5 ; 
vi.  7.  The  more  modem  state  taxes  are 
likewise  paid  in  the  coin  of  the  nation 
which  exercises  at  the  time  the  greatest 
authority.     Matt.   xxii.   19;    Mark  xii. 


ceeded  from  the  Temple  troiusury  Wiis    15;  Luke  xx.  24." — Vol.  i.  p.  14.     After 
made  according  to  the  ancient  national  ,  all,  however,  some  of  these  words  may 
payment   by  weight.     Matt.    xxvi.    15.  I  be  translations. 
[This  is  very  doubtful.]     But   in  com- I 


CLEANSING   THE   TEMPLE.  127 

cration  of  God's  house  every  year  from  his  early  boyhood.  He 
had  seen  that,  the  secularized  and  demoralized  priesthood  allowed 
it.  To  him  it  had  become  intolerable.  He  had  entered  upon  his 
mission.  Probably  rumors  of  him  increased  the  crowd  at  this 
festival.  Eighteen  years  before,  in  that  very  spot,  he  had  said 
that  he  must  be  about  his  Father's  business,  and  he  certainly 
meant  the  work  of  God.  "  This  was  the  house  of  God.  He  would 
not  endure  the  sight  of  its  desecration  longer.  The  cattle  may 
have  stood  by  in  pairs,  and  rope — such  rope  as  they  were  accus- 
tomed to  use  in  leading  beasts  to  the  slaughter— lay  near.  The 
spirit  of  tlie  old  prophets  was  upon  him.  He  did  not  speak.  He 
acted.  Seizing  the  rope  he  made  a  scourge,  and  drove  these  des€- 
crators  out  of  the  Temple.  AYliether  he  actually  applied  the  lash 
to  their  backs  we  do  not  know.  His  presence,  his  act,  so  like 
that  of  one  of  their  old  proj^hets,  may  have  exerted  such  a  moral 
force  upon  their  guilty  consciences  that  they  fled  before  the  blow. 
He  ordered  the  animals  away,  overturned  the  tables  of  the  money- 
changers, and  cleared  the  Temj^le. 

Lights  and  shadows !  T7e  have  seen  him  all  sweetness  at  a 
wedding,  beneficently  turning  away  the  shame  of  a  poor  but  lov- 
ing bridegroom  by  a  miraculous  supply  of  wine.  We  now  behold 
him  terrible  to  evil-doers.  Among  the  holy  poor  he  is  all  gentle- 
ness ;  in  the  presence  of  merchants  and  rulers  and  multitudes  he 
is  the  stern  rebuker  of  the  great  wrong.  The  effect  of  this  act 
ui^on  the  disciples  was  to  deepen  the  impression  of  his  Messiah- 
ship.  Perhaps  they  recalled  the  words  of  John,  "  whose  fan  is  in 
his  hands."  They  certainly  did  recollect  what  David  had  sung 
in  his  sorrowful  exile  :  "  The  zeal  of  thy  house  has  eaten  me  up  " 
(Ps.  Ixix.  9.) 

The  Jews  demanded  his  authority  for  this  amazing  act.  The 
demand  is  to  be  regarded  as  coming  from  two  classes.  The  more 
devout  among  the  people  must  have  long  regarded 
this  proximity  of  tlie  mart  to  the  Temple  a  nui-  ^^  authority 
sauce  which  should  be  abated.  "\Vlien  this  extra-  ^^'^'"''^^^ 
ordinary  young  man,  of  whom  they  had  heard  vague  but  interest- 
ing statements,  performed  the  act  so  boldly,  it  must  have  been 
agreeable  to  them,  and  probably  increased  their  expectations  of 
what  he  should  do  hereafter.  They  hoped  he  would  by  greater 
deeds  of  national  importance  furnish  authority  for  believing  that 
he  did  this  as  a  Messianic  act.     The  worldly  and  secular  hated 


128  FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER    IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUB. 

him  for  it,  but  could  not  resent,  as  he  i)hiec<l  it  upon  a  relifrioua 
ground  and  liad  some  good  people  near  who  appi-(jved.  All  the 
traders  could  do  was  to  make  sullen  demand  for  his  authority, 
which  they  had  a  right  to  do,  as  only  the  Sanhedrim  or  a  prophet 
could  correct  abuses  in  the  Temple-worship,  and  the  latter  was 
always  expected  to  demonstrate  his  prophetic  authonty  by  a  mir- 
acle. 

His  reply  to  that  demand  was  enigmatical.  It  was  :  "  Destroy 
this  temple,  and  in  three  days  I  will  raise  it  up." 
In  order  to  appreciate  the  effect  of  tliis  speech 
upon  his  hearers  there  are  several  things  to  be  done.  In  the  first 
place,  we  must  remember  that  the  disciples  themselves  did  not 
underetand  the  meaning  of  the  saying  until  after  the  death  of 
Jesus,  and  that  neither  they  nor  the  Jews  were  furnished  with 
the  interpretation  of  this  dark  s])eecli,  which  John  gives  in  ii.  21, 
22.  Then  we  must,  as  far  as  practicable,  reproduce  the  state  of 
feelings  in  the  hearts  of  the  Jews  against  which  Jesus  seems  to 
have  hurled  this  speech  as  a  courageous  reply  to  their  defiance. 
Towards  him  pei-sonally  they  had  no  kind  feelings.  He  had  been 
associated  with  the  denunciatory  John  the  Baptist.  He  had 
made  no  overtures  to  ecclesiastical  power  or  popular  favor.  I  lis 
fii-st  public  act  seemed  the  deed  of  a  zealot.  Jhit  their  Temple 
had  become  their  idol.  He  himself  intimated  as  much  in  a 
rebuke  contained  in  one  of  his  speeches. 

The  Temple  was  the  central  figure  among  their  national  ideals. 
It  had  stood,  in  one  form  or  another,  on  the  same  spot  through  the 
centuries,  collecting  around  itself  all  the  tcnder- 
est  and  sublimest  associations  of  devotion  and 
patriotism.  It  was  the  visible  residence  of  the  invisible  Jehovah. 
It  imparted  a  solemn  sanctification  to  the  whole  land.  It  was  the 
heart  through  which  all  the  national  blood  flowed.  It  held  those 
who  were  resident,  and  attracted  Jews  from  every  clime.  Their 
co-religionists,  dispereed  among  the  nations,  having  no  more  place 
of  business  in  Jerusalem,  no  more  home  there,  no  living  associates 
of  their  youth  there,  nothing  but  sad  memories  in  the  city  of  the 
sepulchres  of  their  fathers,  saw,  in  the  vision  of  the  night,  The 
Temple  rise  and  stretch  its  arms  like  a  gi-eat  Mother,  and  heard 
a  voice  as  from  the  Holiest  of  Holies  call  them  back,  in  sounds 
more  solemn  than  the  thunder  and  more  thrilling  than  a  love- 
whisper — and  they  rose,  and  at  whatever  sacrifice  of  business  or 


CLEANSING    THE    TEMPLE. 


129 


pleasure  they  turned  their  faces  towards  Jerusalem  and  stood 
with  awful  joy  in  the  courts  of  the  house  of  Jehovah. 

Tlie  people  that  heard  Jesus  speak  this  fearful  enigma  recol- 
lected that  the  Temple  had  been  defiled.  They  recalled  the  days 
of  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  who  had  forbidden  the 
observance  of  the  law,  and  had  set  up  the  "  abora-  ^'''''^"^  "^*''"^' 
ination  of  desolation  "  by  making  a  sacrifice  to 
Olympian  Jove  on  the  altar  of  Jehovah ;  *  and  they  never  forgot 
his  loathsome  end,  when  terror  and  remorse  lashed  him  into  an 
ignominious  grave.  "  He  came  to  his  end,  and  there  was  none  to 
help  him."  They  recollected  that  Crassus,  go\ernor  of  Syria,  on 
his  way  from  Kome  to  fight  the  Parthians,  plundered  their  Tem- 
ple,t  and  went  forward  to  terrible  defeat  and  capti^^ty,  and  to  a 
fearful  death  amid  the  desert  sands.  They  had  not  ceased  to  feel 
that  it  was  retribution  from  God,  for  his  Temple's  sake,  which 
had  sent  Pompey's  head  to  Caesar,  and  left  his  dishonored  trunk 
on  the  shore  of  Egypt.:]: 

Their  love  for  their  Temple  was  stronger  than  patriotism,  or 
love  of  home,  or  the  instinct  of  self-preservation.  It  was  a  pas- 
sion and  a  fanaticism.  As  truly  as  beautifully  does  Milman  say, 
"  The  fall  of  the  Temple  was  like  the  bursting  of  the  heart  of 
the  nation." 

In  such  a  state  of  mind  the  Jews  heard  this  young  teacher  de- 
clare :  "  Destroy  this  Temple,  and  I  will  rebuild  it  in  three  days." 
Any  careless  speech  in  regard  to  the  Temple  was  unpardonable ; 
but  to  talk  lightly  of  its  destruction  was  an  intolerable  outrage. 
And  that  is  just  what  they  and  his  disciples  understood  him  to 
say,  and  he  knew  that  they  did  so  understand.  The  suggestion 
that  he  pointed  to  his  body,  indicating  that  he  referred  to  his 

than  the  paragraph  in  Josephus  (  Wats,  i. 
8.  §  8)  ;  but  the  mention  by  him  shows 
how  any  even  reported  disrespect  to  the 
Temple  fired  the  Jewish  heart. 

t  Pompey's  fate  is  well  known  to  all 
readers  of  history.  Josephus  says  that 
Pompey's  virtue  kept  him  from  cany- 
ing  off  the  sacred  treasure,  but  records 
the  fact  that  he  desecrated  the  Temple 
by  entering  the  Holiest  of  Holies  (Ant., 
xiv.  iv.  4),  and  examining  those  things 
which  it  was  lawful  for  the  priesta 
only  to  behold. 


*  Compare  Diod.  Sic,  Edog.  xxxiv. 
1;  Daniel  xi.  31;  xii.  11;  1  Mace.  i. 
57;  Josephus,  Ant,  xii.  5.  4.  "The 
abomination  of  desolation  "  was  proba- 
bly a  small  idolatrous  shrine  which  was 
set  up  in  the  Temple  on  the  15th  of  the 
month  Kisleu :  just  ten  days  after 
which  the  first  victim  was  offered  to 
Jupiter.  The  circumstances  of  the 
death  of  Antiochus  Epiph.  are  narrated 
in  Polybius  (xxi.  2),  and  in  Josephus 
{Ant.,  xii.    ,  1,  et  /<cq.). 

f  I  find  no  other  authority  for  this 

9 


130 


FIRST   AND    SECONTD    PASSOVER   IX   THE    LIFE    OF   .TESU8. 


death  and  resurrection,  is  wholly  inadmissil)lc.  If  he  had  done 
BO  it  must  have  been  in  sight  of  the  Jews,  or  of  his  disci})les  only. 
He  could  scarcely  have  made  the  gesture  significant  to  his  disci- 
ples without  also  making  it  apparent  to  the  Jews,  and  it  is  not 
^consistent  with  the  general  purity  and  simplicity  and  elevation  of 
his  character  to  fancy  him  winking  to  his  disciples  and  concealing 
a  gesture  from  the  crowd.  They  believed  that  he  meant  the  ma- 
terial Temple  in  which  they  were  standing. 

Their  reply  shows  tliat:  "Forty  and  six  yeai-s  was  this  Temple 
in  building,  and  wilt  thou  rear  it  up  in  three  daj-s  ? "     This  must 

refer  to  the  com]:)letion  of  some  main  portion  or 
Retort  of    the         .      .      ,      .  /•     i      m         i         tt        i    i      /^ 

jg^g  principal  wing  or  the  iemple.     lierod  the  (xreat 

had  a  taste  for  building,  and  had  expended,  and 
was  still  expending,  vast  sums  and  much  time  on  this  great  work, 
in  which  he  was  assisted  by  the  piety,  the  wealth,  and  the  patri- 
otic pride  of  the  Jews.  From  the  time  he  had  commenced  this 
work  to  tliG  time  this  reply  was  made  to  Jesus  it  was  just  forty-six 
years.  Josephus  (A?)f.,  xvi.  11.  1)  says  that  he  began  in  the 
eighteenth  year  of  his  reign  ;  but  in  his  Wam  of  the  JewR  (i.  21. 1) 
he  says  in  tlie  fifteenth,  the  dates  being  founded  respectively 
upon  the  death  of  Antigonus  and  ITorod''s  appointment  by  the 
Romans.  If  the  latter  date  be  taken,  it  will  give  twenty  years  to 
the  birth  of  Jesus,  and  thirt}'  years  to  this  passover,  making 
fifty  from  which  if  we  take  four  yeai-s  to  correct  our  era,  the 
epoch  of  which  is  just  that  much  too  late,  we  have  forty-six 
yeare.* 

It  was  to  Jewish  eai^s  a  preposterous  and  a  l)lasphemous  thing 
in  Jesus  to  intimate  that  the  Temple  should  be  destroyed,  and  to 

assert  that  he  could  rebuild  it  in  three  days.   They 
Thenation  -  ,.  ttiii  i 

Bhocked.  never  forgave  him.     He  had  liurt  them  in  every 

sensibility.  And  Jcsiis  knew  it.  And  he  made 
no  reply  and  no  explanation.  In  his  first  public  acts  he  had  ex- 
hibited a  zeal  that  seemed  headstrong ;  he  had  certainly  per- 
formed a  m(»st  impolitic  act.  But  it  cannot  be  charged  as  an  in- 
di8creti<tn  or  inadvertence,  such  as  occur  in  every  })ublic  inan's 
life  and  give  him  great  regrets.     Jesus  never  regretted  it.     He 


*  Alfonl  (on  John  ii.  20)  notices  that 
the  Temple  wafl  not  completed  till  A.n. 
64,  under  Ilorod  Agrippa  II.  and  the 
procurator  Albinus ;  so  that    "was  in 


building "  must  have  referred  to  the 
greater  part  of  the  work  then  com- 
pleted. 


CLEANSING   THE   TEMPLE.  131 

must  have  known  that  he  had  virtually  signed  his  own  death- 
M-ari-ant.  He  awaited  the  result.  We  shall  see  how  this  one 
sentence  of  his  rankled  in  the  heart  of  the  nation,  was  made  the 
strength  of  the  indictment  on  which  he  was  executed,  and  con- 
fronted him  in  the  shape  of  gibe  amid  the  horrors  of  his  cru- 
cifixion. 

He  meant  his  own  body.  He  thought  of  his  death  by  violence, 
and  his  belief  that  he  had  power  to  take  up  his  life  again.  He 
knew  the  unity  of  his  own  meaning  and  compre- 
hended the  multiplicity  of  its  relations.  It  might  ,  , 
refer  to  the  desecration  of  the  Temple  by  the  men 
around  him,  or  to  its  destruction  by  the  Romans ;  it  might  refer 
to  the  abolition  of  the  Jewish  form  of  religion  and  the  recon- 
struction of  faith  on  the  basis  of  his  resurrection.  Here  as 
throughout  his  whole  pul)lic  life  (compare  Matt.  xii.  40)  this  thought 
of  his  resurrection  was  ever  present  to  his  mind.  Subsequently 
he  seems  to  have  told  John  and  the  other  disciples  that  his  allu- 
sion, in  the  offending  speech,  was  to  "the  temple  of  his  body." 
But  even  then  they  could  not  comprehend,  they  seemed  scarcely 
able  to  apprehend,  the  idea  of  the  resurrection  of  the  body.  The 
whole  meaning  came  upon  them  only  after  they  believed  that  they 
had  seen  him  alive  after  death.* 

An  appeal  may  now  be  made  to  the  candor  of  mankind  against 
the  disingenuousness  of  some  modern  critics.  If  any  public  man, 
say  Pericles,  or  Caesar,  or  Cromwell,  or  Washing- 
ton, or  Xapoleon,  had  plunged  into  public  life  as 
Jesus  did,  would  it  be  fair  to  charge  that  his  intent  was  to  pan- 
der to  the  public  taste,  to  study  the  tides  of  fortune,  to  adapt  him- 
self to  the  desires  of  the  masses,  and  thus  \o jpopularize  himself? 
Suppose  the  act  of  cleansing  the  Temple  would  be  agreeable  to  a 
few  unsecularized  devout  old  Jews;  it  would  be  disagreeable  to 
the  large  majority  of  ruling,  influential  people,  and  hugely  dis- 
gusting to  the  traffickers  themselves;  while  the  speech  of  the 
Temple  would  give  point  to  the  rancor  of  those  whom  the  act  had 
offended,  and  shield  their  resentment  from  the  allegation  of  being 
based  upon  personal  grounds,  while  it  would  be  poignantly  afflic- 
tive to  the  sensibilities  of  the  pious  few  who  would,  but  for  the 
Bpeech,  have  favored  the  act. 

*  Read  with  care  John  il  21,  22. 


132  FIRST   A>T)    SECOND    PASSOVER    IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

On  gronnds  of  policy  the  act  and  the  accompanying  speech  are 
wholly  indefensible.     If  Jesus  undertook  the  enterprise  which  ia 

charged  upon  him  by  the  critics,  then  he  was  sim- 
..  "  °     ply  a  fool,  whose  folly   it  would  be  difficult  to 

match  from  all  the  recorded  mistakes  of  men. 
But  whatever  else  be  charged,  he  is  not  accused  of  folly.  Then, 
he  did  not  seek  to  draw  men  to  his  fellowship  by  going  to  their 
opinions.  Then,  he  was  an  independent  thinker  and  actor.  Then, 
he  was  not  politic.  If,  since  his  death,  it  be  ascertained  that  he 
has  exerted  a  vast  influence  over  human  thought  and  action, — if 
now  he  reigns  king  in  the  hearts  of  multitudes  of  men, — then  it  is 
possible  to  live  a  great  life  and  die  a  great  death  icithout  a  policy. 
If  devout  men  see  in  the  life  of  Jesus  something  supematurally 
beautiful,  we  shall  find,  in  an  nndogmatic  study  of  his  career,  the 
thing  of  all  things  most  beautifiil,  pure  naturalness. 

It  would  seem  from  the  histor}-  that  during  his  attendance  upon 
the  Passover  Jesus  did  many  wonderful  things,  even  performed 

miracles,  which  convinced  many  that  he  was  the 

oes  many  won-  ^^j^ggj^jj      They  Seemed  more  willing  to  trust  him 

derfol  works.  -^  ,  ^,  <•  •      j 

than  he  was  to  trust  them.     His  mtimate  fnend 

and  biographer  says  that  it  was  because  "he  knew  what  was  in 
man."  He  knew  that  in  the  fervor  of  recent  conviction  they 
might  soon  form  a  mob  of  excited  adherents,  whose  fidelity  could 
not  endure  the  test  which  such  teaching  and  discipline  as  he  would 
enforce  would  bring  upon  them.  He  was  in  no  haste.  lie  came 
to  plant  principles  and  demonstrate  truths,  not  to  crente  factions 
and  secure  partisans. 


CHAPTEE    II. 


NICODEMUS. 


Jesus  was  a  light  that  could  not  be  hid.     The  more  thoughtful 

had  begun  to  study  the  phenomena  of  his  character  and  career. 

Even  members  of  the  Sanhedrim  began  to  take 

.  I     r     T  r     Nicodemus.   John 

interest  in  his  teachnigs, — most  with  teelmgs  ot  ^j 

aversion,  a  few  with  solicitude,  and  one  at  least 
with  kindly  inclination.  That  one  was  Nicodemus.  There  must 
have  been  others  whose  observation  had  led  them  to  desire  to 
know  more  of  Jesus.  Such  was  Joseph  of  Ai'imathea,  who  be- 
came a  disciple,  "  but  secretly  for  fear  of  the  Jews."  (See  John 
xix.  38.)  How  many  more  men  of  mark  were  in  this  circle  we 
have  no  means  of  knowing.  John  says  (xii.  42)  that  "  among  the 
chief  rulers  many  believed  on  him."  Of  these  we  take  Nicode- 
mus as  at  once  the  leading  spirit  and  the  representative  man. 

He  was  a  Pharisee  as  to  faith,  and  a  member  of  the  Sanhedrim 
as  to  position.  He  had  all  the  traditionary  influence  of  his  sect 
and  his  ofiice  to  bind  him  to  propriety  and  conservatism.  He  was 
not  young.  The  Talmud*  speaks  of  a  rich  Sanliedrist,  called 
Nicodemus  Bonai,  who,  at  a  great  age,  was  alive  at  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem.  There  are  no  means  of  identifying  this  man 
with  the  Nicodemus  spoken  of  by  John,  but  there  is  no  reason,  so 
far  as  I  know,  why  he  may  not  have  been  the  same. 

This  Nicodemus  came  to  Jesus  by  night.  The  interview  is  re- 
ported condensedly  by  John,  but  is  exceedingly  interesting,  as 
showing  how  ready  Jesus  was  to  set  forth  the  most  profound  doc- 
trines to  any  willing  mind,  even  when  that  mind  is  still  held  in 
the  bondage  of  old  prejudices.     Timid,  afraid  of  the  ban  of  his 


*  The  Nicodemus  of  the  Talmudists 
is  called  "  son  of  Gorion,"  is  represented 
as  one  of  the  three  richest  men  in  Jeru- 
salem, living  at  the  time  of  the  destruc- 
tion of   Jerusalem,  being  then  among 


the  disciples  of  Jesus.  Olshaxisen  re- 
fers to  Sanhedr.,  fol.  xliii.  1;  Aboth 
Rab.  Nathan,  cap.  6 ;  Tract  Gittin, 
fol.  Ivi.  1,  etc 


134 


FIRST  AND    SECOND  PASSOVKR    IX   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


caste,  holding  tenaciously  to  his  prejudices  by  force  of  habit,  yet 
candid,  loving  truth,  seeking  a  sure  footing  cautiously,  he  felt 
himself  bound,  as  all  honest  minds  are  bound,  to  give  a  fair  hearing 
to  every  new  word  and  an  impartial  examination  to  all  new  claims. 

Jesus  had  not  yet  classed — as  he  did  afterward — the  hypoci-ite 
with  the  infidel,  the  Pharisee  with  the  Sadducee.  lie  had  not  re- 
peated with  emphasis  the  denunciations  of  John 

esus  regar  ed  ^.j^^  Baiitist.  But  his  Style  was  not  such  as  would 
with  mistrust.  ^   .  i       t>i       •  ■,     ^  ,.  ■, 

be  pleasing  to  the  1  harisees,  and  they  did  not 
know  how  far  he  was  to  advance  his  claims.  They  regarded  him, 
therefore,  with  mistrust.  Nicodemus  saw  more  in  him  than  most 
of  the  other  Pharisees  perceived.  Just  such  was  the  posture  of 
his  mind  when  he  determined  for  truth's  sake  to  have  an  intei-- 
view  with  Jesus,  but  for  the  sake  of  prudence  to  have  it  at  night. 

Let  us  now  examine  the  narrative  in  John  in  the  true  historic 
spirit,  laying  aside  the  dogmatic  jtrejudices  of  education. 

Nicodemus   calls   Jesus  "Pabbi,"  the  title  of   respect  to   an 

acknowledged  teacher.     His  opening  speech  is  complimentary, 

but  cautious.     It  gives  a  sufficient  reason  for  his 

Address    of     coming,  and  implies  a  careful  ffuardinfic  ajrainst 
NicodemuB.  .  *^  *■  ^  »      o 

admitting  too  much.     "  We  know  that  from  God 

thou  hast  come — a  Teacher^''  AVho  are  "  ^^'d  "  ,^  It  was  not  con- 
fined to  himself.*  There  would  have  been  no  propriety  in  such 
stately  official  mode  of  expression  in  a  secret  nocturnal  interview. 
He  was  representing  others  as  well  as  himself,  what  a  very  few 
othere,  like  Joseph  of  Arimathaja,  were  ready  to  admit,  and  what 
Nicodemus  thought  the  whole  Sanhedrim,  at  that  time,  in  their 
heai'ts,  believed.  Here  is  a  discovery  of  the  impression  ali-eady 
made  by  Jesus  upon  the  most  elevated  and  thoughtful  minds  of 
his  nation.  "We  know  this  much,  that  thou  hast  come  from 
God — that  thou  hast  a  divine  mission  to  the  people — as  a  teacher." 
Only  that,  no  more,  is  admitted.  They  are  not  carried  away  by 
any  enthusiasm  in  his  behalf,  but  they  are  stimulated  to  learn 
what  he  can  teach  them.  He  must  not  be  elated  by  this  admis- 
sion, for  it  is  qualified  by  a  logical  reason:  "for  no  man  can  do 
the  wonderful  things  thoii  doest,  if  God  be  not  with  him." 


*  It  is  noticed  that  the  phrase  ' '  we 
know"  is  the  current  chanicteristic 
formula  of  the  proud  Pharisues,  who 
held  the  key  of  knowledge  for  them- 


selves and  withheld  it  from  the  common 
people.  We  shall  meet  it  frequently  aa 
we  proceed. 


NICODEMUS.  135 

To  what  does  all  this  amount?     Not  very  much.     It  implies 
that  while  the  chief?  had  made  no  lii^^h  estimate  of  John,  be- 
cause John  had  performed  no  miracle,  Jesus  had 
made  a  profound  impression   upon  the  rulers:        Caution      of 

,  .        ,    .  .      Nicodemus's  ad- 

one  is  sent,  or  comes,  to  exannne  his  claims  pri-  ^^^^ 
vately  and  dispassionately.  lie  says  "  we,"  very 
genei-ally  perhaps,  as  Stier  thinks,  to  shelter  himself  from  express- 
ing kis  own  convictions,  and  so  as  to  be  able  to  draw  back  if 
necessary :  "  thou  hast  come  "  is  in  Greek  a  pointer  to  ep^ofj^evo'?, 
the  "  Coming  One,"  and  if  Nicodemus  used  a  precisely  parallel 
word  in  Hebrew  or  Aramaic — in  one  of  which  dialects  the  con- 
versation must  have  been  maintained — he  mio-ht  have  seemed  to 
involve  a  recognition  of  the  Messianic  mission  of  Jesus  ;  which 
recognition,  however,  is  immediately  withdrawn  in  the  word 
"  teacher," — the  Messiah  expected  by  the  Jews  being  not  teacher 
but  H)iff.  lie  further  proceeds  to  thin  out  his  address  by  the 
phrase,  "  if  God  be  not  with  him." 

A  great  fall  from  the  almost  promise  of  recognizing  tlie  Mes- 
siah !  He  is  so  afraid  of  making  that  acknowledgment  of  the 
Messiahship  of  Jesus  that  he  stops  short  and  fails  to  ask  a  question 
as  to  the  coming  kingdom  of  God.  lie  had  long  felt  that  the 
heavenly  kingdom  should  come,  and  must  be  near,  in  spiritual 
power.  His  whole  people  were  ardently  longing  for  it.  From 
that  lofty  expectation  he  drops  down  to  the  idea  of  a  mere  science, 
learning,  a  school,  the  founder  being  a  mere  teacher  !  The  idea 
was  not  Jewish.  Those  wlio  had  come  from  God  were  prophets, 
foretelling  and  denouncing,  or  announcing,  not  teaching.  This 
scientific  Saiihedrist  begins  to  blunder  as  soon  as  he  mingles  the 
spiritual  and  the  material.     A  teacher  working  miracles  indeed ! 

And  yet  a  sincere  desire  to  knoNv  the  truth  must  have  been  at 
the  bottom  of  this  man's  heart.  The  mysterious  young  Rabbi 
recognized  this,  as  his  whole  treatment  shows. 
As  soon  as  Nicodemus  had  "  laboriously  achieved  ®P  ^  ° 
his  introductory  speech,"  as  Stier  describes  it,  or,  as  I  think, 
paused  from  mere  confusion,  having  given  no  good  reason  for  his 
visit,  Jesus  made  a  reply,  which  is  the  first  and  perhaps  the  most 
dogmatic  of  his  utterances.  He  lets  down  upon  the  mind  of 
Nicodemus  the  weight  of  the  central  truth  of  his  system,  veiled 
in  figurative  language.  Looking  down  into  the  eyes  and  heart  of 
the  learned  Pharisee,  he  says  solemnly:  "  Verily,  verily,  I  say  to 


136  FmST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

you,  rf  any  man  he  not  horn  anew,  he  cannot  enjoy  the  Mngdom 
of  Godr 

Jesus  knew  the  general  expectation  of  the  approaching  king- 
dom. Nicodemus  shared  it.  He  liad  appn  >ached  Jesus  to  ascer- 
tain, it  would  seem,  what  connection  existed  between  his  miracles 
and  liis  doctrine.  The  miracles  seemed  phenomena  which  de- 
clared the  nearness  of  the  kingdom  of  the  Messiah  which  Dam'el 
(vii.  14)  had  taught  him  and  his  nation  to  expect.  As  a  Jew,  a 
Pharisee,  a  ruler,  he  had  prescriptive  riglit  to  a  place  in  this 
kingdom ;  but  it  was  quite  pri^bable  that  this  young  teacher  could 
give  bim  instruction  as  to  the  best  way  to  enter,  to  see,  to  enjoy 
the  Messianic  kingdom. 

The  general  drift  of  this  sudden  speech  seems  to  be  this :  Yon 
have  (;ome  to  me  as  if  /t'^/vm?^ could  do  everything;  but  it  is  not 
by  new  learning,  liut  by  new  life,  that  one  is  to 
eanrngo  is  gjj|.gj.  Q^d's  kiuirdom  ;  and  a  new  life  comes  bv  a 
new  birth.  Luther  paraphrases  it  thus :  "  My 
teaching  is  not  of  doing  and  leaving  undone,  but  of  a  change  in 
the  man:  it  is  not  ne\o  v.^orJcs  done,  but  a  neui  man  to  do  them ; 
not  another  mode  of  living  only,  but  a  new  birth."  He  takes 
Xicodemus  down  from  the  lofty  platform  of  his  official  rank  arid 
Pharisaic  self-sufficiency,  and  throws  him  out  among  the  multi- 
tude of  men  by  telling  him  that  not  rank  and  learning  will  save, 
l)ut  any  man,  whoever  he  may  be,  who  has  not  had  the  experience 
wliich  Jesus  indicates  by  the  phrase  yevvrjOP]  avwQev,  "l)e  born 
afresh,"  such  a  man  cannf)t  understand  hy  ci'perlenc'ing  and  enjoy- 
ing (for  such  the  word  Ihdv  means)  the  kingdom  of  God. 

Xico<k'mus  would  have  received  no  shock  from  the  idea  of  the 
new  birth  if  it  had  been  spoken  of  the  proselytes  from  the  lieathen, 
who  stood  at  the  door  of  Judaism  aj)plying  for  admission.  AVlien 
BU(rli  a  one  was  baptized  he  was,  in  the  Pabbinical  view,  "  sicut 
parvulus  jam  natus,"  as  a  new-bom  babe.  But  the  sliock  lay  in 
the  sweeping  statement  which  turned  all  the  Jews — rulei*s,  Phari- 
sees, Scribes — out-d<x)i*8,  to  seek  admittance  afresh. 

The  word  avcudev  in  this  conversation  has  been   a  puzzle  to 

critics.     .\nd   it  is  the  impoi-tant  word,  tm  our  understanding  of 

wliich    M'ill   depend   our  comprehension   of   this 

spcccli  of   Jesus.     It   is   to   be    recollected    tliat 

Jesus  sp(»ke    in   tbe   Aramaic   tongue  most  ])robably,  and  John 

records  in  (ireek  tbe  conversation  whicli  Jesus  had  reported  tc 


NICODEMTS.  137 

him.  Xow,  for  the  Greek  word  is  there  a  corresponding  word  in 
the  Aramaic,  with  a  double  meaning  f  If  so,  then  the  more 
remote  meaning  might  throw  light  npon  the  word,  showing  that 
it  meant  of  God,  as  the  kingdom  of  God  is  mentioned,  or  that  it 
bore  the  meaning  which  the  Apostolical  usage  subsequently  closely 
connected  with  the  being  born  again,  namely,  from  heaven,  e'/c 
Tov  ovpavov,  so  that  avwOev  might  be  sj'nonymed  with  ovpavoOev. 
But  Grotius  has  shown  that  there  is  no  such  word  in  the  Aramaic. 
We  must,  therefore,  give  the  closest  possible  translation  of  avcoOev, 
and  that  must  mean  "  anew,"  or  "  afresh,"  or  "  entirely  anew,"  or 
"  from  the  beginning."  Xicodemus  makes  a  reply  which  shows 
that  he  so  understood  it,  namely,  as  a  totally  new  birth  experi- 
enced by  one  at  his  maturity.  This  is  not  conclusive,  as  Nico- 
demus  might  have  mismiderstood  Jesus,  but  it  is  corroborative, 
as  it  gets  exactly  the  most  natural  meaning  of  the  word. 

In  all  these  studies  of  Jesus  we  are  not  concerned  to  learn 
what  the  official  expounders,  commentators,  and  preachers  liave 
agreed  is  to  be  the  conventional  interpretation  of  the  words  of 
Jesus,  but  to  discover  by  calm  and  patient  research  into  the 
original  documents  what  this  remarkable  Teacher  really  did 
mean.  We  are  not,  however,  to  despise  the  opinions  of  others, 
especially  when  they  seem  formed  upon  impartial  examination. 
In  this  spirit  we  are  to  encounter  another  phrase,  namely,  "  the 
kingdom  of  GodP 

It  may  be  noticed  here  that  it  is  not  usual  with  John.  Indeed  it 
does  not  occur  in  his  gospel  outside  this  conversation.  This  is  inci- 
dental evidence  of  the  fidelity  with  which  John  reports  the  conversa- 
tion, not  changing  any  phrase,  however  it  differ  from  his  own  modes 
of  thought  and  expression,  as  any  critic  must  see  that  this  does. 

We  know  that  the  Jews  looked  for  a  temporal  kingdom  of 
material  splendor,  in  which  Jehovah's  Messiah  should  reign,  and 
which  should  have  sanctity  from  the  Divine  Presence  and  won- 
derful spiritual  manifestr.tions,  as  it  should  have  paramount 
authority  from  its  political  predominance.  Now,  just  as  a  Jew 
was  e-ross  and  materialistic  in  his  tendencies,  this  kinfrdom  fijj- 
ured  itself  to  him  on  its  earthly  and  material  side ;  and  just  as  he 
was  devout  and  spiritual  in  his  tendencies,  this  kingdom  presented 
itself  to  him  as  of  the  soul  and  spirit  of  a  man,  with  heavenly 
characteristics.  Nicodemus  seems  to  have  had  very  mixed  ideas 
of  the  kinsdom. 


138  FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN    THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

"The  kingdom  of  God"  must   reasonably  mean  as  much  an 
tliis  :  a  government  in  which  God  is  king,  which,  being  an  ab- 
straction, we  can  concretely  think  of,  so  far  aa 

The  kingdom  of  ,  .  -,■,■,  ■,  , 

Q^j  each  man  is  concerned,  only  as  the  surrender  of 

that  man  to  the  rule  of  God,  the  total  removal  of 
rebellion  out  of  his  heart,  the  destruction  of  the  principle  and 
spirit  of  rebellion  from  his  soul,  so  that  freely  and  affectionately 
is  he  loyal  to  God, — a  spiritual  change  so  great  that  it  is  quite 
equivalent  to  a  new  creation,  a  new  birth  into  a  new  life  ;  and 
then,  as  two  or  more  come  to  be  in  that  state,  we  have  a  com- 
munity bound  to  God  by  the  allegiance  of  love,  and  to  one  another 
by  the  loving  temper  which  comes  into  the  heart  when  it  yields 
its  will  to  the  will  of  God. 

Xow,  if  we  have  really  found  not  only  a  reasonable  but  a 
probable  meaning  of  this  phrase,  as  Jesus  used  it,  it  will  follow 
that  all  his  conversation  with  Xicodemus  and  all  his  subsequent 
discourses  will  consist  with  this  theory,  and  that  he  directed  the 
lal>oi-s  of  his  life  to  the  forming  upon  earth  just  such  a  body  of 
loving  subjects  to  the  law  of  love  and  to  the  Lord  of  love.  If 
this  shall  fail  to  appear  as  we  evolve  the  biography  of  Jesus,  then 
have  we  failed  of  reaching  his  meanino;.     Let  us  see. 

The  reply  of  Kicodemus  was,  "  How  is  a  man  able  to  be  l)orn, 

being  old  ?     Can  he  enter  a  second  time  into  his  mother's  womb 

and  be  born?"     If  this  be  taken  as  proof  that 

go  .  ic  -  ]N^jgQ(}Q,^-^^^g  understood  Jesus  as  meanin2:  flcshlv 

uemus  8  reply.  _  »  " 

birth,  it  would  simply  prove  him  a  fool,  and  with 
such  an  idiot  Jesus  could  have  had  no  conversation.  It  is  sur- 
prising how  generally  this  has  been  supposed  to  be  the  meaning 
of  Nicodemus.  But  let  the  reader  reflect  that  this  was  no  child, 
but  a  man  advanced  in  years,  holding  a  high  office,  having  a 
trained  mind,  being  skilful  in  detecting  the  meaning  of  speech, 
learned  in  the  Scriptures  of  his  religion,  which  must  have  made 
his  mind  familiar  with  the  couching  of  deepest  spiritual  significa- 
tion in  figurative  language.  He  knew  that  Jesus  meant  a  rebuke 
and  an  instruction.  The  rebuke  was  this :  Ton,  Kicodemus, 
have  come  to  me  as  to  a  more  teacher  to  be  told  something  new 
about  the  kingdom  of  God;  I  tell  you  this,  that  you  cannot  be 
instr\icted  into  that  kingdom,  schooled  into  it,  educated  into  it. 
You  (;annot  see  the  kin<;(l(»ni  of  God  from  afar.  You  cannot  see 
't  with  your  natural  senses.     You  must  be  spiritually  re-created, 


NICODEMUS.  139 

must  have  not  exactly  a  palingenesis,  being  born  again,  but  a 
totally  new,  fresh  birth  into  a  life  no  emotions  of  which  you  have 
ever  felt,  and  no  function  of  wliich  you  have  ever  discharged. 

The  reply  of  Nicodemus  is  in  the  disputatious  temper  of  the 
learned.  It  ran  somehow  thus  :  Is  that  your  view  of  "  the  king- 
dom of  God  "  ?  If  so,  it  throws  all  pur  mere  Scriptural  learning, 
ecclesiastical  position,  and  supposed  prescriptive  rights  to  the 
winds.  But,  young  man,  you  are  undertaking  a  most  fruitless 
mission.  Sucli  spiritual  fresh-generation  is  wholly  impracticable. 
It  is  easier  to  effect  physical  changes  than  spiritual.  It  is  easier 
to  create  a  body  than  a  soul.  But  you  know  that  no  old  man 
can  repeat  the  process  of  his  physical  birth :  it  will  be  more 
clearly  impracticable  for  him  to  have  a  new  spiritual  birth. 

It  was  not  that  Nicodemus  failed  so  much  to  %uiderstand  Jesus 

as  to  helieve  him.     He  saw  the  meaning,  but  attempted  to  confute 

the  proposition  of  Jesus  by  a  kind  of  reductio 

Lack  of  belief 
ad  absurdum.     Mcodemus  answered  as  many  a 

learned  man  answers  when  some  new  phase  of  truth  is  presented 
which  he  cannot  fail  to  see,  but  which  he  cannot  embrace  because 
he  has  not  the  moral  strength — indeed,  who  has  ? — to  throw  down 
all  the  prejudices  of  his  education. 

The  response  of  Jesus  is :  "I  most  assuredly  declare  unto  you, 
if  one  be  not  born  of  water  and  the  spirit  he  cannot  enter  the 
kingdom  of  God.     What  is  born  of  the  flesh  is 
flesh ;  what  is  born  of  the  spirit  is  spirit."     The 
baptism  of  proselytes  was  considered  a  new  crea- 
tion, so  that  old  relationships  were  so  totally  broken  as  to  permit 
a  convert  to  marry  his  own  sister  without  crime.     Nicodemus 
knew  what  baptism  was — that  of  the  Jewish  i-itual  and  that  of 
John.     He  and  the  other  Pharisees  had   despised  the  baptism 
of  John  because  it  was  a  baptism  of  repentance.     Jesus  must 
have  known  that  the  mind  of  Nicodemus  would  revert  to  baptism 
at  once.     The  language  must,  then,  have  some  reasonable  inter- 
pretation consistent  with  that  fact.     Baptism  was  known  by  Xico- 
demus  and  by  Jesus  to  be  a  mere  external  rite,  a  cleansing  of 
the  outward  man,  but  as  intended  to  symbolize  an  internal  puri- 
fication, else  it  were  a  senseless  ceremony.     The  religions  of  the 
world  had  aimed  at  the  ref()rmation  of  the  external  man.     Juda- 
ism especially  did  so,  more  especially  Phariseeism.     It  was  water 
Spirit  was  needed.     There  must  come  a  spiritual  new  creation. 


14:0  FmST   AND    SECOND    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

Then,  in  reply  to  IS'icodeinus's  reductio  ad  absurduni^  Jesua 
makes  statement  of  a  well-known  principle  in  pliysiolofijj  and 
psychology,  that  that  which  begets  imparts  its  nature  to  that 
which  is  begotten.  If  a  man  could  go  into  his  mother's  womb 
and  be  horn  again  he  would  be  horn  the  same,  and  nothing  would 
come  of  this.  If  tlie  Spirit  of  the  Almighty  God  make  the  new 
spiritual  creation  there  is  no  longer  any  difficulty  to  be  objected. 

Did  he  mean  the   highest  spiritual   activity  in  the  universe, 

namely,  the  Spirit   of  God  ?     In  the  original  the  word  Trvevfia 

is  used  where  we  have  "  spirit "   and  where  we 

Spirit  and  wind.    ■■  u      •     i  55    •       ^i  t?      t  i 

have  wind  m  the  common  Jtiinorlisli  vei*sion, 
which  is  quite  accurate  in  botli  cases,  notwithstanding  the  uncriti- 
cal suggestion  that  the  word  should  be  translated  by  "spirit"  or 
"  wind  "  throughout  the  passage.  We  know  that  the  word  means 
both  spirit  and  wind,  and,  if  there  be  nothing  to  the  contrary, 
should  be  translated  by  one  word  or  the  other  in  any  passage, 
unless  a  grammatical  reason  appears  to  the  contrary.  Such  rea- 
son does  occur  here  in  the  word  ovra)<;,  translated  "  so  " — "  so  is 
every  one,"  etc.  This  means  comparison,  and  comparison  involves 
at  least  two  ideas. 

If  Nicodemus  had  had  time  to  reflect  he  might  have  recol- 
lected that  water  cannot  produce  water ;  dead  flesh,  a  body  ^^ath- 
out  a  soul,  has  no  power  to  procreate ;  spirit,  life,  must  be  in 
man  or  woman  before  fatherhood  and  motherhood — so  all  gen- 
eration, or  all  creation,  strictly  speaking,  comes  from  the  Spirit 
of  God,  that  Spirit  being  the  real  primal  creator.  That  seems  the 
reason  why  water,  having  been  alluded  to,  is  not  n^entioned 
again  nor  pressed  ;  as  if  he  had  said,  "  You  may  have  a  body,  you 
may  have  a  soul,  you  may  have  conformed  outwardly  and  mended 
your  external  life,  as  baptism  or  water  indicates ;  all  very  well, 
but  there  must  he  a  fresh  creation  of  the  soul." 

In  the  report  of  this  conversation,  Alford  *  has  called  attention 
to  the  use  of  the  neuter  in  the  original  to  fyejevvrjfievov  (that 
which  is  begotten  or  born)  as  denoting  the  universal  application 
of  this  truth,  and  Bcngel  f  to  the  same  grammatical  fact,  as 
denoting  the  very  first  stamina  or  groundwork  of  new  life,  before 
sex  can  be  predicated  of  the  embryo.  The  reception  of  spirit 
into  this  merest  flesh  gives  the  first  impulse  of  life,  from  which 


*  Greek  Testament,  in  loco.  \      f  Orammar,  in  loco. 


NTCODEMUS. 


141 


everything  else  is  determined.     The  effect  of  the  loftiest  spiritual 
actor  is  to  elevate  and  spiritualize  the  very  spirit  of  man. 

Perhaps  at  this  moment  Jesus  and  Mcodemus  heard  the  breath- 
ing of  the  night-wind. 

And  then  was  adduced  the  most  natural  possible  illustration 
from  the  physical  world  in  the  case  of  the  wind — most  natural 
because  in  the  language  which  Jesus  spoke,  as 
well  as  in  that  in  which  John  reported,  the  same  ^  rd  ° 
word  means  wind  and  spirit.  In  Ecclesiastes 
(xi.  5)  it  is  used  as  an  image  of  the  inexplicable,  and  in  Xeno- 
phon  *  as  a  symbol  of  the  Deity,  whose  essence  is  invisible  and 
who  is  to  be  traced  only  by  his  operations.f  The  points  of  re- 
semblance are  striking.  The  motion  of  the  spirit  of  a  man  is 
more  nearly  resistless  than  his  body,  and  the  spirit  of  God  must 
be  wholly  resistless  when  it  moves.  The  results  of  the  operations 
of  the  spirit  of  man  are  perceptible,  and  so  are  those  of  God's 
spirit.  The  mode  of  operation,  in  each  case,  is  totally  incompre- 
hensible. In  these  three  particulars  the  resemblance  is  striking. 
The  tohence,  the  where,  the  whither,  in  each  case,  are  unknown. 
We  can  examine  only  results. 

All  this  speech  of  Jesus  should  have  shown  Nicodemus  that 
Jesus  taught  that  for  entrance  into,  and  enjoyment  of,  the  king- 
dom of  God,  a  man  needs  something,  the  production  of  which 
cannot  be  traced,  as  in  the  case  of  culture  or  education  of  any 
kind,  and  is  as  necessary  as  natural  birth,  in  which  spirit  comes 
to  join  flesh,  and  is  as  incomprehensible,  l^o  man  understands 
his  birth ;  every  man  knows  that  he  was  born,  and  is  conscious 
that  he  is  alive.  Ko  man  understands  the  coming  of  the  Spirit 
of  God  into  his  spirit,  but  he  must  know  that  it  has  come. 

Nicodemus  replied,  "  How  can  these  things  be  !  "     It  is  not  a 

question  for  information.     It  is  the  exclamation 

p  ■  TT     1        1  •    1    •    i  L     •  Surprise  of  Ni- 

01  surprise,     lie  has  been  carried  into  mysteries 

^  *'  codemus. 

of  the  soul.  Jesus  answered,  "  Art  thou  a  teacher 
of  Israel,  and  hast  thou  had  no  experience  of  these  great  spiritual 
changes  ? "  This  is  a  humiliating  rebuke  to  his  arrogant  excla- 
mation. He  ought  to  have  known  such  scriptures  as  Psalm  li. 
12  ;  Ezek.  xviii.  31 ;  xxxvi.  24—28  ;  Jeremiah  xxxi.  33  ;  Zechariah 
siii.  1 ;  and  he  ought  to  have  had  spiritual  experiences  of  his 

*  Memordb.  iv.  3,  14.  |  f  Tholuck,  in  loco. 


142 


FIRST   AND    SECOND    PASSOVER   IN   TIHE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


own.  Then  Jesus  began  to  teach  him.  "  I  solemnly  declare  unto 
you  that  we  *  speak  what  we  know,  and  testify  what  we  have 
Been,  and  yet  je  receive  not  our  testimony." 

The  plural  form  has  no  special  significance,  unless  Jesus  in- 
tended to  give  a  large  and  solemn  dignity  to  the  utterance,  or  to 
set  his  "  we  know  "  against  Nicodemns's  "  we  know."  The  affir- 
mation is  of  positive  pei-sonal  knowledge  on  the  side  of  Jesus,  and 
the  allegation  is  of  an  unbelieving  rejection  upon  the  part  of 
Nicodemus  and  the  Jews.  Jesus  adds:  "If  I  have  shown  you 
things  of  the  earth,  and  you  believe  not,  how  can  you  believe  if  ] 
show  you  things  of  heaven  ?  Xo  one  has  as(;ended  into  heaven 
but  he  tl  at  came  down  from  heaven,  namely,  the  Son  of  Man, 
whose  residence  is  in  heaven." 

Here  Jesus  makes  claims  for  himself  of  the  most  extraordinary 
character.  lie  affirms  himself  to  be  a  personal  witness  of  the 
things  which  are  invisible  to  men,  all  the  heaven- 
ly things.  He  asserts  his  own  pre-existence.  He 
asserts  his  coming  into  the  world  on  a  mission. 
He  asserts  that  his  real  residence  is  in  heaven;  that  where  he  is  is 
heaven.  There  is  no  evading  this  meaning.  He  intended  Nico- 
demus  to  understand  him  so.  We  have  a  phrase  in  English  to 
this  effect — "the  words  were  calculated  to  make  a  certain  impres- 
sion,"— meaning  that  such  would  be  a  hearer's  natural  interpreta- 
tion, although  such  meaning  might  ha^-e  been  tt)tally  absent  from 
the  mind  of  the  speaker.  But  here  we  go  further  than  that,  and 
say  that  Jesus  meant  to  convey  what  the  words  are  calculated  to 
convey.  He  was  too  wise,  Nicodemus  was  too  important  a  lis- 
tener, the  convei'sation  was  on  too  solemn  a  theme  to  allow  the 
slightest  carelessness  of  diction.  He  must  have  given  it  with  pre- 
cision to  his  biographer  John,  and  John  must  have  been  most 
careful  in  the  report,  for  this  is  altogether  the  most  important  oc- 
casion of  speech  which  Jesus  ever  liad.  The  point  in  his  life  and 
the  character  of  his  listener  made  it  t/ie  occasion  to  render  the 
most  careful  version  of  his  doctrine.     A\niether  his  doctrine  was 


Jesus   claims 
pre-existence. 


*  It  may  entertain  the  reader  to  see 
how  much  learned  difference  there  has 
been  about  this  simple  use  of  the 
plural  form.  EuthjTnius,  a  Byzantine 
cominrntntor  of  the  twelfth  century, 
Bays  that  it  means  Ilimsdf  and  his 
Father;  Bengel,  JT iniKelf  and  the  Jldy 


S]nrit;  Beza  and  Tholuck,  Ffimself  and 
the  Prophets  ;  Luther  andKuapp,  Him- 
self and  John  the  Baptist  ;  Meyer,  Him- 
self and  Teachers  like  JJirn  ;  Lange  and 
Wesley,  AR  who  are  born  of  the  Spirit  ; 
while  De  Wette  and  Liickc  regard  it  aa 
only  a  rhetorical  plural. 


NICODEMUS.  143 

true  or  not,  it  is  not  our  purjiose  now  to  decide ;  we  are  simply 
striviuff  to  ascertain  what  he  said  and  what  he  meant. 

It  must  be  remarked  that  Jesus  claims  another  thing:  that 
what  he  says  must  be  helieved,  not  known  or  understood,  because 
he  says  it.     lie  flings  away  the  title  of  teacher, 
which  Kicodemus  bestowed.    lie  is  the  Heavenly    ,.  . 
Assertor  of  heavenly  things  and  speaks  with  par- 
amount authority. 

And  Jesus  made  this  solemn  statement  to  Nicodemus :  "  As 
Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  in  the  wilderness,  it  is  absolutely 
necessary  that  thus  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted,  that  every  man 
trusting  in  him  should  have  perpetual  life.  For  God  loved  the 
world  so,  that  he  gave  His  son,  the  only  begotten,  that  every  one 
who  trusts  in  him  may  obtain  perpetual  life  and  not  perish.  For 
God  sent  not  His  Son  into  the  world  that  he  should  damn  (or 
condemn)  the  world,  but  that  the  world  might  be  saved  through 
him.  He  who  trusts  in  him  is  not  damned  (or  condemned) ;  but 
he  who  trusts  not  is  damned  already,  because  he  has  not  confided 
in  the  name  of  the  only  begotten  Son  of  God.  But  this  is  the 
damnation  (condemnation),  that  light  has  entered  the  world,  and 
men  have  preferred  the  darkness  to  the  light  because  their  deeds 
were  evil ;  for  every  one  who  does  vilely  hates  the  light,  and  shuns 
it,  lest  his  deeds  should  be  detected  and  convicted.  But  he  that 
does  the  truth  comes  to  the  light,  that  his  works  may  be  mani- 
fested that  they  are  done  in  God." 

Here  is  an  open  statement  by  Jesus  that  he  knows — he  is  con- 
sciously positive — that  he  is  the  "  only  begotten  "  Son  of  God, 
whatever  that  may  mean.    John  must  have  receiv- 
ed the  word  from  Jesus  himself,  and  it  can  only      ,  .  ^^ 

'  "      claim, 

mean  a  more  mtense  nearness  to  God  than  it  is  pos- 
sible for  language  to  convey.  The  word  tells  us  something  which 
we  can  understand,  and,  as  is  often  the  case  with  profoundest  think- 
ers, intimates  more.  We  see  the  ocean  out  to  the  horizon,  but  the 
soul  feels  that  the  ocean  stretches  far  beyond.  Not  simply  as 
Eugene  but  as  Monogene  Jesus  was  known  in  the  spiritual  world. 

He  says  still  further,  that  Moses  lifted  up  the  serpent  on  the 
pole  in    the  wilderness,  as   related   in   Numbers 
xxi.,  as  a  symbol  of  himself,  whether  Moses  so    ^^^^^  ^''^*  '^''°" 
understood    it  or  not.      He    claims   tliis   act   as 
typical.     So  he  was  to  be  crucified.     It  was  a  necessity.      He,  as 


144  FmST   AKD   SECOND   PASSOVER   IM   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

harmless  as  the  Nechustan  to  which  Moses  directed  the  eves  of 
the  petjple  who  had  been  bitten  by  the  harmful  fiery  serpents, — 
he  7)iust  be  lifted  up  and  crucified.  And  that  accomplished, 
every  man  who  put  his  trust  in  that  crucified  Only  Begotten 
would  have  a  life  that  is  endless.  Here  are  the  two  main  doc- 
trines of  Jesus  clearly  set  forth:  1,  That  his  religion  was  not  to 
consist  in  any  intellectual  assent  to  any  statement  of  any  moral 
proposition,  but  in  a  personal  attachment  to  his  person  and  a  per- 
fect trust  ill  him,  •  and,  2,  That  no  caste,  prescriptive  right,  rank, 
learning,  or  nationality,  or  form  of  creed,  gave  title  to  place  in 
the  kingdom  of  God,  nor  did  any  or  all  of  these  exclude  any 
man. 

It  thus  threw  down  the  barriers  of  Jewish  prejudice  and  bigotry, 

and  let  the  nations,  the  Gentiles,  into  the  kingdom  of  God.     The 

Jews  believed  that  when  the  Messiah  came  he 

r:  r,  ^,,^'^    ^  ^"  ^    wouUl  "  daum  "  the    Gentiles,  and   make   them 
of  God  8  love.  ^  ' 

"  perish."  Jesus  told  Nicodemns  that  it  should  not 
be  so ;  that  God  loved  the  ?i?fl?'/<Z  in  sublime  catholicity  of  affec- 
tion, in  intensest  depth  of  devotion, — so  loved  it  as  to  give  his 
peculiar  one,  his  Monogene,  that  the  world  might  hold  to  him  as 
he  held  to  God,  that  thus  they  might  be  drawn  from  perdition 
and  lifted  into  the  light ;  that  salvation,  not  damnation,  was  the 
intent  of  his  coming,  and  that  salvation  lay  not  in  knowledge 
but  in  faith  ;  not  in  processes  of  intellection  and  ratiocination  but 
in  the  culture  of  the  human  heart  planted  in  the  divine  heart,  so 
tliat  a  man's  deeds  should  be  done  "  in  God." 

He  asserted  sal\ation  and  everlasting  life  to  be  by  trust  in 
himself  when  crucified. 

Whether  that  be  true  or  false,  Jesiis  taught  it. 

Whether  Xicodennis  believed  him  or  not,  we  shall  see  that 
Jesus  never  changed  the  essence  of  his  dogmatic  statement,  never 
developed  in  himself  thereafter,  but  told  all  out  at  the  beginning, 
and  demonstrated  not  only  his  belief  in  the  truth  of  what  he  said, 
but  the  verv  truth  of  his  savings,  as  far  as  it  is  conceivable  that 
any  human  being  could  render  such  demonstration,  by  any  possi- 
ble life  and  any  possible  death. 


CHAPTEE   III. 


FROM   JUD^A   TO    SAMARIA. 


Soivm  time  after  the  Passover  at  -which  he  had  performed  mir- 
acles, and  had  had  the  conference  with  Xicodemus,  Jesus  went 
with  his  disciples  into  the  rural  districts  of  Judaea, 
probably  along  the  western  side  of  the  Jordan,    ,  ^^*^-  ^y-;  ^^'^^ 
opposite  East  Bethany.     Precisely  how  long  after    ^^  ' ' 

the  Passover,  there  is  no  means  of  ascertaining. 
jSTor  do  we  know  how  he  was  engaged  in  that  interval.  That  he 
was  constantly  preparing  the  way  for  that  "  kingdom  of  God  "  of 
which  he  spoke  to  Nicodemus  there  can  be  no  doubt.  Upon  leav- 
ing the  metropolis  he  seems  to  have  been  engaged  in  active  min- 
istry, teaching  and  preaching,  while  his  disciples  baptized. 

The  question  naturally  arises,  why  Jesus  should  have  baptized  ? 
Perhaps  this  is  an  answer.   John  came  with  the  baptism  of  repent- 
ance, that  the  people  might  turn  from  .their  sins,       -rm,     j  ■, 
and  make  ready  to  receive  the  Messiah.^    Such  he    lowe/hisdLdples 
recognized  Jesus  to  be,  and  changed  his  style  of    to  baptize, 
preaching,  his  place  of  baptizing,  and  perhaps  his 
very  formula.    It  was  all  now  employed  in  concentrating  the  atten- 
tion of  the  people  on  Jesus  as  the  Messiah.     His  first  baptism  had 
respect  to  the  Coming  One ;  his  second,  to  the  One  Come.    Jesus  in 
the  beginning  of  his  ministry  may  have  had  a  baptism  unto  repent- 
ance administered  by  his  disciples,  because  the  question  now  had 
come  to  be  whether  the  nation  would  accept  him  as  the  Messiah, 
and  certainly  none  but  those  who  were  penitent  could.     If  they 
had  submitted  to  this  baptism  Jesus  would  have  instructed  them 
further  in  the  doctrines  of  the  kingdom  of  God. 

At  this  time  John  was  baptizing  in  ^Enon,  near  to  Salim.  It  is 
not  possible  to  fix  this  site  with  precision  positively.  John  (iii.  23) 
assigns  as  a  reason  for  the  selection  of  this  spot  that  there  were 
many  springs  there.  The  expression  in  John  iii.  26  fixes  it  as  on 
the  west  side  of  the  Jordan.  It  could  scarcely  have  been  imme- 
10 


146  FIEST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

diately  on  the  river,  else  the  statement  of  its  abundance  of  water 
would  be  superfluous.  Eusebius  and  Jerome  place  Salim  ei^lit 
Roman  miles  south  of  Scythopolis.  Dr.  Thomson,  who  visited 
Scythopolis,  now  called  Beisan,  represents  the  valley  as  abound- 
ing in  water,  and  as  being  one  of  tlie  most  fertile  in  Palestine. 
The  tradition  in  this  case  is  most  probably  correct.  Mi*  Van  de 
Velde  reports  finding  a  Mussulman  oratory,  called  Sheykh  Salim, 
near  a  heap  of  ruins  about  six  English  miles  south  of  Scythopolis 
and  two  west  of  Jordan,  -^non  would  seem  to  be  the  name  of 
the  district,  and  Sahm  of  the  town. 

Both  the  cousins  were  now  l)aptizing,  Jesus  at  the  Jordan  and 

John  in  Samaria.     It  would  seem  that  some  Jewish  proselyte  to 

Jesus  had  had  a  discussion  with  some  of  John's 

John  and  Jesus    (^jgcipies,  in  which  he  spoke  slightinglv  of  the 

baptizing.  r  .  rf-  1 

reformatory  baptism  of  their  master,  and  magni- 
fied the  discipleship  of  Jesus,  as  if  the  latter  had  rendered  the 
former  superfluous.  This  kindled  their  sectarian  and  partisan 
zeal.  Heated  with  this  discussion,  tliey  immediately  repaired  to 
John,  as  if  they  were  about  to  communicate  some  alarming  intel- 
ligence. "  Rabbi,  he  who  was  with  you  beyond  Jordan,  to  whom 
you  bore  witness,  behold  the  same  is  baptizing,  and  all  come  to 
him."  They  seem  to  have  regarded  the  act  of  Jesus  as  a  usurpa- 
tion of  the  place  and  the  functions  of  John.  The  very  phrase, 
"  to  whom  you  bore  witness,"  shows  that  the  disciples  felt  that 
John  was  superior  to  Jesus,  and  that  the  latter  derived  his  chief 
consideration  from  the  eulogy  pronounced  on  him  by  John. 

This  appeal  brings  forth  from  John  a  testimony  for  Jesus,  re- 
markable not  only  as  indorsing  the  new  teacher  in  the  most  em- 
phatic possible  way,  but  as  presenting  the  char- 
John's  self -con-    ^^^^^  Qf  j^^j^jj  jj^  ^fjg  j,^^,g^  sublime  possil)le  light, 
quest.  ,  „ 

There  is  nothing  grander  in  all  history  or  fiction. 

No  human  being  ever  more  thoroughly  conquered  his  own  spirit 
or  governed  his  whole  nature  by  a  sense  of  right  than  did  John 
the  Baptist. 

He  had  felt  stirring  in  him  his  wonderful  genius  for  religion, 
(jiider  what  he  believed  to  be  divine  impulses  he  attacked  the 
sins  and  follies  of  the  day  in  a  style  so  vigorous  as  to  attract  atten- 
tion to  himself.  TTc  had  been  the  most  popular  public  speaker  of 
his  generation.  He  had  swayed  the  masses  and  made  even  roy- 
alty quail  beneath  his  power.     lie  had  been  the  great  prophet, 


FROM  JTTDMA   TO    SAMAEIA. 


147 


and  had  enjoyed  all  the  consideration  which  that  position  gives  to 
any  man.  Now  he  sees  another,  one  who  had  come  to  him  f  oi 
baptism,  rising  into  pnblic  notice,  attracting  the  attention  of  the 
highest  ecclesiastics,  and,  as  his  own  disciples  inform  him,  with 
dra^ving  the  masses  from  himself.  There  is  not  a  particle  of  envj 
or  anger  or  jealousy.  The  news  which  saddens  his  weak  disciples 
gladdens  their  grand  and  glorious  master.  He  had  had  a  mission 
from  heaven.  He  had  fulfilled  that  mission.  His  work  was 
done.  There  was  nothing  lacking  but  some  movement  on  the 
part  of  the  Divine  Providence  which  should  as  clearly  point  out 
the  way  of  his  exit  as  it  had  designated  his  mode  of  entry,  or 
should  forcefully  withdraw  him  from  public  life.  He  had  not 
entered  of  his  own  accord ;  he  would  not  leave.  He  saw  and  felt 
that  he  was  declining.  He  held  himself  ready  to  be  extinguished. 
Grand  man!  There  never  was  any  other  human  being  more 
sorely  tempted ;  there  was  never  a  man  more  triumphant  over 
temptation.  Beside  one  such  noble  act  as  this  how  all  the  achieve- 
ments of  the  Nimrods  and  Alexanders,  the  Caesars  and  the  Napo 
leons  dwindle !  "  He  that  ruleth  his  own  spirit  is  greater  than  he 
that  taketh  a  city ! " 

His  final  testimony  to  Jesus  is  worth  considering.  I  sliall  attempt 
a  faithful  paraphrase.  He  first  lays  down  a  general  principle, 
and  then  applies  it  to  Jesus  and  himself : — A  man 
can  assume  nothing  which  heaven  does  not  give: 
Each  man  lias  his  mission :  To  take  anything 
else,  assume  any  other  charactei*,  is  wholly  useless :  It  would 
have  been  folly  in  me  to  attempt  to  play  the  part  of  the  Messiah : 
The  mask  would  have  fallen  at  last :  But  I  have  done  no  such 
thing;  for  I  knew  my  mission :  That  mission  is  at  the  beginning 
of  its  end  :  You  yourselves  must  bear  me  witness  that  I  said  that 
I  was  not  the  Anointed  of  Jehovah,  but  only  his  harlnnger:  Our 
ancient  Scriptures  have  represented  Humanity  as  the  Bride,  and 
the  Coming  Christ  as  the  Bridegroom,  the  desire  of  the  nations : 
I  am  only  the  paranymph,  the  Bridegroom's  Friend:*  I  rejoice 
in  the  occasion  which  gives  Humanity  to  the  arms  of  her  Lover 
and  Bridegroom :  The  sound  of  the  voice  of  the  Bridegroom  is 
to  me  the  assurance  that  my  mission,  so  far  from  being  a  failure. 


Jotin's  last  testi- 
mony for  Jesus. 


*  The  (pi\os  Tov  vvfi^tov,  friend  of  the 
bridegroom,  was  the  regular  organ  of 
communication  in  the  preliminaries  of 


the  maiTiage,  and  had  the  ordering  of 
the  marriage  feast. 


1-48  FIRST   AND    6EC0NT)   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

has  been  a  complete  success :  My  joy  is  therefore  full :  It  is 
right  aud  it  is  inevitable  that  he  increase,  and  equally  right  and 
inevitable  that  I  decrease! 

The  saying  of  John  the  Baptist  soon  had  a  tragic  fulfilment 
Across  the  river  from  where  he  was  baptizing  Herod  Antipas,  the 
tetrarch  of  Galilee  and  Perea,  had  a  frontier 
castle,  known  as  Machcerus,  to  which  he  seems  to 
have  di-a\vn  John,  as  it  would  appear  hardly  proper  even  among 
tyrants  that  he  should  have  gone  over  to  Samaria  for  his  victim, 
and  thus  invade  the  procuratorship  of  Pilate.  This  Herod  Anti- 
pas,  while  on  a  visit  to  Pome,  had  seduced  the  wife  of  his  half- 
brother  Philip,  and  brought  her  with  him  into  the  bounds  of  his 
tetrarchy.  Having  determined  to  make  her  his  wife,  and  know- 
ing how  it  would  shock  the  people,  it  occurred  to  him  that  the 
sanction  of  so  influential  a  person  as  John  the  Baptist  would 
secure  him  from  popular  violence.  John,  relying  upon  his  per- 
sonal popularity,  or  confiding  in  the  honor  of  the  prince,  probably 
went  over  on  an  invitation  from  Herod,  who  may  have  sent 
for  him  on  the  pretext  that  he  desired  instruction.  He  was  then 
})robably  solicited  to  sanction  this  marriage.  But  Herod  had  mis- 
taken tlie  man.  John  denounced  it,  and  boldly  told  the  wicked 
prince,  "  It  is  not  lawful  for  you  to  have  her." 

Herod  and  Herodias  were  enraged  at  this  interdict,  and  John 

was  thrown  into  prison,  and  would  have  been  killed  at  once  if 

Herodias  had  had  her  way.     But  Herod  was  pol- 
Herod  impriBorus    .  .  ,  ,  ,  ^      •   ^  ^  t         ^ 

jqj^  itic,  and  knew  tliat  such  violence  would  make  an 

outbreak  among  the  people,  the  ver}'  thing  he 
dreaded.  "Wlien  Herod  finally  slew  John  he  gave  out  as  the  rea- 
son that  he  feared  lest  the  great  influence  which  John  had  over 
the  people  should  give  him  the  power  and  inclination  to  raise  a 
rebellion,  as  the  people  seemed  ready  to  do  anything  which  John 
commanded.  This  we  learn  from  Josephus.*  This  was  the  state 
reason  jjublicly  assigned ;  but  the  real  and  private  reason,  as  the 
ICvangelical  liistorians  give  it,t  was  the  hatred  which  Herod  aud 
Herodia-s  felt  because  he  would  not  sanction  their  wickedness. 

Jesus  learned  the  fact  of  John's  imprisonment,  and  that  the 
Pharitees  knew  that  through  his  disciples  (for  /le  never  baptized) 
he  was  baptizing  more  than  John  ;  he  left  his  place  on  the  Jordan 

•  JosephuB,  Ant.f  b.  xviil,  chap.  v.      1      f  Matt  iv. ;  Mark  xvi  ;  Liike  iii 


JOHNB  PUISON. 


FKOM   JUD.EA   TO    SAMARIA. 


149 


and  proceeded  to  Galilee,  being  at  that  time  under  very  great 

spiritual  influence,  or,  as  Luke  says,  "  in  the  power 

/.  ^,      o    •  'i.  ?»      /-T    1       •      -<  4  Tir   ..    •  Jesus  removes 

or  the  fepirit.       (Luke  iv.  14 ;  compare  Matt,  iv.,    ^^  ^^^^ 

]\rark  i.,  and  John  iv.)      His  way  of  usefulness 

being  closed  in  one  direction,  he  turned  himself  to  other  fields. 

His  shortest  way  lay  through  Samaria,  in  which  is  the  city  of 

Shechem.    This  place  is  famous  on  many  accounts.  It  is  the  most 

beautiful  spot  in  all  Syria.     Modern  travellers,  as 

well  as  ancient  writers,  lavish  extravagant  epithets 

upon  it.     Mohammed  said :  "  The  land  of  Syria  is  beloved  by 

Allah  beyond  all  lands,  and  the  part  of  Syria  which  he  loveth 


Shechem. 


m- 


most  is  the  district  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  place  which  he  loveth 
most  in  the  district  of  Jerusalem  is  the  mountain  of  Nablus." 
This  is  the  modern  name  of  Shechem,  being  a  corruption  of 
JVeajjolis,  a  name  given  to  the  city  by  the  Emperor  Vespasian. 
On  this  spot  Abraham  pitched  his  tent  and  built  an  altar,  on  his 
first  migration  to  the  Land  of  Promise.  (See  Gen.  xii.  6.)  After 
his  sojourn  in  Mesopotamia,  Jacob  selected  this  place  for  a  resi- 
dence, and  tliere  he  dug  a  well,  which  remains  to  this  day.     (See 


150  FIKST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

Gen.  xxxiii.  18.)  Tlie  city  lies  between  the  two  mountains  ol 
Ebal  and  Gerizim,  and  accjuircd  fresh  importance  from  the  fad 
that  from  the  fi)rmcr  were  read  the  ciu-ses  and  from  the  hitter  the 
blessings,  upon  the  renewed  promulgation  of  the  law,  when  the 
l)C()ple  bowed  their  heads  and  acknowledged  Jehovah  as  their  law- 
ful king.     (Deut.  xxii.  11.) 

The  hatred  between  the  Jews  and  the  Samaritans  came  to  pass 
on  this  wise.     Shalmanezer  (b.c.  721)  had  carried  Israel  away 

into  Assyria,  into  captivity.     This  left  their  cities 
Oripin  of  the  *^       ',  ^  .       ,  ,       ,  . 

Samaritans  waste,  and  they  remained  m  this  condition  until 

"  the  king  of  Assyria  brought  men  from  Babylon, 
and  from  Cutliah,  and  fn^m  Ava,  and  from  Ilamath,  and  from 
Sepharvjiim,  and  placed  them  in  the  cities  of  Samaria  instead  of 
the  children  of  Israel ;  and  they  possessed  Samaria,  and  dwelt  in 
the  cities  thereof."  (2  Kings  xvii.  24.)  There  is  some  doubt  as 
to  who  the  king  was  that  put  this  new  unjewisli  populati(jn  in  the 
land.  The  Samaritans  themselves  attributed  their  colonization 
to  ''  Esarhaddon,  king  of  Assur,"  or  to  "  the  great  and  noble 
Asnapper."  (Ezra  iv.  2,  10.)  Perhaps  the  latter  was  a  general 
who  executed  an  order  issued  by  Esarhaddon,  who,  on  his  inva- 
sion of  Judali  in  the  reign  of  Manasseh  (about  b.c.  G77),  saw  what 
a  fine  tract  of  country  was  lying  waste  on  the  frontiers  of  his  em- 
pire and  determined  to  repopulate  it.  These  new  Samaritans 
were  n(jt  descendants  of  Jacob,  but  foreignei*s  and  idolatere.  Nor 
did  tliey  all  woi-ship  the  same  gods ;  their  idolatry  was  diverse. 
The  land  had  been  left  desolate  until  wild  beasts  had  taken  pos- 
session, and  annoyed  the  new  Samaritans  to  such  an  extent  that 
tliey  attributed  it  to  the  vengeance  of  the  god  of  the  land,  and 
sent  an  explanation  of  their  miserable  condition  to  the  king. 
Upon  which  he  desi)atched  a  captive  priest  to  them,  who  taught 
them.  The  mingling  of  the  true  and  false  in  their  religion  is  de- 
scribed (in  2  Kings  xvii.  41)  thus  :  "  So  these  nations  feared  Je- 
hovah^  and  served  their  graven  images^  both  their  children  and 
their  children's  children." 

It  is  plain  tlieii  that  the  new  Samaritans  were  not  of  Jewish  ex- 
traction, and  their  boast  that  Jacob  was  their  father  was  not  true. 
Of  some  who  may  have  returned  after  tlie  captiNnty  this  might  be 
afliniied,  but  the  commiii'rlintr  of  the  families  would  in  that  casu 
be  loss  of  caste. 

After  Judah  jiad  returned  from  the  captivity  these  new  Sania 


FEOM  JUD^IA   TO    SAMAKTA. 


151 


ritans  desii-ed  to  assist  in  the  rebuilding  of  the  Temple  at  Jerusa- 
lem.    But  the  Jews  knew  that  their  conversion  to 
,  r>  •  1  ,  1     ,  -111  Hatred  between 

the  true  laith  was  at  most  but  partial,  and  so  they    j^^g  ^^^  Samari- 

declined  their  help.  Upon  this  the  Samaritans  tans, 
threw  off  every  attempt  to  disguise  and  became 
open  enemies,  and  harassed  the  Jews  until  silenced  by  Darius 
Ilystaspes  (b.c.  519).  The  animosities  thus  begun  grew  from 
year  to  year,  and  deepened  from  generation  to  generation,  until, 
more  than  a  hundred  years  after  the  original  rupture  (b.c.  4:09), 
Manasseh,  a  man  of  the  sacerdotal  order,  having  contracted  an 
unlawful  marriage  with  the  daughter  of  Sanballat,  the  Persian 
satrap  of  Samaria,  was  expelled  therefor  from  Jerusalem  by 
ISTehemiah,  upon  which  he  obtained  permission  from  Darius  !^^o- 
thus,  the  king  of  Persia,  to  erect  a  temple  on  Mount  Gerizim 
for  the  Samaritans,  who  had  afforded  him  an  asylum.  This  was 
all  that  had  been  lacking  to  make  the  hatred  between  the  races 
intense.  The  schismatic,  heretical  Samaritans  did  all  in  their 
power  to  harass  the  Jews,  who  repaid  their  ill-treatment  with  in- 
describable hate.  Josephus  says  that  the  Samaritans  would  way- 
lay the  Jews  on  their  journey  to  the  Temple,  bo  that  many  from 
the  northern  portion  of  the  land  were  compelled  to  make  a  long 
detour  east  of  the  Jordan  for  fear  of  their  enemies.  It  was  so 
intolerable  at  one  time  as  to  lead  to  an  armed  conflict.*  Jose- 
phus also  tells  a  horrible  story  of  Samaritans  stealthily  entering 
the  Temple  after  midnight  and  scattering  dead  men's  bones  in 
the  cloisters.f  We  are  told  that  the  Jew^s  were  accustomed  to 
communicate  to  their  brethren  in  Babylon  the  exact  time  of  the 
)-ising  of  the  pasclial  moon,  b}^  beacon-fires  begun  on  Mount  Oli- 
vet, and  "flashing  from  hill  to  hill  until  they  were  mirrored  in  the 
Euphrates.":}:  The  Samaritans  frequently  deceived  and  disap- 
]K)inted  those  whose  lamps  were  hanging  on  the  willows  over 
the  waters  of  Babylon,  by  perplexing  the  watchers  on  the  moun- 
tains by  a  rival  flame.§  Josephus  loses  no  occasion  to  tell  us  of 
Samaritan  meanness  and  outrage,  and  there  is  no  reason  to  disbe- 


*  See  a  full  account  of  tliis  in  Jose- 
phus, Ant,  XX.  6,  §  1. 

f  Ant.,  xviii.  2,  §  2. 

X  Smith's  Diet.,  in  loco. 

§  Smith  quotes  Dr.  Trench,  who  says  : 
"This  fact    is  mentioned  by  llakrizi 


(see  De  Sacy's  Chrest.  Arabe,  ii.  159), 
who  affirms  that  it  was  this  which  put 
the  Jews  on  making  accurate  calcula 
tions  to  determine  the  moment  of  tha 
new  moon's  appearance  (comp.  Schoett- 
gen's  Hor.  ITeb.,  i.  344.)  " 


152  FIRST   AND   SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS, 

lieve  any  of  his  statements ;  and  if  we  bad  a  Samaritan  historian 
we  should  undoubtedly  bear  quite  as  much  tliat  was  quite  as  true 
on  the  Other  side.  "Wo  know  that  the  Samaritan  was  publicly 
cursed  in  the  s^niagogues  of  the  Jews,  that  he  could  not  appear  as 
a  witness  in  a  Je^vish  court,  that  what  he  touched  was  considered 
as  swine's  flesh,  and  that  no  penitence  or  profession  of  faith  upon 
his  part  Avould  admit  him  through  any  door  of  proselytism,  the 
Jew  striving  thus  to  cut  him  off  from  the  hope  of  eternal  salva- 
tion. "  Thou  art  a  Samaritan  and  hast  a  devil,"  was  the  ordinary 
Jewish  form  for  expressing  utter  contempt  of  any  one.  The  vio- 
lence of  this  hatred  was  thus  expressed  :  "  He  who  receives  a 
Samaritan  into  bis  house,  and  entertains  him,  deserves  to  have  bis 
own  children  driven  into  exile." 

"We  must  recollect  that  this  feeling  of  mutual  conteinpt  and 
bate  had  been  deepening  through  centuries, — a  combined  political 
and  religious  feud,  transmitted  and  intensified.  It  is  necessary  to 
recall  this  to  be  prepared  for  certain  passages  in  the  history  and 
teaching  of  Jesus. 

On  bis  return  to  Galilee  he  passed  near  Shechem,  which  the 
Jews  of  bis  day  vulgarly  called  Sycbar,  Drunkard-town.*  He 
l)aused  to  rest  on  a  tract  of  land  which  Jacob 
bad  bequeathed  to  bis  favorite  son,  Josejjb,  and 
where  there  was  a  well  which  Jacob  bad  digged.  This  well  is 
still  in  existence,  is  nine  feet  in  diameter  and  one  hundred  and 
five  feet  deep.  It  usually  now  has  five  feet  of  water,  but  when 
Maundrell  -j-  visited  it  in  the  month  of  March  it  had  fifteen.  At 
this  well  Jesus  rested.  lie  allowed  bis  disciples  to  go,  or  sent 
them,  to  the  town  to  procure  food.  "While  be  sat,  weary,  there 
came,  perhaps  directly  from  the  city,  a  woman  who  belonged  to 
the  city.  Between  Jesus  and  this  woman  there  occurred  a  con- 
vereation  remarkable  in  itself  and  for  its  effects.  Ilis  interlocu- 
tor was  not  now,  as  in  the  case  of  Nicodemus,  a  learned  doctor,  of 
high  moral  character,  but  a  simple  woman,  of  bad  moral  charac- 
ter, unsophisticated  by  the  schools,  but  held  in  bonds  of  preju- 
dice and  weakened  by  sinful  indulgence.  Our  curiosity  is  aroused 
to  learn  bow  this  remarkable  teacher  deals  with  such  a  case  as  this. 

In  the  first  place  be  arrests  lier  attention  by  the  polite  request, 
"Permit  me  to  drink."    The  woman  looked  at  him,  and  his  gen- 

*  John  iv.  5 ;  hut  the  grave  historian  j  tunipt. 
could  not  have  hhcJ  the  name  ui  oou-  I      f  Quoted  hy  Tholuck,  in  Imm. 


FKOM  JUD^A   TO   SAMAKIA. 


153 


eral  appearance  confirmed  the  suspicion,  created  by  his  intona- 
tions, that  he  was  a  Jew.     He  had  touched  her 

'  The    Samantan 

human  sympathies  ni  some  measure.     A  request  ^omanattheweU. 

implies  some  superiority  in  the  person  addressed. 

She  could  give  him  relief.     He  had  transgressed  the  line  marked 


)IiS    VvKLI,,    SHEl'HKM. 


out  by  his  people  as  di\nding  them  from  the  Samaritans.  Food 
might  be  purchased,  but  a  Jew  might  not  drink  from  the  water- 
pot  of  a  Samaritan.  The  woman  was  at  once  good-natured  and 
satirical,  and  perhaps  felt  somewhat  elated  by  the  request.  She 
bantered  the  traveller  with  the  question,  "  How  is  it  that  you, 
being  a  Jew,  ask  water  of  me,  a  Samaritan  woman?" 

This  gave  Jesus  the  opportunity  to  deepen  her  interest  by  a 
])rofoundly  spiritual  remark :  "  If  you  had  known  the  bounty  of 
God,  and  who  it  is  that  says, '  Permit  me  to  drink,'       „  .  .,    , 

,  ,  .IT  ^11-  11,  Spiritual     con- 

you  would  certainly  have  requested  him  and  he    ^g^satioa. 

would  have  given  you  living  water."     So  intent 

was  he  upon  his  mission  that  he  had  forgotten  his  thirst ;  but  so 


154         FIKST   AJHD    SECOND   PASSOVEK    EN    THE    LITE    OF  JESUS. 

Bkilfiil  is  he  tliat  he  connects  his  highest  moral  lessons  with  the 
most  transient  circumstances.  The  saying  seems  to  mean  thai 
water  is  one  of  the  freest  and  fullest  of  God's  gifts  to  man,  and 
nothing  but  most  extreme  meanness  would  allow  a  man  to  deny 
his  fellow  a  drink  of  M'ater ;  but  God's  bounties  in  the  spiritual 
world  are  as  full  and  free  as  in  the  physical  world,  and  men  can 
as  readily  obtain  water  of  spiritual  life  as  water  of  material  life ; 
and  Jesus  professed  to  be  able  to  impart  this  great  gift  to  the  soul 
of  the  Samaritan  woman.  This  was  the  second  revelation  to  her. 
She  had  met  a  Jew  who  was  no  ordinary  Jew,  but  one  who  had 
the  gift  of  life.  He  probably  used  the  phrase  "  living  water " 
in  its  double  sense.  lie  was  dealing  with  one  who  was  to  be  led. 
The  woman's  mind  would  seize  the  material  suggestion,  and  thus 
be  led  to  the  spiritual  truth.  Her  reply  shows  that  this  is  what 
she  did.  "  Running  water "  was  in  her  mind.  As  Stier  finely 
says,  "  Her  words  are  incomparably  picturesque  in  their  echo  of 
his."  She  says,  still  banteringly,  "  Sir,  thou  hast  no  bucket,  and 
the  well  is  deep :  pray  whence  then  have  you  this  live  water  of 
which  you  speak?  Surely  you  do  not  pretend  to  be  greater  thaii 
our  father  Jacob,  who  gave  us  this  well,  and  drank  of  it  himself, 
Mnth  his  children,  and  his  cattle."  Here  spoke  out  her  national 
pride  and  prejudice.  She  claimed  Jacob  as  her  ancestor,  pi-oba- 
bly  with  no  right  or  title  to  such  a  descent.  She  thinks  that  any 
man  may  be  content  with  what  Jacob  used,  and  no  Jew  could  be 
greater  than  the  patriarch. 

Jesus  waives  the  comparison,  but  presses  home  the  great  spirit- 
ual trutli  he  had  in  hand,  exciting  her  desire  by  a  strange  prom- 
ise.    He  says :    "  This   water  satisfies   only  the 
ang  prom     ^j^jj.g^.  q£  ^|^g  bodv,  and  that   for  only   a   brief 

Space  :  no  water  from  any  earthly  spring  or  well 
can  slake  the  thirst  of  the  inner  man :  but  I  can  open  such  a 
fountain  in  the  soul  of  man  that  no  life,  no  immortality,  shall  be 
long  enough  to  exhaust  it."  "  Give  me  this  water,  sir,  that  I 
thirst  no  more,  nor  come  to  this  well  to  draw,"  is  her  sudden  ex- 
clamation. "We  must  enter  into  this  woman's  character  and  his- 
tory to  comprehend  the  strange  mingling  of  naive  simplicity  with 
gross  carnality.  She  might  have  seen  that  Jesus  had  in  his  words 
a  moral  that  covered  her  life.  At  many  broken  cisterns  of  lust 
she  had  endeavored  to  find  happiness.  She  begins  partly  to  dis- 
*;ern  that  something  great  and  noble  is  offered  her  by  this  stran- 


FEOM   JTTDMA   TO   BATVTAKTA.  155 

ger,  and  expresses  a  half  willingness  to  accept,  but  mingles  a  little 
jocularity  with  this  expression  that  she  may  not  too  seriously  com 
mit  lierself.  "  Sir,  give  me  this  water,  that  I  never  thirst  again, 
nor  come  to  this  well  to  draw." 

And  now  Jesus  thoroughly  rouses  her  by  probing  her  heart, 
and  showing  that  he  knew  all  her  history,  although  thej^  had 
never  met  before.  The  delicacy  and  gentleness  with  wliich 
Jesus  touched  the  wound  in  this  woman's  soul  is  marvellously 
beautiful.  "  Go,  call  your  husband,  and  return."  It  flashed  her 
whole  bad  life  before  her  eyes  in  an  instant.  "  I  have  no  hus- 
band," is  her  half -true,  half-false,  and  very  mournful  reply.  Je- 
sus did  not  upbraid  her  for  her  licentiousness  and  falsehood,  but 
putting  the  very  best  face  on  her  answer,  replied  with  perfect 
politeness,  "  Well  spoken !  You  have  had  five  husbands.  Ton 
have  a  lover  now,  but  he  is  not  your  husband :  that  word  is  true." 
She  saw  that  this  was  a  man  who  searched  hearts.  She  knew 
that  by  death  or  divorce,  probably  for  her  o^vn  faults,  she  had 
been  separated  from  the  five  men  to  whom  successively  she  had 
been  married,  and  now  was  openly  or  secretly  licentious.  Her 
sense  of  guilt  was  roused  by  even  this  most  delicate  handling 
of  her  case.  Astounded  by  the  disclosure,  she  acknowledged  to 
Jesus  that  she  believed  him  to  be  a  prophet. 

But  she  did  what  is  usually  done  under  similar  circumstances. 

She  endeavored  to  engage  Jesus  in  a  theological  discussion,  and 

thus,  by  womanly  tact,  divert  the  conversation 

/.  1  ,  ,,...,.  Tij         She     tries     to 

from  an  unpleasant  personal  disquisition,    instead 

^  y  i  open     a     contro- 

of  ingenuously  acknowledging  her  case  and  seek-  yersy. 
ing  instruction  and  help  from  this  wise  and  gentle 
teacher,  she  turns  from  the  practically  useful  question  of  Iww 
to  pray,  to  the  speculative  and  comparatively  useless  loTiere.  It 
was  simply  and  swiftly  done.  "  Sir,  our  fathers  worshipped  in 
this  mountain:  you  Jews  insist  upon  Jerusalem  as  the  place 
where  men  ought  to  worship."  Gerizim  was  in  full  view.  Abra- 
ham and  Jacob  had  lived  and  worshipped  here.  Here  had  been 
the  temple  built  by  Mauasseh,  and  here  the  altar  remained  after 
John  Hyrcanus  had  destroyed  the  schismatical  temple.  Sur- 
rounded by  these  sacred  associations,  she  covertly  propounds  the 
question  to  Jesus  whether  she  is  to  abandon  her  ancestral  faith  or 
reject  his.  It  was  the  old  "  vexed  question  "  which  had  kept  bad 
blood  between  the  Jews  and  the  Samaritans  for  ajjes.     It  is  the 


loG  FIRST   AND   SECOND   PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

poor  old  question  of  "  To  what  denomination  do  you  belong  ? " 
The  discussion  of  this  would  cover  her  retreat. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  shows  how  a  wise  and  healthful  mind  pre- 
serves a  judicious  adjustment  of  the  forces  of  liberality  and  clear 
con^'iction.  He  at  once  widens  the  hririzon  of 
pyo  egus.  j^^^  vision  and  pours  white  light  on  the  objects 
already  in  view.  He  bears  his  testimony  distinctly  for  the  right 
that  lay  on  the  Jewish  side  of  the  question.  The  promises  of 
God  and  the  oracles  of  God  were  with  the  Jews.  The  Samari- 
tans were  in  the  wrong,  and  held  the  truth  in  much  corrupt  false- 
hood. That  is  not  liberal  religion  which  confounds  or  abandons 
the  distinction  between  right  and  wrong.  In  this  question,  which 
had  gendered  so  much  bigotry,  lay  a  great  essential  point :  the 
Jews  founded  their  religion  upon  the  whole  word  of  God,  and 
were  therein  right ;  the  Samaritans  on  only  a  part  of  God^sxoord^ 
such  as  suited  them,  and  were  therein  wrong.  Both  had  come  to 
regard  the  outward  form  as  more  important  than  the  inner  spirit, 
and  therein  both  were  wrong.  It  was,  therefore,  not  a  triviaw 
question,  nor  was  it  of  only  temporary  importance.  But  Jesus 
brought  in  a  new  view,  a  great,  wide,  glorious  view  of  the  re- 
lationship between  God  and  Man,  and  of  the  nature  of  the  wor- 
ship which  must  be  rendered  to  God.  He  says  with  great  solem- 
nity, "  Woman,  believe  me,  the  hour  is  coming  when  ye  shall 
worship  the  Father,  but  not  only  in  this  mountain  and  not  only,  in 
Jerusalem.  The  hour  approaches,  and  is  now  present,  when  the 
real  woi-shippers  shall  adore  the  Father  inwardly  and  sincerely  : 
for  the  Father  seeks  such  to  adore  him."  Between  these  two  sen- 
tences he  encloses  the  statement,  "  Ye  worship  ye  know  not  what: 
we  worship  what  \ve  know :  hecause  salvation  is  of  the  Jews." 
The  Samaritans  had  distinctly  set  aside  a  portion  of  God's  word, 
the  prophetical  writings,  because  they  pointed  to  a  Saviour  who 
was  to  spring  from  the  Jews.  The  latter,  of  course,  accepted  them 
theoretically,  and  were  that  far  right ;  but  practically  rejected 
them,  and  in  this  were  as  wrong  as  the  Samaritans.  V>\\i  the 
Jews  knew  whom  they  worshipped.  Their  religion  was  based 
upon  something  quite  sure,  namely,  God's  promise  of  a  Deliv- 
erer. 

Here  is  the  basis  of  the  religion  which  Jesus  pronnilgated 
God  is  Spirit,  not  a  spirit.  He  is  essential  Spirit.  lie  is  the 
Father.      He  not  only  allows  but  seeks  worehip.     The  worehip 


FKOM  JUDAEA   TO   SAMARIA.  157 

rniist  be  in  the  inmost  spirit.     Outward  forms  are  nothing  unless 

they  be  phenomena  produced  by  the  motions  of 

,1  ,-,  •  £       '  -J.   J.-1  X.    Baais  of  religion. 

the  no2cmenon,  the  expression  or  spirit  through 

matter.  God  is  without  material  form.  The  spirit  that  is  in  man 
is  that  which  is  most  like  God,  and  that  which  touches  God.  The 
worship  God  seeks  is  down  below  all  organism  that  makes  utter- 
ances and  gestures.  The  worship  offered  him  must  also  be  per- 
fectly sincere.  It  can  only  escape  totally  all  the  sinister  influence 
of  mixed  motives  when  offered  directly  from  the  soul  to  God. 
Every  discussion  of  ceremonials  and  topographies  lies  outside  all 
true  religion.  The  outward  modes  and  the  visible  places  are  insig- 
nificant. Ritualism  is  thoroughly  worthless.  The  Holiest  of 
Holies  is  iu  the  soul  of  man.  There  the  man  is  to  find  and  wor- 
ship God.  Then  each  continent  and  island  is  a  Holy  Land,  and 
each  soul  the  Temple  of  Jehovah. 

Such  was  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  The  woman  replied,  "  These 
matters  I  do  hot  quite  comprehend,  but  1  know  that  Jehovah's 
Anointed   is  coming,  and  upon    his    arrival  he 

will  expound  all  these  things."     Jesus  said,  "  I  am    ,.    ^,,  ^,     Jl 

^  r    TT  himself  the  Mes- 

He,  now  speaking  to  you.       Here  is  a  direct  and    giah. 

unequivocal  declaration  of  his  Messiahship.     He 

had  not  declared  it  in  Jerusalem,  but  in  Samaria ;  not  to  the 

learned  jS^icodemus,  nor  to  his  own  disciples,  but  to  an  ignorant 

stranger ;  not  to  any  man,  but  to  a  woman ;  not  to  a  pure  and 

cultivated  lady,  but  to  a  prostitute !     It  seems  marvellous,  and,  as 

a  policy,  wholly  inexplicable. 

Hereupon  his  disciples  arrived  with  the  provisions  they  had 

gone  to  purchase,  and  were  amazed  to  see  him  talking  familiarly 

with  a  woman,  yet  did  not  venture  to  question 

him.     In  the  mean  time  the  woman  had  left  her    ,.    .^    ™ 

disciples. 

water-pot,   forgetting  her  errand,  and   had  re- 
turned to  the  town  and  roused  her  neighbors,  exciting  them  by 
the  statement  that  out  by  Jacob's  Well  was  sitting  a  man  who 
had  told  her  all  her  life.     Was  not  this  the  Messiah,  the  Christ  ? 
Her  earnestness  brought  forth  a  crowd. 

In  the  mean  time  the  disciples  requested  him  to  eat.  But  he 
had  become  so  rapt  by  lofty  thought,  and  so  engaged  in  his  ear- 
nest effort  to  plant  the  principles  of  his  religion  in  one  soul  that  all 
physical  appetite  failed  him.  "  I  have  meat  to  eat  that  ye  know 
not  of.     My  meat  is  to  do  the  will  of  Him  that  sent  me."     Look 


158  FIRST   A^T)   SECOND   PASSOVER   IN  THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

ing  up,  he  saw  the  field  in  the  beautiful  valley,  just  sown  with 

the  seed  it  would  require  four  months  to  ripen,  and  he  saw  at  the 

same  time  the  people  pouring  out,  perhaps  from  their  mid-day 

meal,  at  the  invitation  of  a  woman  whom  they  knew  to  have  been 

wicked  bnt  now  see  to  be  hap]>y.     Jesus  called  their  attention  to 

these  two  facts  and  declared  a  great  spiritual  law :  "  You  say  that 

now  the  seed  is  in  the  ground  men  must  wait  four  months  for  the 

harvest.*     That  is  so  in  the  physical  world.     But  in  the  spiritual 

world  there  is  more  rapid  ripening.     An  hour  ago  I  dropped  a 

seed  of  spiritual  truth  into  the  heart  of  a  base  woman.     See  how 

it   springs   to   maturity!     Look   on   the   spiritual    fields.     They 

whiten  already  to  the  harvest,  as  the  crowd  coming  across  the 

valley  from  Sychar  demonstrates.     That  shows  that  the  laborers 

in  spiritual  fields  reap  rewards  as  laborers  in  other  fields.     You 

have  a  proverb  which  is  true,  '  One  sows  and  another  reaps.'     I 

am  sending  you  forth  to  gather  a  harvest  for  which  you  have  not 

toiled." 

Upon  this  the  inhalutants  of  the  toA\Ti  arrived.     They  besought 

him  to  remain  with  them,  which  he  did  for  the 
Arrivals     from  /..  ■•  ,-,..  ^   n     j.   ji 

,      .  space  of  two  days,  many  behevmg  at  first  rrom 

what  the  woman  said,  and  many  afterwards  from 
hearing  the  doctrines  of  Jesus  directly  from  his  own  lips. 

The  Samaritans  were  in  expectation  of  a  Messiah,  and  while 
their  ideas  were  not  those  of  the  Jews  upon  this  subject,  they 
were  much  more  definite  than  the  general  vague 
f  th  M     ■  h.  ^    Oriental  expectation  of  the  coming  of  a  Great 
One.     The  Samaritans  rejected  the  proi)hets  but 
held  to  the  law,  and  seem  to  have  rested  their  expectations  upon 
some  vague  intimation  in  the  books  of  Moses,  such  as  the  predic- 
tion that  Jehovah  would  raise  up  a  prophet  like  unto  Moses.f 
The  fact  of  the  indefiniteness  of  their  grounds  of  belief  left  them 
free  from  the  secular  notions  and  rigid  pride  of  the  Jews.     It 
really  seems  to  have  prepared  them  to  look  for  the  Messiah  in  a 
Moral  Reformer  rather  than  in  a  conquering  hero,  who  should 

*  It  is  proper  to  say  that   this  may  I  priate  to  say,  "We  must  now  wait  six 
allade   to   some   proverbial    expression  I  month.s  for  the  harvest." 
among  the  people,  preserved  only  in  this        f  Modem  Samaritans  refer  to  such 
place;    a  proverb  appropriate  to  some    passages  as  Chron.  xlix.  10  ;  Numb.  xiiv. 
religious  anniversary  perhaps  connected  '  17,  and  Deut.  xviii.  15. 
with  sowing,  when  it  would  be  appro-  ' 


FROM   JUDAEA   TO    SAMARIA. 


159 


beat  all  nations  under  his  feet,  themselves  included.  The  Mes- 
siah the  Jews  longed  for  is  precisely  the  Messiah  the  Samaritans 
would  reject. '^  They  hailed  Jesus  not  as  the  Saviour  of  the  Jews, 
or  of  any  particular  people,  but  as  the  Saviour  of  the  world. 


*  Milman,  in  a  note,  refers  to  Ber- 
tholdt,  chap.  vii. ,  which  contains  ex- 
tracts from  the  celebrated  Samaritan 
letters  and  references  to  the  modem 
writers  who  have  discussed  them.  Ge- 
senius,  in  a  note  to  the  curious  Samari- 
tan poems  which  he  has  published,  says 
that  the  name  of  the  expected  Samari- 


tan Deliverer  was  to  be  Hmch-liab^  or 
Hat-hab,  which  he  translates  "  Convert- 
er," one  who  is  to  convert  the  people 
to  a  higher  state  of  religion.  Dr.  Rob- 
inson says  that  even  to  this  day  the 
Samaritans  are  looking  for  the  comine; 
of  the  Messiah,  under  the  title  of 
d-MuMy,  the  Guide. 


SAJIARITAN   PRIEST. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


FROM   SAMAEIA    TO    GAJLH.EE. 


On  the  third  day  after  his  inter\'ie'w  with  the  Samaritan  woinaiij 

Jesns  went  on  his  vrny  to  Galilee.     The  Galileans  gave  him  a 

hearty  -welcome,  because  of  the  miracles  -which 
Matt.  iv.  :  Mark  <•    .  i  i      ,  -i  .  r  ci 

i  •  Luke  iv  v  •  ^^^^J  <^^  them  had  Been  him  periorm.  bome 
John  iv.  have  supposed  that  the  fact  that  he  had  had  no 

reputation  among  his  own  people  until  he  had 
made  a  sensation  in  the  metropolis,  and  the  contrast  between  the 
treatment  he  had  formerly  received  in  Galilee  and  that  which 
had  just  been  bestowed  upon  him  by  the  Samaritans,  led  him  to 
quote  the  proverb,  "  A  prophet  hath  no  honor  in  his  own  coun- 
try." But  John  seems  to  have  meant  that  Jesus  went  into  Gal- 
ilee to  avoid  notoriety,  because  a  prophet  has  little  ado  made 
over  him  by  his  own  people.  He  had  moved  from  his  place  on 
the  Jordan  fen- this  very  reason,  and  he  had  refused  to  stay  among 
the  Samaritans,  where  he  was  creating  a  great  sensation.  He 
went  among  his  o-wti  people  feeling  perfectly  certain  that  the 
divine  power  which  resided  in  his  teaching  would  cause  it  to  grow, 
and  he  preferred  to  sow  the  seed  where  there  was  no  storm  of 
popular  applause,  or  even  excitement.  It  was  not  the  utterance 
of  di8a])pointcd  pride,  so  far  as  we  can  discern,  but  a  wise  action 
l)ased  on  a  wcll-kno^vn  principle.  If  popularity  was  what  he 
sought,  why  did  he  leave  Samaria  ? 

But  many  of  the  Galilrpans  had  witnessed  his  works  at  the  feast 
in  Jerusalem,  and  learned  that  he  had  a  metropolitan  fame.  They 
now  received  him  as  a  miracle-Avorker,  not  as  a  prophet. 

Then  Jesus  began  to  preach,     (^fatt.  iv.  17;  Mark  i.  14,  15.) 

He  declared  that  the  time  for  the  fulfilling  of  tlie  ancient  ])roj)he- 

cies  had  arrived,  that  the  reign  of  the  ^Ics-^iah, 

j.g^^jj  the  kingdom  of  God,  had  begun,  and  that  it  was 

]»r<>]tcr  that  tliey  should   prepare    to   enjoy  that 

kingdom  by  an  abandonment  of  their  sins.     He  repeated  these 


FROM   SAMARIA   TO   GALILEE.  161 

sayings,  presenting  them  privately  in  his  intercourse  with  the  peo- 
ple, and  urging  them  publicly  in  the  Jewish  chapels  of  that  re- 
gion. John  and  Jesus  equally  urged  repentance,  the  former  by 
threatenings  of  wrath  and  the  latter  by  the  attractive  persuasive- 
ness of  promise.  The  manner  of  Jesus  won  the  admiration  of 
the  people,  and  his  fame  grew.     (Luke  iv.  15.) 

In  his  circuit  of  preaching  he  went  to  Cana,  where  he  had  made 
the  water  wine,  reviving  by  his  presence  the  remembrance  of  that 
first  and  very  remarkable  miracle. 

Wliile  in  Cana  he  recei\'ed  a  visit  from  a  nobleman,  who  was  a 

functionary  in  the  court  of  Ilerod  Antipas,  tetrarch  of  Galilee, 

or  a  high  military  officer.    This  person  was  a  Jew 

,       ,  .     1            ,                        .            -rr                1           1  Heals  the  noble- 

by  birth  or  by  conversion.     He  may  have  been  ^„„,„  „„„     t^t,« 

•J                          -J                                                ■'  mans  son.     John 

Chuza,  Herod's  steward  (Luke  viii.  3),  but  of  this  iv.  4G-54. 
we  can  have  no  certain  knowledge.  Llis  resi- 
dence was  at  Capernaum,  on  the  lake  shore,  twenty -five  miles  dis- 
tant from  Cana.  Learning  that  the  great  teacher  had  returned  to 
Galilee,  he  came  to  Jesus  with  the  request  that  he  would  heal  his 
sick  son,  who  was  at  the  point  of  death.  The  very  name  of  Cana 
probably  reminded  him  of  the  wonderful  power  which  Jesus  had 
exerted  in  that  town  before  his  departure  for  Jerusalem.  To  his 
request  Jesus  said:  "  Except  ye  see  signs  and  miracles  ye  will  not 
believe." 

The  words  seem  merely  to  indicate  a  contrast  between  the  read- 
iness with  which  the  Samaritans  believed  because  of  his  words, 
and  received  him  as  a  prophet,  and  the  obstinacj"  of  the  Jews  in 
refusing  to  believe  without  a  mira(;le,  and  not  always  yielding 
even  to  such  evidence.  He  may  have  also  alluded  to  the  fact 
that  this  nobleman  had  been  brought  to  him  not  by  any  necessities 
of  his  spiritual  nature,  but  because  of  the  sickness  of  his  son. 
Jesus  neither  made  parade  of  his  power  to  work  miracles,  nor  un- 
dervalued their  weight  as  credentials  to  his  character  as  a  great 
religious  reformer.  As  in  other  cases  (Matt.  xv.  27),  he  may  have 
been  testing  the  sincerity  of  the  applicant ;  not  for  any  knowl- 
edge he  might  gain,  for  no  other  person  ever  read  character  as 
Jesus  did,  but  that  the  nobleman  might  discover  what  was  in  his 
own  heart. 

The  distressed  parent  implores  him :  "  Sir,  do  come  down  be- 
fore my  boy  die."  His  faith  was  sound  as  far  as  it  went,  but  it 
was  narrow.     He  never  had  dreamed  of  any  man  having  power 


162  FIEST   AND    SECOND    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

to  raise  the  dead.     He  even  supposed  that  the  presence  of  the 

Great  Worker  was  necessary,      lint  Jesus  said: 

e  no  eman  s   ^^  q^^^  ^^^^  ^^^  lives."     He  believed.   Quietly  and 

leisurely  he  went  his  way.  lie  could  easily  have 
reached  home  at  sundoAvn,  for  it  was  just  one  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon when  Jesus  spoke  those  words.  lie  felt  so  sure  that  his 
child  was  safe  that  he  did  not  return  to  his  residence  until  next 
day.  Then  on  the  way  he  met  his  faithful  servants,  who  had 
come  out  to  seek  him  and  to  relieve  his  solicitude.  His  question 
to  them  shows  that  all  he  had  hoped  of  Jesus  was  to  save  his  child 
from  death  and  commence  a  convalescence  which  should  be 
gradual.  ""When  did  the  child  begin  to  amend?"  asked  he. 
"  He  did  not  begin  at  all,"  said  they,  "  but  yesterday  at  one  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon  he  suddenly  recovered ;  the  fever  totally  left 
him."  The  unexpected  completeness  of  this  recovery  and  the  pre- 
cise correspondence  between  the  language  of  Jesus  and  that  of 
the  servants,  and  the  identity  of  the  hour  of  the  word  of  Jesus 
and  the  recovery  of  the  boy,  added  this  nobleman  and  his  whole 
family  to  the  discipleship  of  Jesus.  They  not  only  believed  that 
a  great  miracle  had  been  wrought,  but  that  Jesus  was  the  ^lessiah. 
If  this  nobleman  was  Chuza,  Herod's  steward,  his  wife  Joanna 
afterward  became  an  ardent  supporter  of  Jesus.    (T^uke  viii.  3.) 

In  a  missionary  circuit  which  Jesus  undci-took  he  came  to  the 
towni  of  Nazareth,  where  he  had  been  brought  up.    His  fame  as  a 

T     vr       i.1,       preacher  had  preceded  him.     When  the  Sabbath 

In    Nazareth.        ^  ^  . 

Luke  iv.  lG-30.       day  came  he  went,  as  his  religious  custom  had 

been,  into  the  synagogue.  The  time  had  come 
when  he  was  to  announce  himself  in  his  own  town  and  to  his  own 
people.  Many  a  time  had  he  taken  his  place  of  humble  silence 
to  listen  to  the  reading  and  exposition  of  the  law  and  the  pro- 
phets.    Now  the  day  of  his  revelation  had  come. 

The  synagogue  was  a  remarkal)lc  (characteristic  of  later  Juda- 
ism.    The  Hebrew  name,  Beth-ha-Cennescth,  meaning  House  of 

the  Congregation,  has  its  equivalent  in  the  Greek 
e  synagogue,  g^j^j^g^^g^i^  which  is  used  in  the  Septuagint  as  a 
translation  of  two  Hebrew  words,  each  of  which  implies  a  gath- 
erinf/.  A  very  great  antiquity  has  been  claimed  for  the  synagogue 
by  Jewish  writere,  but  not  on  good  grounds.  Tlicre  docs  not 
seem  to  liave  been  anything  in  earlier  Judaism  providing  for  the 
spiritual  edification  of  the  people  in  public  congregations  outside 


FROM   SAMAKIA   TO    GALILEE.  163 

the  Temple  service,  which,  however,  was  suspended  during  the 
exile.  Then  the  devout  Jews  who  were  cut  off  from  the  holy 
city  and  from  the  Temple  of  Jehovah  held  frequent  and,  it  would 
seem,  regular  meetings  for  religious  instruction.  (Ezek.  viii.  1 ; 
xiv.  1 ;  XX.  1 ;  xxxiii.  31.)  "  The  whole  history  of  Ezra  presupposes 
a  habit  of  solemn,  probably  of  periodic  meetings."  *  (Ezra  viii.  15  ; 
Neh.  viii.  2  ;  ix.  1 ;  Zech.  vii.  5.)  In  his  time  the  synagogue  either 
had  its  origin,  or  such  distinct  revival  and  organization,  that  we 
may  date  the  establishment  of  the  synagogue  service  from  his 
period — about  b.c.  500. 

Its  influence  was  prodigious.  It  was  church,  school-house,  lec- 
ture-room, and  weekly  newspaper.  Eegular  periodical  assembling 
for  any  purpose  exerts  a  silent  but  powerful  influ-  . 

ence.  In  this  case  it  embedded  the  law  m  the 
minds  of  the  Jews,  and  bound  them  together  with  a  band  whose 
strength  was  made  manifest  in  holding  them,  after  the  Maccabean 
struggle,  to  the  faith  of  their  fathers,  and  from  the  degradation 
of  idolatry.  It  lacked  the  pomp  and  splendor  of  the  Temple,  but 
it  was  favorable  to  simple  and  hearty  devotion.  Its  very  freedom 
from  magnificent  ceremonial  gave  scope  to  the  exercise  of  thought 
and  of  speech.  Its  unperceived  but  certain  effect  was  to  destroy 
the  power  and  influence  of  the  hereditary  hierarchy,  and  prepare 
for  the  bringing  in  of  what  Jesus  gave,  freedom  to  teach,  for  any 
one  who  has  the  intellectual  and  moral  qualifications. 

In  towns  where  the  population  allowed  a  full  organization, 

there  was  a  college  of  "  elders  "  (Luke  vii.  3),  whose  president 

was   called   the   Archisynagogus,   Euler  of  the 

rTM  11  -I    .1  1  Officers  of  the 

Synagogue.     These  elders  managed  the  secular    g    j^^^^e. 

affairs   of   the   synagogue,   and   had   the   power 

of  pronouncing   excommunication.     There  was   also   an   officer 

called  Sheliach,  or  Legate,  who  represented  the  people,  leading 

them  in  their  prayers,  etc.     lie  was   required  to  be  an  adult, 

active,  the  father  of  a  family,  not  engaged  in  secular  business, 

not  rich,  having  a  good  voice,  and  aptness  to  teach.     There  was 

also  an  officer  named  the  Chazzan  (called  "  the  minister"  in  Luke 

iv.  20),  whose  duties  seemed  to  be  those  of  a  sub-deacon  or  sexton. 

He  took  care  of  the  building  and  prepared  it  for  service,  and  had 

charge  of  the  sacred  furniture.     It  is  believed  that  during  the 

*  See  Smith's  IHct,  on  "  Synagogue,"  for  full  account  of  the  institution. 


^  .    Ifl  encounter  the  oa«  \J^^  ^^  ^^  „^„ 

TOOpte,wto  to'  ^      X  refuse  to  peiio  ;„  tlie  totoiy 

t  on.    1  >--^^  'it  of  the  earlier  P'OP^^^^V^^  the  advantage  of 
of  the  two  g"*f  "to  strangers  who  tod  ^^^  t^^t 

°  ace  has  Sf /Tt^^des  of  God  f  *,,  to^a«  them  extovtei 
fnthnacy  «"hie  ora  ^^^^^^  andwAl  «^  ^^^  ^^-^  fe,  the 
God  distrlbut.  to  tavo  ^^^^^^^^  diopp  ^^^^^^  ^^s 

tihe  days  oElrjah,  whe  ^^  ^^^^^^^  -^f  J,^,e  of  the  mar^ 
space  of  thre  years  an  ^^  '"f.^lAo^  in  Zarephath, 

:tr  of\h  P.-2:,  .r--  r:0»  ^-■^^- .  V 

the  fonctiov  f  ;l?Xton,  a  ^f  S"Tat  6°^  »^"'''  '  . 

,,    miTpd  me  unt  J--"*  ghows  tnai  ^a         v  „to,vs  such 

^•^     r\iovY  of  the  prophets  s  ^^^^^^^  ^^^  be6to^ 

ttas  the  hiovy  ;gn  wdi  ana 

according  o  H«  ^      .^  ^^^  apF«f  f^^is  hearers  into  a  reproad. 
Wessings  M"  ^''y  constrxred  by  te  l^^^'    „  ^  „„der  tk 

^Thisw^^^lteT     They  tod  alway.^j"  j,  ^.^ 

^or  t^^^--'''Sp:which  rested  npon  th..  ^^^ 

He    to  riven       ^.ed  into  an  adage^        ^^^^^^^  ^,„.     Bat 

feSs^**^      ^ofSa^reth."     \"|,„tiles  to  his  o^vn  peopk 

patriotically  to  prefer  C^ent  ^^^^.^j^j^ess  of 

„owhe>emsnnpatu     ^^^  ^^^^^  ^ftha    hey  took  this  el. 

him.  teir  H«"^(  \^d  gone  ahoiit  the  eo™  '  ,  on  lie 
quent  '-*«\tes  a^ 'led  hhn  to  -P^^^,^  ,ast  bi» 
lallre^nagosn^^^^^  l^a^areth  ^tani^^X^pa-^d . ^ 
'*"S''^   tS   Bnt  Jesns,howwedonottoo    P^^^^.^^^,„. 

mirrie  here^orenderm^^ -T^X;!^^^^^^^^^^^^, 


— "Tirprobably  imagine  a  | 

^«-'"''r!umm"tbe  intended  pre- 

eipation  was  to  *      ^^^^^,^,    yetitB 
,„  Ihc  situation  ot  ^^^^  ^^^  ^^^  | 

potion  ifl  8^"^  ^JIl^Dn,'  tbat  is, 


as  IS 


here 


lodeni 
face 


over  the  town, 
_  implied  is  t« 
travellers  t 
of  limestow 
"forty  feet  hig^^ 
)iute  convent  si 
of    the  to«i' 
line,  p.  ^ 


l"ji  ?T  «• 


s:^ J" 

Iff 


I   •■ 


"^  Tim  fv 


't 


&  i« 


FROM   SAMA.RIA   TO    GALILEE. 


165 


worship,  and  stood  up  to  read.  The  President  caused  the  roll 
of  the  Prophets  to  be  handed  him,  and  he  turned 
perhaps  to  the  appointed  lesson  for  tlie  day,  per-  13^^^"^"^^^°™ 
haps  to  what  came  under  liis  eye  as  the  roll 
unfurled.  It  was  what  in  our  version  is  Isaiah  Ixi.  1,  2.  He 
read  :  '■'■The  Sj)irit  of  Jehovah  is  on  me :  hecause  Jehovah  has 
anointed  me.  To  hriny  good  tidings  to  the  humble  has  he  sent 
me ;  to  hind  up  the  hroken-hearted,  to  j>roclaim  to  the  caiMves 
freedom,  and  to  the  hounden  perfect  liberty :  to  proclaim  the 
year  of  favor  with  Jehovah.^"*  *  He  sat  down.  All  eyes  must 
have  been  riveted  on  him.  He  opened  his  exposition  with  the 
deliberate  and  solemn  announcement  of  himself  as  the  expected 
Messiah,  in  the  words,  "  This  day  is  this  scripture  fulfilled  in  your 
ears."  They  all  knew  that  the  passage  stood  in  the  middle  of 
the  third  great  division  of  the  book  of  Isaiah,  that  which  they 
always  considered  as  predicting  the  person,  the  oflices,  and  the 
triumphs  of  the  Messiah.  That  made  the  announcement  all  the 
more  impressive.  In  words  of  hearty  and  moving  eloquence 
Jesus  proceeded  to  expound  Isaiah.  "  Gracious  words,"  says  the 
historian,  "  proceeded  out  of  his  mouth." 

As  he  pressed  his  doctrine  of  universal  charity  upon  them,  a 
kingdom  not  restrained  by  Jewish  limits  and  bearing  no  vengeance 
against  other  peoples,  their  old  traditional  preju- 
dices began  to  be  excited.     They  recollected  his    J««"^«l^««k«  t^^^i^ 

pr6lU.QlCGS 

obscure  origin.  They  said  among  themselves,  "  Is 
not  this  the  son  of  Joseph  ? "  As  if  they  had  said.  Is  not  this  a 
most  pretentious  thing  in  so  young  and  unknown  a  man  ?  Jesus 
perceived  their  captiousuess  and  said,  "You  will  by  all  means 
scornfully  apply  to  me  the  proverb,  Phijsician,  heal  thyself  de- 
manding me  to  do  in  my  own  country  what  you  have  heard  that 
I  have  done  in  Capernaum.  I  reply  with  another  proverb,  Wo 
prophet  is  accepted  in  his  own  country.     In  coming  amono-  vou 


*  This  gives  the  words  as  they  stand 
in  the  original,  in  a  translation  as  near- 
ly hteral  as  practicable.  The  historian 
Luke  varies  the  passage  a  little.  Pro- 
bably he  quoted  from  memory  from  the 
Septuagint,  and  so  gives  "  recovering  of 
sight  to  the  blind  "  as  a  translation  for 
"  the  opening  of  the  prison  to  them  that 
are  bound,"  and  inserts  after  it,  "to  set 


at  liberty  them  that  are  bound,"  appar- 
ently taken  from  the  Septuagint  version 
of  "let  the  oppressed  go  free,"  in  Isa. 
Iviii.  6,  as  if  to  complete  the  sense.  (See 
note,  Strong's  Ilarinony.)  The  phrase, 
"and  to  the  bounden  perfect  liberty,"  is 
stni  more  strictly  literally  "  open  open- 
ing," which  may  mean  of  eyes  or  of 
prison-doors.     (See  Alexander,  in  loco.) 


16G 


FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


I  knew  that  I  sliould  encounter  the  ordinary  j>rejudice  against 
every  great  moral  teacher  which  exists  in  the  minds  of  his  own 
people,  who  have  kno^vn  him  in  childhood  and  amid  ordinary 
secular  emplo}nnents.  I  refuse  to  perform  miracles  at  your  dicta- 
tion. I  recall  for  your  instruction  some  passages  in  the  history 
of  the  two  greatest  of  the  earlier  prophets,  showing  that  God's 
grace  has  gone  over  to  strangers  who  had  not  the  advantage  of 
intimacy  with  the  oracles  of  God  such  as  you  possess,  and  that 
God  distributes  his  favors  freely  and  will  not  have  them  extorted. 
In  the  days  of  Elijah,  when  the  heavens  dropped  no  rain  for  the 
space  of  three  years  and  six  months,  when  a  great  famine  was 
throughout  the  land,  the  prophet  was  sent  to  none  of  the  many 
suffering  widows  of  Israel,  but  to  a  Gentile  widow  in  Zarephath, 
a  town  of  the  Phoenicians.  Aorain,  when  Elisha  was  discharginfr 
the  functions  of  a  prophet  there  were  many  lepers  in  Israel,  but 
he  cured  none  but  Naaman,  a  foreigner,  a  Syrian  general.  And 
thus  the  history  of  the  prophets  shows  that  God  causes  miracles 
according  to  His  sovereign  will  and  wisdom,  and  bestows  such 
blessings  where  they  will  be  appreciated." 

This  whole  speech  was  construed  by  his  hearere  into  a  reproach 
for  their  unworthiness.       They  had  always  suffered  under  the 

stigma  which  rested  upon  their  town.  It  had 
from  Nazareth.       pa^ssed  into  an  adage  that  "  No  good  comes  out 

of  Kazareth."  lie  might  redeem  them.  But 
now  he  seems  unpatriotically  to  prefer  Gentiles  to  his  own  people. 
They  became  enraged,  and  thus  proved  their  unworthiness  of 
him.  Their  frenzy  grew  to  such  a  pitch  that  they  took  this  elo- 
quent preacher,  who  had  gone  about  the  countiy  finding  welcome 
in  all  the  synagogues,  and  led  him  to  a  precipitous  place  on  the 
range  of  hills  on  which  Nazareth  stands,  intending  to  cast  him 
lieadi*  mg  down.*  But  Jesus,  how  we  do  not  know,  passed  through 
the  midst  of  them  and  went  awa}'.  There  seems  to  have  been  no 
miracle  here,  no  rendering  of  himself  invisible,  no  striking  his  per- 


*  "  Mo&t  readers  probably  imagine  a 
town  built  on  the  summit  of  a  mountain, 
from  which  summit  the  intended  pre- 
cipitation was  to  take  place.  This  is 
not  the  situation  of  Nazareth.  Yet  its 
position  ia  still  in  accordance  with  the 
narrative.  It  is  built  '  upon,' that  is, 
on  the  side  of  'a  muuntaiu,'  but  the 


brow  ifl  not  beneath  but  over  the  town, 
and  such  a  clifl  as  is  here  im])lied  is  to 
be  found,  as  all  modem  travellers  de- 
scribe, in  the  abrupt  face  of  limestone 
rock,  about  thirty  or  forty  feet  high, 
ovorhanping  the  IMaroiiite  convent  at 
the  south-west  comer  of  the  town.' 
Stanley,  Sinai  and  J'alentine,  p.  339. 


FKOM   SAMARIA   TO   GALILEE. 


167 


Makes     Caper- 
naum   his    head- 


eecutors  blind,  nor  any  "  slipping  away,"  taking  advantage  of 
narrow  streets  or  tortuous  ways.  There  was  something  in  him 
which  seemed  to  overawe  or  overpower  them.  He  "  passed  through 
the  midst  of  them,"  is  the  historian's  statement.  Perhaps,  as 
Stier  suggests,  there  came  such  an  aj)pearance  of  majesty  upon 
him,  that  the  crowd  began  to  dispart  and  give  way  right  and  left, 
as  he  moved  along.  Pf eninger  graphically  says :  "  They  stood 
— stopped — inquired — were  ashamed — separated — fled !  " 

Upon  quitting  Nazareth  after  the  bad  treatment  he  liad  received 
from  his  townsmen,  Jesus  went  to  Capernaum,  and  thereafter 
made  that  place  his  head-quarters. 

The  name  Capernaum  signifies,  according  to 
Bome  authorities,  "  the  Yillage  of  ISTahum,"  accord-  quarters, 
ing  to  others,  "  the  Yillage  of  Consolation."  As 
we  follow  the  history  of  Jesus  we  shall  discover  that  many  of  his 
mighty  works  were  wrought,  and  many  of  his  most  impressive 
words  were  spoken  in  Capernaum.  The  infidelity  of  the  inhabi- 
tants, after  all  the  discourses  and  wonderful  works  which  he  had 
done  among  them,  brought  out  the  saying  of  Jesus,  "  And  thou, 
Capernaum,  which  art  exalted  unto  heaven  shalt  be  cast  down 
to  hell."  (Matt.  xi.  23.)  So  thoroughly  has  this  prediction  been 
fulfilled  that  no  trace  of  the  city  remains,  and  the  very  site  which 
it  occupied  is  now  a  matter  of  conjecture,  there  being  even  no 
ecclesiastical  tradition  of  the  locality.  At  the  present  day  two 
spots  have  claims  which  are  urged,  each  with  such  ai-guments  of 
probability  as  to  make  the  whole  question  the  most  difticult  in 
sacred  topography.  Those  who  desire  to  examine  the  relative 
claims  may  consult  the  references  given  in  the  note  below.*  We 
shall  probably  never  be  able  to  know  the  exact  fact.  Jesus  damn- 
ed it  to  oblivion,  and  there  it  lies.  We  shall  content  ourselves 
with  the  New  Testament  notices  as  bearing  on  the  work  of  Jesus. 

We  learn  that  it  was  somewhere  on  the  borders  of  Zebulun  and 

Naphtali,  on  the  western  shore  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee.     (Compare 

Matt.  iv.  13,  with  John  vi.  24.)     It  was  near  or 

.     /.    T       1       T     p  /-.  11  /  -\r  .,       •  Descnption    ol 

in  "  the  land  of  Gennesaret"  (compare  Matt.  xiv.    capemaum. 

34,  with  John  vi.  17,  21,  24),  a  plain  about  three 

miles  long  and  one  mile  wide,  which  we  learn  from  Josephus  was 


*  See  Robinson's  Bibl.  Iiesearch(.s,  iii. 
288-294  ;  new  edition,  iii.  348  ;  Bonar, 
p.  437-41 ;  Thomson,  Land  and  Book, 


i.  542 ;  Wilson,  Lands  of  the  Bible,  ii. 
139-149  ;  Blblioth.  Sacra,  April,  1855,  p 
162. 


168 


FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


one  of  the  most  prosperous  and  crowded  districts  of  Palestine. 
It  was  probably  on  the  great  road  leading  from  Damascus  to  the 
south,  "  by  the  way  of  the  sea."  (Matt.  iv.  15.)  There  was  great 
wisdom  in  selecting  this  as  a  place  to  open  a  great  public  ministry. 
It  was  full  of  a  busy  population.     The  exceeding  richness  of  the 


TELL   HTTM   RTTNS. 


wonderful  plain  of  Gennesaret  sui)i)orted  the  mass  of  inhabi- 
tants it  attracted.  Josephus  {^B.  J.,  iii.  x.  3)  gives  a  glowing  de- 
scription of  this  land.  He  says  that  the  soil  was  so  fruitful  that 
all  sorts  of  trees  could  grow  upon  it ;  that  the  air  was  so  mixed  as 
to  nourish  tlie  walnut,  which  requires  the  cold,  as  well  as  the  palm- 
tree,  which  demands  the  heat.  "  One  may  call  this  place  the 
ambition  of  nature,"  because  it  forces  those  trees  to  grow  together 
which  are  natural  enemies.  It  afforded,  to  his  fancy,  a  happy 
contention  of  the  seasons,  as  if  each  claimed  the  land  for  its  (»wn. 
He  gives  a  luscious  picture  of  the  fruitage,  and  the  natural  foun- 
tains. He  says  tliat  the  people  thought  the  fountain  Caphar- 
naum  to  be  a  vein  of  the  Nile,  "because  it  produced  fishes  like 
a  Corbe  bred  in  a  lake  near  Alexandria."  In  modern  times 
Professor  Staidey,  of  the  Univereity  of  Oxford,  gives  quite  as 


FEOM   SAMARIA   TO   GALILEE.  169 

glowing  a  description  of  this  plain.  (See  Sinai  and  Palestine,  p. 
3 Go,  et  seq.) 

Such  was  the  region  in  which  was  located  Jesus's  new  centre 
of  activity.  From  Capernaum,  by  land,  he  could  command  large 
portions  of  Galilee ;  by  boats  he  could  cross  from 

,   ,  ,     r  ,1    ,  .IP  L^       •      '        Its  surroundings, 

west  to  east,  from  north  to  south,  from  the  juris- 

diction  of  one  prince  to  that  of  another.  He  was  where  the 
fisheries  made  life  on  the  lake  and  the  shore ;  where  pleasure  pa- 
laces brought  the  gay  and  the  rich ;  where  warm  springs  attracted 
opulent  invalids;  where  the  great  thoroughfare  from  Babylon  and 
Damascus  brought  companies  of  travelling  merchants  into  Pales- 
tine ;  where  royalty  attracted  officials  and  dignitaries ;  where  gar- 
risons established  to  give  dignity  to  sovereignty,  or  to  suppress  the 
neighboring  turbulent  Galilsean  peasantry,  brought  military  com- 
manders and  troops  of  common  soldiers  ;  where  trade  and  traffic 
on  a  frontier  established  custom-houses,  and  where  a  land  of  exu- 
berant fertility  made  agricultural  products  abundant  and  stimu- 
lated the  activities  of  the  people.  So  many  foreigners,  for  busi- 
ness or  for  pleasure,  had  fixed  their  residence  in  this  vicinity  that 
it  acquired  the  name  of  "  Galilee  of  the  GentilesP  The  lake  of 
Galilee  was  the  Como  of  Syria ;  for  the  Ilerodian  family,  famous 
for  love  of  magnificent  architecture,  had  made  a  portion  of  its 
shore  splendid  with  the  palaces  which  mingled  with  the  synagogues 
of  all  the  line  of  cities  and  villages  which  overlooked  the  sea. 
There  were  work,  pleasure,  life,  and  energy,  all  around  the  new 
teacher.  Here  he  found  congregations  and  helpers,  friends  and 
disciples,  and  the  people,  who,  moving  all  about,  with  almost  the 
restlessness  which  characterizes  modern  times,  wxre  ready  to  pro- 
pagate his  fame  and  attract  other  hearers  to  his  teaching.  He 
went  into  the  very  thick  of  life.  His  seasons  of  long  solitude 
were  over.  His  time  had  arrived  to  exert  all  the  moral  force  he 
had  been  accumulating  in  study  and  prayer.  He  went  among 
the  people  who  were  working  and  toiling  with  their  hands,  know- 
ing that  they  were  ordinarily  the  people  whose  brains  were  active. 
He  had  a  powerful  friend  in  the  nobleman  whose  son  he  had 
healed,  a  man  wdio  was  probably  of  Herod's  household.  So  there, 
where  sea  and  mount  and  desert  met,  Jesus  broke  upon  Galilee, 
a  light  whose  rays  were  to  reach  every  nook  and  corner  of  the 
globe,  and  illuminate  the  pathway  of  thought  and  sentiment  down 
all  the  succeeding  centuries. 


170  FIEST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

Soon  after  his  arrival  at  Capernaum,  one  day  as  Jesus  walked 

beside  the  Lake  of  Gennesaret,  perhaps  a  little  south  of   the 

to^vn,  he  came  upon  Simon,  called  Peter,  and  his 
Jesus  preaches    i      .1  a     j  o-  1  i        i 

jj.        ,     ,  brotlier   Andrew,     fennon,  as   we   have    ah-eady 

learned,  had  met  Jesus  on  the  banks  of  the 
Jordan.  As  Jesus  walked  out  of  the  town  the  people  began  to 
gather  about  him  and  accompany  him,  to  hear  other  gracious 
words  from  his  lips,  and  to  witness  other  great  works  from  his 
iiands.  There  were  two  fishing-boats  at  the  shore.  The  fishermen 
had  gone  to  wash  their  nets.  But  the  owner  of  one  of  thera  was 
Simon  Peter,  who,  at  the  request  of  Jesus,  pushed  it  from  the 
shore  a  distance  sufticient  to  preserve  tlie  attractive  preacher  from 
the  pressure  of  the  crowd,  and  yet  not  so  far  as  to  make  it  incon- 
venient for  the  people  to  hear.  And  from  tliis  floating  pulpit 
Jesus  delivered  a  discourse  on  the  doctrines  of  the  religion  he 
had  come  to  propagate. 

At  the    conclusion   of    the   discourse   he   directed    Simon   to 

launch  out  to  a  deeper  place  in  the  lake  and  let  down  his  net  for 

fish,  for  Jesus  would  not  use  any  man's  time  or 

1       v.^   t  i^  I.        boat  without  rewarding  him.     Simon  told  him 
draught  of  fishes.  ,  " 

that  all  night  they  had  toiled  and  no  fisli  had 
been  caught.  But  there  was  something  so  commanding  and 
inspiring  in  the  words  of  Jesus  that  Simon  immediately  added, 
"  Nevertheless,  at  thy  word,  I  will  let  down  the  net."  So  he  called 
his  brother  Andrew,  and  tlie  net  was  lowered  ;  and  so  great  was  the 
number  of  the  fish  enclosed  that  the  net  began  to  break  :  and  they 
called  for  their  partners,  James  and  John,  the  two  sons  of  Zebe- 
dee,  to  come  and  help  them ;  and  so  great  was  the  haul  that  both 
ships  came  near  sinking  with  the  weight. 

When  Simon  (Peter)  saw  this  wonder  he  fell  at  the  feet  of 
Jesus  with  mingled  adoration  and  supplication.     The  rapidity  of 

discernment  and  depth  of  feeling  which  we  shall 

find  to  be  characteristic  of  this  energetic  man 
Simon.  ,  " 

come  out  in  this  j)assage.  There  was  some  power 
in  this  new  teacher  which  was  not  liiiman  :  Peter  believed  it  to 
be  divine.  He  was  a  rough,  ])rofanc  man,  but  lie  had  that  sense 
of  contrast  between  j)urity  and  sinfulness  Mhidi  is  not  the  mark 
of  a  degraded  mind,  but  rather  of  a  Rj)irit  tlmt  h;is  not  lost  its 
moral  sensitiveness.  "My  Lord,  be  ])leascHl  to  leave  my  ship, for 
I  am  not  saintlv  enough  to  endure  thine  august  presence  of  lu>ly 


FEOM   SAMARTA    TO    GALILEE.  171 

power  ! "  That  seemed  to  be  the  tenor  of  his  address.  "  Be  not 
afraid,"  said  Jesus ;  "  for  from  this  time  thou  shalt  catch  men." 
A  call  to  discipleship  had  been  already  made,  after  which  Peter 
had  gone  home  to  his  work.  Now,  Jesus  gives  him  a  deepo 
intimation  of  his  intention  to  attach  him  strongly  to  his  service^ 
and  gives  an  increase  to  his  faith  by  the  great  wonder  he  beheld, 
and  exhilarates  him  by  a  figure  taken  from  his  own  pursuits.  If 
to  bring  so  great  a  haul  of  fish  to  land  be  joy,  what  rapture  must 
it  not  be  to  "  catch  tnen  !  "  Hereafter  emperors  and  kings  and 
queens  and  philosophers  and  scholars  and  poets  and  merchant- 
princes  shall  be  in  the  net  which  these  simple  Galilaean  fishermen 
were  to  let  down  into  the  deep  waters  of  the  lake  of  human  life. 

So  they  brought  their  fish  to  land,  drew  up  their  boats  upon 
the  shore,  and  abandoned  boats  and  nets  that  they  might  follow 
this  wonderful  Being.     Going   along  the   shore 
they  found  their  partners,  James  and  John,  the    .  „      ^ 

o     rj    ^        -i  ^  i  p  follOW  JeSUB. 

sons  of  Zebedee,  who,  while  this  profound  con- 
versation was  going  on  between  Jesus  and  Simon  and  Andrew, 
had  betaken  themselves  to  repairing  their  own  nets.  It  would 
seem  that  when  called  by  Simon  and  Andrew  to  render  help, 
they  had  put  their  own  net  under  the  overburdened  net  of  their 
partners,  to  prevent  the  escape  of  the  fish  and  the  increase  of  the 
rent,  and  that  thus  their  own  net  had  become  damaged.  The  invi- 
tation he  had  given  Simon  and  Andrew,  Jesus  extended  to  James 
and  John,  and  they  left  the  implements  of  their  business  with  theii 
father  and  the  servants,  and  obeyed  the  call  to  a  higher  work. 


CHAPTER  V. 


DEMONIACS. 


On  the  Sabbath  following  his  return  to  Capernaum  Jesus  went 

with  his  disciples  to  the  service  of  the  synagogue,  and,  according 

to  his  custom,  expounded  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

Matt  vii.;  Mark    -pj^gj-g  geenis  to  have  been  great  simplicity  in  hia 
i.  •  Luke  iv.  o  i  j 

mode  of  treating  all  sul)jects,  but  it  is  remarked 

on  this  occasion  that  there  was  an  element  in  his  method  which 
not  only  interested  but  astonished  his  audience.  lie  spoke  on  the 
most  profound  and  important  subjects,  not  as  one  discussing  tliem. 
showing  what  can  be  said  on  both  sides,  nor  as  one  striving  merely 
to  stimulate  the  intellects  of  his  hearers,  nor  as  a  learned  man, 
reporting  the  results  of  the  researches  of  the  best  minds,  but  de- 
cisively, with  authority,  as  declaring  truths  which  were  not  to  be 
questioned,  with  an  authority  from  which  there  was  no  ai)peal, 
and  with  a  spirit  full  of  power.  The  contrast  which  tliis  afforded 
with  the  pedantry,  the  pretence,  the  sophistry,  and  the  quibbling 
of  tlie  scribes,  made  Jesus  notable. 

On  this  particular  Sabbath  there  came  into  the  synagogue  a 

person  described  by  Mark  (i.  23)  as  "  a  man  \NTth  an   unclean 

spirit,"  by  Luke  (iv.  33)  as  "a  man  which  had  a 

e  man  wi       gpjj.jj.  q£  g^j^  unclean  devil."     Combining  the  nar- 
an  unclean  spint.      '^ 

ratives  of  these  two  historians,  we  have  the  fol- 
lowing account :  The  man  cried  out,  "Ah!  what  to  us  and  to  thee, 
Jesus  the  Nazarcne  ?  Hast  thou  come  to  destroy  us  ?  I  know  thee 
who  thou  art,  the  Holy  of  God."  Jesus  spoke  shai-ply  to  him  and 
said  :  "Be  silent  and  leave  him."  Then  the  "devil,"  or  "unclean 
spirit,"  threw  liim  down,  tore  him,  howled,  and  left  him.  And 
the  people  were  astonished,  and  questioned  among  themselves  and 
said,  "What  thing  is  this?  what  new  doctrine  is  this?  for  with 
authoritY^and  power  he  commands  even  the  unclean  spirits,  and 
they  o]},f  f;;,ii,tl\     This  occurrence  greatly  and  rapidly  increased 


DEMONIACS. 


173 


the  fame  of  Jesiis  through  all  Galilee,  for  then,  as  now,  a  crazy 
man  was  an  object  of  general  notice. 

It  brings  ns  at  once  to  the  consideration  of  the  perplexing  ques- 
tion of  what  is  ordinarily  called  demoniacal  possession. 

In  examining  this  subject  we  have  the  disadvantage  of  not  hav- 
ing in  our  own  times  anything  that  quite  corresponds  with  this 
remarkable  class  of  phenomena,  or  which  is  recognized  as  falling 
into  this  category  of  maladies.  "We  are  remitted  to  the  ancient 
writers,  and  must  learn  what  we  can  gather  from  the  notices  in 
the  classical  authors  and  New-Testament  historians.  So  far  aa 
the  latter  are  concerned,  it  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  word  used  by 
them  in  reference  to  all  these  cases  is  one  which  does  not  mean 
the  De^^l,  Satan,  but  demons.  The  classical  writers,  except  when 
they  indicate  by  a  special  epithet  the  contrary,  used  the  word 
as  describing  good-natured,  or  at  least  not  malevolent  beings ;  but 
the  New-Testament  writers,  on  the  supposition  that  they  meant 
beings  distinct  from  the  afflicted  individuals,  invariably  repre- 
sent them  as  sinister  or  positively  malevolent.  The 
classical  writers  sometimes  loosely  employed  the  v^® .  *'^^^^°*' 
word  to  mean  any  spiritual  existences  out  of  man, 
from  the  spirits  of  the  departed  up  to  the  Supreme  Being,  the 
Father  of  the  gods  ;  but  when  they  pretended  to  be  precise  they 
described  them  as  intermediate  beino;s  between  man  and  the  ffods. 
Plato  says :  '■'■Every  demon  is  a  middle  being  between  God  and  mor- 
tal." lie  further  says,  that "  Demons  are  reporters  and  carriers  from 
men  to  the  gods,  and  again  from  the  gods  to  men,  of  the  suppli- 
cations and  prayers  of  the  one  and  of  thu  injunctions  and  rewards 
of  devotion  from  the  other."  *  There  were  two  kinds  of  demons. 
The  souls  of  good  men  after  their  departure  were  called  heroes, 
and  raised  to  the  dignity  of  demons ;  f  and  there  were  also  sup- 
posed to  be  demons  who  had  never  inhabited  a  mortal  body.:}: 
Philo§  says  that  the  ancients  held  souls,  demons,  and  angels  as  the 
same.  The  demons  who  had  once  been  in  human  bodies  became 
objects  of  worship  among  the  heathen,  and  Jehovah  is  so  often 
called  "the  living  God"  to  distinguish  Him  from  these.| 


*  Plato,  Sympos. ,  pp.  202,  203. 

f  Plutarch,  De  Defect.  Orac. ,  and 
Plato,  Gratylus. 

X  Plato,  Tim. ,  and  Apuleius,  De  Deo 
Socratis. 


%  Philo,  De  Oigantibus. 
\  Deut.  xxvi.  14 ;  Ps.  cvi  28 ;  Isaiah 
viii.  19;  Deut.  T.  26. 


174  FIRST   AND   SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

Joseplius*  incidentally  gives  us  his  opinion,  and  we  suppose 

the  opinion  commonly  entertained  by  his  countrymen,  of  demons, 

who,  he  says,  "  are  the  spirits  of  wicked  men  that 

The     Jewish    ^^^^^  ^^^^  ^^xq  bodies  of  the  living  and  kill  them 

opinions.  *^ 

if  they  do  not  obtain  help." 

The  New-Testament  historians  seem  to  give  the  impression  that 

they  believed  in  the  existence  of  separate  spirits,  for  they  call 

them  irvevfiaTaj-f  who  were  intelligent,:}:  ])ower- 

The  New-Testa-  f ^^|  g  ^^.,  j  ^^^^  unclean.!    AVliether'they  held  the 

ment  wnters.  /*^.         '"    _         ,  "     ,  ,  .  .         . 

opmion  or  Josephus,  that  they  were  the  spirits  of 

wicked  men  who  after  death  entered  the  bodies  of  the  living  t<i 
torment  them,  or  used  the  word  in  the  sense  of  the  classical 
authors,  is  a  question  we  must  examine  in  the  light  of  all  that  is 
said  by  these  historians  in  their  narratives  of  cases  of  apparent 
demoniacal  possession.  In  regard  to  those  possessions  there  are 
two  theories,  which  may  be  stated  with  their  reasons  in  advance, 
and  we  shall  see  how  far  each  accounts  for  the  phenomena  re- 
corded in  the  biographies  of  Jesus  which  we  possess.  We  are  to 
ascertain  what  was  the  opinion  held  by  Jesus  and  the  New-Testa- 
ment historians. 

It  is  held  by  some  that  Jesus  and  the  writers  severally  called 
Matthew,  Mark,  Luke,  and  John,  believed  that  demoniacs  were 
persons  into  whom  evil  spirits  had  entered,  who- 
e  eery.  ^^^^  those  spirits  were,  but  generally  supposed  to 
be  devils,  Satan's  angels,  who  held  or  possessed  the  demoniac, 
using  his  body  for  their  evil  purposes.  The  reasons  assigned  f ( )r 
this  opinion  are  these: 

1.  The  demoniacs  beseech  Jesus  not  to  torment  them ;  they  ask 
and  answer  questions  in  a  rational  manner ;  they  are  said  to  leave 
men  and  enter  swine,  etc. 

2.  Physical  diseases  are  mentioned  of  those  possessed  with  dev- 
ils, where  no  mental  ailment  is  suggested,  as  in  Matt.  ix.  32,  where 
it  is  said  that  "  they  brought  to  him  a  dumb  man  possessed  with  a 
dcNnl;"  and  as  in  Matt.  xii.  22,  "one  possessed  with  a  devil,  blind 
and  dumb." 

3.  In  the  case  of  the  youth  described  in  Luke  ix.  39,  the  symp- 

•  Wars  of  the  Jews,  vii.  0,  §  3.  §  Matt.  viii.  28-33  ;  Mark  ix,  26. 

f  Compare  JNIatt.  viii.  10 ;  i.  1 ;  Mark     1  IMatt.  xii.  45. 
li.  20;  Luke  x.  20.  j  1  Matt.  x.  1. 

t  Mark  i.  24 ;  Luke  iv.  34  I 


DEMONIACS.  175 

toms  are  those  of  epilepsy ;  but  the  father  assigns  them  to  the  in- 
fluence of  a  demon,  and  Jesus  and  his  disciples  say  nothing  to 
contradict  this  theory. 

4.  The  demoniacs  professed  that  they  were  possessed  of  de- 
mons, as  in  Mark  v.  9,  and  the  same  was  asserted  by  their  nearest 
relatives,  as  in  Matt.  xv.  22,  and  Mark  ix.  17. 

5.  The  writers  of  the  New-Testament  histories  observe  a  dis- 
tinction between  those  who  were  diseased  and  those  who  were 
possessed.  In  Mark  i.  32  it  is  recorded  :  "  They  brought  unto  him 
all  that  were  diseased,  and  them  that  were  possessed  of  devils." 
The  same  distinction  is  in  the  passage  in  Luke  vi.  17,  18.  It  is 
said  that  Jesus  himself  maintains  the  distinction  in  a  very  marked 
manner  in  his  commission  to  his  disciples,  recorded  in  Matt.  x.  8  : 
''  Heal  the  sick,  cleanse  the  lepers,  raise  the  dead,  cast  out  devils." 

6.  The  demoniacs  knew  Jesus  to  be  the  Son  of  God  and  the 
Christ,  as  we  learn  from  Matt.  viii.  29,  Mark  i.  24,  and  Luke 
iv.  41 ;  and  Jesus  forbade  them  from  proclaiming  him  as  the 
Messiah. 

7.  There  are  at  least  five  cases  in  which  Jesus  seems  to  address 
demons  as  existences  separate  from  the  persons  afiiicted.  These 
are  recorded  severally  in  Mark  i.  25  ;  v.  18  ;  Luke  iv.  35  ;  Matt, 
viii.  32,  and  Mark  ix.  25.  In  the  first  case  Jesus  bids  the  demons 
be  silent,  and  in  the  last  to  enter  no  more  into  the  person  who 
had  been  possessed. 

8.  Jesus  connects  Satan  with  the  demons;  as  when  the  seventy 
returned  from  their  mission  and  reported  that  even  the  demons 
were  subject  to  them  through  the  name  of  Jesu?,  lie  replied  (Luke 
X.  18) :  "  I  beheld  Satan  as  liglitning  fall  from  heaven."  It  is 
also  observed  that  in  Matt.  xii.  25,  Jesus  replies  to  the  suggestion 
of  his  enemies  that  he  was  casting  out  devils  by  Beelzebub,  the 
prince  of  the  devils,  with  the  argument  that  Satan  cannot  be  di- 
vided against  Satan,  else  his  kingdom  would  not  stand.  It  may 
be  added,  that  the  woman  who  had  a  spirit  of  infirmity  is  repre- 
sented by  Jesus  to  have  been  bound  by  Satan.  (Luke  xiii.  11,  16.) 

9.  In  Matt.  xii.  (43  et  seq.)  Jesus  speaks  of  an  unclean  spirit 
going  out  of  a  man,  and  the  man  afterwards  taking  seven  other 
spirits  ;  and  in  Matt.  xvii.  21,  he  says  :  «  This  Idnd  goeth  not  out 
but  by  prayer  and  fasting  ; "  which  seem  like  facts  in  their  nat- 
ural history. 

10.  Finally,  it  is  contended  that  it  detracts  from  the  dignity  of 


176  FIRST   AXD    PKCOND    rAPPOTICR   IX    THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

the  miracles  of  Jesus  to  snjipose  tliat  he  only  healed  diseases,  the 

casting  out  of  devils  l)eing  supposed  a  greater  display  of  divint 

power. 

The  opposing  theory  is  that  in  reality  there  never  was  such  a 

fact  as  a  demon  or  evil  spirit,  whether  formerly  in  human  flesh 

or  always  a  sej^arate  existence,  taking  possession 

,,  of  a  man  and  havini;  such  control  over  him  as  to 

theory.  '^ 

be  able  to  torment  and  destroy  him  ;  that  all  the 
recorded  cases  are  of  pereons  miserably  diseased  in  mind  or  body, 
or  both,  and  that  because  the  jihenomena  were  inexplicable  the 
popular  mind  assigned  them  to  the  influence  of  demons  ;  and  that 
Jesus,  in  order  to  be  understood  by  his  contemporaries,  adcjpted  the 
usual  forms  of  expression  as  most  readily  indicating  this  special 
class  of  diseases.  It  is  further  contended  that  whereas  all  parties 
agree  that,  so  far  as  ap[)ears  in  the  records,  whatever  the  possessed 
did  cannot  be  distinguished  from  the  acts  of  the  demon,  the  in- 
qnii-y  is  reduced  to  the  simple  question.  Can  these  phenomena  be 
accoimtcd  for  without  recoui-se  to  the  supernatural  ?  Xo  devout 
scholar  hesitates  to  accept  the  theory  of  the  supernatural  when 
necossarv ;  l)ut  equally  does  he  never  resort  to  it  to  explain  what 
is  readily  explicable  by  well-known  physical  or  psychological 
laws ;  and  all  the  phenomena  con-espond  with  what  we  know  of 
hv])o('hondria,  epilepsy,  and  insanity;  that  the  New-Testament 
historians  give  as  plain  intimations  as  we  could  demand  that  they 
were  empkmng  popular  phraseology,  and  not  in  these  erases  giv- 
ing utterance  to  doctrines  or  asserting  facts  ;  and  that  the  doc- 
trine of  the  agency  of  departed  spii-its  upon  the  Ixxlics  of  men 
is  contrary  to  other  doctrines  exjiressly  taught  by  Jesus. 

Those  who  hold  this  theory,  in  reply  to  the  arguments  cited 
ab(ne  l)y  the  advocates  of  real  demoniac  possession,  say  : 

1.  These  insane  people  believed  themselves  possessed.  They 
had  been  brought  up  in  a  community  holding  that  doctrine,  and 
in  their  ravinj;  made  utterances  consistent  with  their  crazy  view 
of  their  own  cases,  a  thing  we  frequently  meet  in  our  modern 
asylums  for  the  insane.  Locke's  descripti<m  of  madmen  {Exsay 
on  Human  Understanding,  chap.  ii.  11,  13)  is,  tliat  "  tliey  resison 
right  on  false  principles,  and  taking  their  fancies  for  realities, 
make  right  deductions  from  them." 

2.  The  demoniacs  at  Gadara  (Mark  and  Luke  sj^cak  of  only 
one)  had  the  fantasy  that  they  were  possessed  by  innumerable 


DEMONIACS.  171 

devils,  and  so  when  Jesus  asked  the  name  *  it  was  given  as 
"  Legion,"  and  the  possessed  men,  believing  themselves  speakhig 
for  the  demons,  begged  that  they  should  not  be  driven  out  of 
the  countr}^,  but  allowed  to  enter  into  the  swine,  and  that  when 
Jesus  flung  the  disease  from  the  man  or  men  to  the  hogs,  it  was  as 
great  a  miracle  as  any  casting  out  of  demons  would  have  been.f 
Actual  demons  would  not  have  chosen  to  go  into  the  swine.  And 
it  is  specially  remarked  that  Luke,  who  was  a  physician,  speaks 
of  this  demoniac,  upon  his  recovery,  as  being  in  his  right  mind. 
In  the  case  of  the  blind  and  dumb,  or  simply  dumb,  the  disease 
in  the  organs  was  popularly  ascribed  to  demons.  In  Matt.  ix.  32 
the  historian  specifically  mentions  that  the  mail,  not  the  demon, 
was  dumb. 

3.  The  fact  that  the  father  of  the  epileptic  youth  (in  Luke  ix. 
39)  assigned  his  trouble  to  a  demon,  shows  only  that  it  was  hia 
opinion,  in  which  he  participated  in  a  popular  superstition. 

4.  If  this  argument  is  good  here,  it  is  valid  as  establishing  witch- 
craft, as  many  have  professed  to  be  bewitched,  and  some  have  con- 
fessed that  they  practised  this  black  art.  But  who  now  believes  them  ? 

5.  It  is  doubted  whether  the  New-Testament  historians  made  a 
distinction  between  the  sick  and  the  demoniacs,  and  it  is  held  that 
they  spoke  of  demoniacs  as  only  one  kind  of  sick  persons.  In 
Matt.  iv.  24  are  three  kinds  of  ailments  mentioned,  those  possessed 
of  demons,  those  who  were  lunatic,  and  those  who  were  palsied, 
all  coming  under  the  general  description  "  divei-s  diseases."  Oc- 
casionally demoniacs  are  omitted  in  the  general  recital  of  miracu- 
lous cures,  as  in  the  notable  reply  of  Jesus  to  John,  in  Matt.  xi.  5, 
in  which  an  account  is  given  of  miraculous  evidences  attending 
the  ministry  of  Jesus.  If  these  demoniacs  were  not  merely  a 
class  of  sick  people,  would  not  Jesus  have  brought  forward  their 
cure  with  great  emphasis  ? 

6.  It  is  alleged  that  it  does  not  appear  that  all  the  demons  knew 
Jesus.  That  some  of  these  insane  people  did  recognize  Jesus  and 
call  him  by  high  and  holy  names  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  when 
we  recollect  how  his  person  was  coming  to  be  kno^vn,  and  what 
great  things  were  notoriously  done  by  him  every  day. 


*  It  really  is  quite  noticeable  that  in 
the  original,  in  Mark  v.  9,  it  is  said,  -xu 
Es-tjpwTi  uvroi',  he  asked  the  man,  not  uuru, 
tJie  demon. 

12 


f  It  is  paralleled  by  the  transference 
of  the  leprosy  from  Xaaman  to  Gehazi, 
in  2  Kings  v.  27. 


178  FIRST   AND   SECO^^)   PASSOYER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

7.  The  supposed  addresses  of  Jesus  to  the  demons  may  be  easily 
imdei*stood  to  be,  firet,  an  accommodation  to  the  fancy  of  the  de- 
ranged persons,  and,  secondly,  to  the  understanding  of  spectators. 
His  bidding  tlie  demon  depart,  and  no  more  enter  the  man,  is  of  a 
piece  with  his  bidding  the  fever  leave  a  patient,  wliich  he  did  in 
the  case  of  Peters  mother-in-law. 

8.  In  regard  to  the  mention  of  Satan  by  Jesus,  in  connection 
with  demons,  it  is  urged  that  the  saying,  "  I  beheld  Satan  as  light- 
ning fall  from  the  heavens  "  (Luke  x.  18),  cannot  be  taken  liter- 
ally except  as  referring  to  his  original  expulsion  from  heaven.  In 
that  case  it  would  be  wholly  irrelevant.  The  choice  is  then  left 
among  the  various  figurative  interpretations.  Satan  is  a  name 
given  to  anything  inimical  to  what  is  good.  Jesus  meant,  it 
is  said,  that  he  had  foreseen  the  glorious  triumphs  of  his  disci- 
ples over  the  most  formidable  obstacles.  And  as  to  his  argument 
with  his  enemies,  he  simply  took  them  upon  their  own  grounds, 
and,  not  affirming  those  grouuds  solid,  showed  that,  even  })resum- 
ing  them  so,  there  was  no  place  for  their  objection  to  him  :  so  that 
nothing  can  be  inferred  from  that. 

9.  In  the  case  of  the  man  who  took  to  himself  seven  other 
spirits,  it  is  a  mere  illustration,  taken  as  public  speakers  frequently 
do  take  such,  from  the  popular  beliefs,  as  one  might  illustrate  a 
principle  by  reference  to  a  well-knoAvn  fairy  story,  without  in- 
dorsing it. 

10.  That  no  detraction  is  made  from  the  dignity  of  Jesus ;  for 
those  who  hold  this  view,  quite  equally  wnth  their  o])poneiits,  be- 
lieve in  the  divine  power  of  Jesus,  and  that  it  was  quite  as  great  a 
miracle  to  restore  an  insane  man  instantaneously  to  reason,  and 
rectify  the  shocks  his  mind  had  received,  as  it  would  have  been 
to  cast  out  from  the  body  of  a  man  the  wicked  spirit  of  some 
dead  man  who  had  come  to  torment  and  destroy  him. 

Perhai)s  the  strongest  thing  that  can  be  said  on  the  other  side 

is  this  :  That  while  a  perfectly  truthful  person  may  acconnnodate 

himself  to  popular  fancies  and  }»hrascs  under  cir- 

Strong  argument  i  •   i      i  /•  ^       ,r   ^ 

for  first  theory  cumstances  which  do  not  coniirm  hurtiul  error, 
nor  misrepresent  his  own  beliefs, — as  a  scientific 
man  of  to-day  may  speak  of  the  rising  and  the  setting  of  the  sun, 
and  call  deranged  mcnlu?iatics,  although  he  does  not  believe  that 
the  sun  moves  round  the  earth  nor  that  mental  ailments  are  caused 
by  the  moon, — yet  no  truthful  man  would  always  speak  as  if  he 


DEMONIACS. 


179 


adopted  a  theory  which  he  really  believed  to  be  false,  and  knew  to 
be  injurious,  which  is  the  case  with  this  theory  of  demoniacal  pos- 
session. If  untrue,  it  was  a  very  hurtful  superstition,  and  a  great 
and  good  teacher  would  not  have  countenanced  it. 

I  think  that  a  critical  examination  of  all  that  is  said  in  the  New 
Testament  on  this  subject  will  probably  lead  most  candid  readers 
to  the  conclusion  that  a  distinction  is  made  be- 
tween those  who  suffered  merely  from  physical    ^-^^^j^ 
ailments  and  those  who  are  represented  as  demo- 
niacs.    In  the  latter  case  the  patients  seem  to  have  psychical  ail- 
ments which  came  from  physical  disorders.     They  are  troubled 
by  a  sense  of  double  consciousness,  and  distracted  by  what  seems 
a  double  will.     If  paralytics  or  those  who  suffer  neunilgias  have 
their  pains  from  physical  causes,  and  lunatics  theirs  from  mental 
disorders,  it  is  merely  in  accordance  witli  analogy  that  we  sup- 
pose there  are  those  whose  miseries  arise  from  psychical  derange- 
ments, soul-disorders.     If  the  atmosphere  act  On  the  body,  and 
one  mind  on  another,  why  should  not  one  spirit  on  another  spirit  1 
And  this  seems  to  have  been  the  case  with  demoniacs.* 

We  return  now  to  the  demoniac  in  the  synagogue  of  Caper- 
naum. His  symptoms  are  such  as  we  now  see  in  persons  who  are 
known  to  be  insane.   His  insanity  was  by  his  coun- 

,  ,       ,  PI  A     ,1  Demoniac  cured 

trymen  traced  to  the  agency  of  a  demon.  As  the  ^  ^^^  syuagogue. 
insane  are  often  strangely  moved  by  the  presence, 
the  voice,  and  the  words  of  certain  persons,  so  was  this  man 
moved  by  the  intonations  and  language  of  Jesus.  Believing  him- 
self possessed  of  many  devils,  he  suddenly  lost  his  self-control  and 
gave  vent  to  such  a  shriek  of  rage  and  fear  as  such  beings  would 
be  supposed  to  utter  under  the  circumstances,  crying  out  at  first 
inarticulately,  and  then  making  an  appeal  to  Jesus,  and  then  call- 
ing him  "the  Holy  One  of  God."  On  the  theory  of  demons,  they 
recognized  the  holiness  of  Jesus  and  his  powerful  influence,  and 
thus  in  a  paroxysm  of  rage  gave  their  testimony  to  him.  He  de- 
clined it,  but  said  :  "  Hold  thy  peace  and  come  out  of  him."  We 
see  in  our  lunatic  asylums  men  who  are  terribly  ailiicted  with 
moral  insanity,  as  we  call  it,  shomng  all  these  symptoms.     In  the 


*  If  the  reader  wish  to  investigate  this 
subject  further,  he  is  referred  to  Trench 
on  Miracles,  the  chapter  on  ' '  The  De- 
moniacs in  the  Country  of  the   Gada- 


renes ;  "  to  Farmer's  K'<say  on  the  De- 
moniai-.t  of  the  Kew  Testament;  and 
Kitto's  Cyclopaedia,  Art,  "Demoniacs." 


180 


FIEST   A^T)    SECOND   PASSOVEH    IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


days  of  Jesus  they  -would  have  been  said  to  be  possessed  with  an 
unclean  spirit,  or  demon.  In  all  ages,  until  the  tender  and  wise 
teachings  of  Jesus  began  to  prevail  in  the  world,  such  people  were 
objects  of  dread,  and  were  cut  off  from  the  kind  offices  of  soci- 
ety. Jesus  treated  the  case  differently.  He  pitied.  In  his  own 
name  and  by  his  o^VTl  authority  he  pronounced  a  command,  which 
was  followed  by  a  shriek,  and  tlie  maniac  passed  through  a  con- 
vulsion into  health  and  peace.  The  assembled  people  were  aston- 
ished and  delighted.  The  synagogue  broke  up,  and  men  went 
away  wondering  and  praising. 


>c^  -    rtllU!;,!'!'!'!"' •! 


BcnniF.8  Asr>  bookh. 


"^.fT 


CHAPTER   yi. 


THE   FIRST   TOUR   OF    GALILEE. 


Capemauni.  Je- 
sus heals  Simon'  a 
wife's  mother. 


Upon  leaving  the  s^niagogue  Jesus  went  to  the  house  of  Simor: 
Peter,  who  was  a  married  man.*  His  wife's  mother  lay  ill  of  a 
fever.  The  marshes  abont  Capernaum  bred  ma- 
larious diseases,  which  specially  manifested  them- 
selves in  the  autumn  and  winter.  Sometimes  they 
were  light  intermittent,  and  sometimes  violent 
fevers.  Luke,  who  was  a  physician,  seems  to  designate  the  dis- 
ease in  this  case  as  being  of  the  more  ^dolent  kin'd.f  Peter  and 
his  brother  Andrew  had  witnessed  the  miraculous  cure  of  the 
demoniac  in  the  synagogue,  and  besought  Jesus  to  heal  the  sick 
woman  He  came  and  stood  over  her,  and  took  her  hands,  and  in 
the  poetic  language  applied  to  the  cure  of  demoniacs  and  to  the 
stilling  of  the  waves,  he  ^'- rebulced  the  fever,":]:  and  it  left  her  in- 
stantly. She  did  not  convalesce.  She  was  immediately  and  totally 
whole.  She  did  not  pass  through  a  season  of  weakness.  She 
came  back  at  once  to  strength,  and  rose  and  discharged  her  house- 
hokl  duties  by  providing  a  meal  for  her  guests.  It  was  a  festive 
day  for  them. 

This  miracle  and  that  in  the  synagogue  made  Jesus  famous  in 
Capernaum.  Before  the  setting  of  the  sun,  probably  accounts  of 
these  wonders  had  been  rendered  in  every  liouse  in  the  city,  and 


*  And  we  learn  from  1  Cor.  ix.  5,  that 
his  married  state  continued  through  his 
apostolic  ministry.  He  was  much  more 
fortunate  than  Paul. 

f  It  is  not  certain  that  Luke  intended 
to  make  the  distinction  between  the  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  fever,  as  Alford  inti- 
mates that  he  does.  If  he  had  so  in- 
tended would  the  article  have  been 
omitted  in  Luke  iv.  38.  where  it  is  sim- 
ply TxvaiT-yi  fi£yi\u)  ?     It  being   a  violent 


fever  is  sufficient  to  make  this  a  remark- 
able miracle. 

X  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  Jesus  treated 
disease  as  a  hostile  potency,  to  be  "re- 
buked" and  to  be  resisted,  as  though 
sickness  were  somehow  akin  to  sin. 
Early  commentators,  among  them  Cyril 
of  Alexandria,  noticed  the  peculiar  ex- 
pression in  the  original  Greek  as  some- 
how conveying  this  idea. 


182  FIRST   AND   SECQND   PASSOVEK   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

tlie  hearts   of   the  people  were  thrilling  wnth  the  thought  that 

so  marvellous  a  personage  was  residing  in  their 

^Crowds  of  sick    j^^j^ig^^     j^  ^^,^g  ^j^g  Sabbath.      The  strictness  of 

Jewish  observance  of  that  day  is  kno^vn.  It  haa 
been  illustrated  by  divers  incidents  in  the  history  of  the  people, 
but  by  none  perhaps  so  strikingly  as  the  fact  that  in  the  Macca- 
bean  revolt  against  Antiochus  the  insurgents,  who  had  been  sur- 
prised on  the  Sabbath,  tamely  submitted  to  butchery  rather  than 
violate  the  sanctity  of  the  day  by  defensive  warfare.*  But  the 
Sabbath  ended  with  the  sunset.  Admiration  brouorht  crowds  to 
Peter's  house,  and  many  who  were  diseased  came  or  were  brought 
by  their  friends.  The  lame  hobbled  towards  the  Ilealer,  and  the 
blind  came  groping,  and  the  palsied  came  trembling,  and  the  epi- 
leptic brought  his  mysterious  malady,  and  even  "  the  possessed  " 
were  present.  The  streets  about  the  house  were  so  crowded  that 
Peter  felt  that  "  all  the  city  was  gathered  together  at  the  door." 
(Mark  i.  33.)  And  none  went  away  unblessed.  He  laid  his  hands 
on  all.  The  palsy-stricken,  the  man  Mith  the  epilepsy,  the  suf- 
ferers from  chronic  neuralgias,  felt  instant  ease,  refreshment,  and 
health  infused  into  all  parts  of  their  bodies ;  the  deaf  instantly 
heard  the  exclamations  of  the  demoniacs  amidst  the  shouts  of  the 
healed,  the  praises  of  the  disciples,  and  the  murmur  of  the  popu- 
lace ;  and  through  them  all,  like  music  through  a  storm,  swept  the 
voice  of  Jesus,  with  all  authority  and  sweetness,  silencing  demo- 
niacs and  rebuking  disease,  while  eyes  that  had  been  long  blind 
looked  for  the  first  time  upon  the  faces  of  their  friends,  upon  the 
multitude,  and  upon  Jesus,  as  he  stood  in  the  foreground  of  a 
soft  Syrian  sunset. 

Virtue  went  out  of  him  as  it  entered  all  tliese.  He  became  ex- 
hausted and  nervous  and  faint.  (Mark  i.  35.)  And  when  the 
time  for  bed  had  arrived,  after  this  wonderful 

Exhausting  e£-    Sj,]3|3ath,  Jesus  could  not  sleep.     He  rose  in  the 

xfiCtifi  OH  ■IPRIIfl 

night  and  went  out  into  a  solitary  ]ilace  that  he 
might  pray.  AVhen  the  day  had  come,  Peter  and  they  that  were 
with  him  souglit  Jesus,  and  told  him  what  an  excitement  his  deeds 
had  created  among  the  peoj)le,  and  urged  him  to  stay  in  the  city 
and  go  amongst  those  who  so  earnestly  sought  him.  His  reply 
was,  "  Let  us  go  into  the  next  towns,  that  I  may  preach  the  king- 

*  See  Milman'H  CJirisUanitij,  i.  211. 


THE   rmST   TOUR   OF    GALILEE.  183 

dom  of  God  there  also ;  for  therefore  came  I  forth."     Then  com- 
menced his  first  circuit  of  missionary  preaching. 

The  earnest  teacher  "  went  about  all  Galilee,"  as  Matthew  says, 
meaning  probably  Upper  Galilee,  which  formed  the  most  northern 
part  of  Palestine,  embracing  a  tract  of  country 

about   fifty   miles   long   and    twenty-five   broad.       ^^**"  „^^'    "?' 
,  i    1  1  1       -r.1         •   •  1  .1        Mark  1.39;  Luke 

it  was  bounded  on  the  west  by  1  hoBnicia  and  the    ^^  ^^ 

Mediterranean  Sea,  on  the  east  by  the  Jordan 

and  the  Lake  of  Tiberias,  on  the  north  by  Ccele-Syria,  and  on 

the  south  by  Samaria.     It  was  a  fertile  country,  full  of  romantic 

valleys,  and  containing,  it  is  said,  two  hundred  towns  and  villages ; 

and  Josephus  says  ( Wars,  iii.  3,  §  3)  that  the  smallest  contained 

more  than  fifteen  thousand  inhabitants.     The  people  were  earnest, 

intelligent,  and  remarkable  for  their  bravery,  but  despised  by  the 

inhabitants  of  Judsea,  because  their  dialect  was  uncouth  and  the 

land  filled  with  "  Gentiles,"  who  had  been  attracted  thither  by  the 

delightfulness  of  the  country. 

Through  this  region  Jesus  made  a  tour.  He  went  into  the  syn- 
aoroo-ues  and  discharged  the  functions  of  a  rabbi.  In  his  time 
the  rabbi  was  not  a  regularly  graduated  teacher 
of  the  law,  as  somewhat  later,  but  was  still  re-  ^^^^^^  ^""^^^^^ '° 
garded  by  the  people  as  the  successor  of  the 
ancient  prophet.  Jesus  preached  his  doctrine  of  "  the  kingdom," 
and  exerted  his  marvellous  power  of  healing,  so  much  that  by  his 
words  and  deeds  he  created  a  fame  of  himself  that  went  through- 
out all  Syria,  through  Palestine  and  Phoenicia,  carried  probably 
by  the  caravans  that  went  from  Damascus  by  the  Sea  of  Galilee  to 
the  Mediterranean.  Great  multitudes  followed  him  from  all  parts 
of  Galilee,  and  from  the  "  Decapolis  "  (a  region  so  called  from  its 
ten  cities,  which  were  inhabited  mainly  by  Gentiles,  and  is  said 
by  Hitter  to  have  been  founded  by  the  veterans  of  the  army  of 
Alexander),  and  from  the  neighborhood  and  the  city  of  Jerusa- 
lem, and  from  Perea,  beyond  Jordan. 

On  this  journey  occurred,  in  some  town  not  named,  the  healing 
of  a  leper. 

The  leprosy  is  the  most  horrible  of  diseases,  and  all  the  details 
of  its  symptoms  and  effects  strike  our  imaginations  most  painfully. 
Although  not  strictly  exclusively  confined  to  the 
Orient,   it  is   the  special   scourge   of  the  East. 
Wlien  it  first  made  its  appearance  we  shall  probably  never  be  able 


184  FIRST   IlST>   second   PASSOVER   IN   TITE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

to  learn.  Perhaps  the  earliest  recorded  mention  of  this  plague  ia 
in  the  books  of  !Moses.  Of  the  leprosy  in  general  the  origin  is 
readily  found  in  the  nature  of  the  climate  in  eastern  lands.  The 
dryness  and  hotness  of  the  atmosphere  of  Egypt  and  Syria  would 
naturally  generate  cutaneous  diseases,  which,  among  the  lower 
classes,  would  he  aggravated  by  unwholesome  diet  and  the  want 
of  personal  cleanliness.  In  modern  books  of  medicine  a  "  brick- 
layer's itch  "  and  a  "  baker's  itch  "  are  specified. 

Leprosy  appears  under  four  forms — elephantiasis,  black  leprosy, 
red  leprosy,  and  white  leprosy.  The  first  of  these  is  especially 
an  Egyptian  form,  and  is  known  sometimes  by  the  name  ulcus 
yE(jypti.  Its  name  comes  from  the  swelling  and  hardening  of 
the  ankle-joints,  so  that  the  feet  come  to  resemble  the  hoofs  of  the 
elei)hant.  It  produces  melancholy,  sleeplessness,  voracious  hun- 
ger, and  unquenchable  thirst.  It  is  not  rapid.  The  patient  may 
live  twenty  years  in  this  horrible  condition,  and  then  die  of  suf- 
focation. The  white  leprosy  is  known  as  the  hpra  Mosaica^  and 
is  described  with  a  minuteness  that  is  painful  in  Leviticus  xiii. 

Yery  great  diversity  of  opinion  has  existed  on  the  question  of 
the  contagiousness  of  the  leprosy.  Dean  Alford  and  Arehl)ishop 
Trench  deny  that  it  is  contagious.  They  cite  the 
J^  *'*'°*^'"''"  «ase  of  Naaman  (2  Kings  v.),  who  while  he  was 
a  leper  held  place  at  court  and  commanded  the 
forces  of  the  Syrian  king  ;  and  also  the  case  of  Gehazi  (2  Kings 
viii.),  who,  while  he  was  an  incurable  leper,  held  familiar  conver- 
sation with  the  king  of  Israel.  The  leper's  exclusion  these  learned 
authors  assign  to  the  fact  that  he  was  cereTnonially  unclean. 
Modern  travellers  and  writers  tell  us  that  in  Palestine  it  is  still  an 
open  question  whether  mere  contact  will  communicate  the  disease ; 
but  all  the  police  regulations  about  Jerusalem  and  Damascus,  and 
even  auKjiig  the  Arabs,  show  that  there  is  a  dread  of  touching 
lepers.  They  are  excluded  from  the  camp  and  city,  are  separated 
from  their  kinspeople  and  acquaintances,  and  live  in  a  commu- 
nity of  wretcliedness, having  no  ccMnpanionship  but  that  of  sufferers 
afflicted  like  themselves.  But  it  is  "  hereditary,  with  an  awfully 
infallible  certainty."  *     The  child  of  leprous  parents  may  exhibit 

*  Dr.   Thomson'rt  Tlie  Dmd  and  the  tancously,    without    hereditary   or  any 

Pook,  vol.  ii.  p.  519.     This  author  says  other  possible    connection  with    thow 

also,  that "  fresh  cases  appear  from  time  previously  diseafled." 
to  time,  in  which  it  seems  to  arise  spon- 


THE  FIRST  TOUR   OF   GALILEE.  185 

all  the  usual  sweetness  of  infancy  and  be  bright  and  beautifiil ; 
but  just  as  certainly  as  it  lives  it  will  begin  to  show  the  terrify- 
ing signs  of  the  horrible  disease,  and  will  finally  perish  of  a  malady 
which  medical  science  has  discovered  no  skill  to  cure  and  almost 
none  to  mitio^ate. 

The  symptoms  and  the  effects  of  this  disease  are  very  loath- 
some.    There  comes  a  white  swelling  or  scab,  with  a  change  of 

the  color  of  the  hair  on  the  part  from  its  natural 

1  11  1  1  p  Symptoms. 

hue  to  yellow;  then  the  appearance  of  a  tamt 

going  deeper  than  the  skin,  or  raw  flesh  appearing  in  the  swell- 
ing. Then  it  spreads  and  attacks  the  cartilaginous  portions  of 
the  body.  The  nails  loosen  and  drop  off,  the  gums  are  absorbed, 
and  the  teeth  decay  and  fall  out ;  the  breath  is  a  stench,  the  nose 
decays ;  fingers,  hands,  feet,  may  be  lost,  or  the  eyes  eaten  out. 
The  human  beauty  has  gone  into  corruption,  and  the  patient  f  eelh 
that  he  is  being  eaten  as  by  a  fiend,  who  consumes  him  slowly  in 
a  long  remorseless  meal  that  will  not  end  until  he  be  destroyed. 
He  is  shut  out  from  his  fellows.  As  they  approach  he  must  cry, 
"  Unclean  !  unclean ! "  that  all  humanity  may  be  warned  from 
his  precincts.  He  must  abandon  wife  and  child.  He  must  go 
to  live  with  other  lepers,  in  disheartening  view  of  miseries  similar 
to  his  own.  He  must  dwell  in  dismantled  houses  or  in  the  tombs. 
He  is,  as  Trench  says,  a  dreadful  parable  of  death.  By  the  laws 
of  Moses  (Lev.  xiii.  45  ;  Num.  vi.  9  ;  Ezek.  xxiv.  17)  he  was  com- 
pelled, as  if  he  were  mourning  for  his  own  decease,  to  bear  about 
him  the  emblems  of  death,  the  rent  garments ;  he  was  to  keep  his 
head  bare  and  his  lip  covered,  as  was  the  custom  with  those  who 
were  in  communion  with  the  dead.  "When  the  Crusaders  brouo-ht 
the  leprosy  fi'om  the  East,  it  was  usual  to  clothe  the  leper  in  a 
shroud,  and  to  say  for  him  the  masses  for  the  dead.* 

In  all  ages  this  indescribably  horrible  malady  has  been  con- 
sidered incurable.  The  Jews  believed  that  it  was  inflicted  by 
Jehovah  directly,  as  a  punishment  for  some  extra- 
ordinary perversity  or  some  transcendent  act  of  ^"*  ®* 
sinfulness,  and  that  only  God  could  heal  it.  "When  Naaman  was 
cured,  and  his  flesh  came  back  like  that  of  a  little  child,  he  said, 
"  Now  I  know  that  there  is  no  God  in  all  the  earth  but  in  Israel." 
(2  Kings  V.  14,  15.)     It  was  to  be  the  test  of  the  Messiah,  the 

*  Trench  on  Miracles,  p.  176. 


186 


FIRST   A2W   SECOND   PASSOTER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


Deliverer  sent  out  from  Jehovah,  that  he  sliould  he  al)le  to  cure 
the  leprosy.  Cyril  of  Alexandria  calls  it  7ra^o<?  ovk  iuo-i/mov,  the  in- 
curable disease.  The  report  of  it  struck  horror  into  the  minds 
of  peoples  afar.  The  Greek  poet  ^schylus  *  has  a  few  powerful 
lines  in  which  he  describes  the  s^nnptoms,  and  dwells,  as  Closes 
did,  upon  the  fact  of  the  spreading  energy  of  the  evil,  and  makes 
that  an  argument  for  the  theory  that  the  leprosy  was  the  special 
scourge  of  God.  Tacitus  f  describes  the  Jews  as  "  a  race  detested 
by  the  gods,"  saying  that  when  they  were  in  Egypt  they  all  had 
the  leprosy,  and  that  when  the  king  inquired  of  Jupiter  Ammon 
how  the  kingdom  could  be  freed  from  this  great  calamity,  he  was 
told  that  it  could  be  effected  only  by  dri^^ng  this  wretched  race 
from  the  country. 

Such  is  the  leprosy,  and  such  were  lepers  in  the  days  of  Je- 
sus. Other  sufferers  had  sympathy  and  help.  The  leper  was 
regarded  as  stricken  of  God,  smitten  of  Tlim,  and  afflicted  by 
nim.ij:  No  one  sat  by  his  couch  of  pain ;  no  hand  touched  his 
brow  with  cooling  moisture ;  no  kiss  of  love  ever  distilled  itself  on 
his  lips. 

A  poor  wretch  corroded  with  leprosy  had  heard  of  the  power 

and  goodness  of  Jesus,  whose  reputation  had  gone  down  among 

^    ,         the  outcasts  in  the  tombs.     He  came  near  the 

Jesus    heals    a  . 

leper.  Matt.  viiL  wonder- worker,  and  kneeled,  and  fell  on  his  face, 
1^;  Mark  i.  40-  and  worshipped,  and  said  with  extraordinary  faith 
45;  Luke  v.  12-  r^^^j  pathos,  "  Tliou  canst  make  me  clean,  if  thou 
wilt."  The  historians  of  the  New  Testament  tell 
this  story  with  a  calmness  which  seems  itself  miraculous.  We 
ordinary  historians  are  moved  by  the  touching  postures,  and  acts, 
and  fancied  accents  of  these  two  men.  Laying  all  dogmas  aside, 
here  is  a  historic  group  of  profound  and  powerful  poetic  interest. 
Standing  there  is  a  young  teacher,  who  has  aroused  the  dull  ears 
of  ploflding,  stupid,  ritualistic  religionists  of  his  day,  and  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  fashionable,  the  gay,  the  heathen  rulers  of  his 
people,  and  of  the  busy  merchants  intent  on  trade.  A  populous 
region  begins  to  be  full  of  his  praises.  lie  is  stirring  his  jioople 
and  his  age  by  religious  views  the  most  practical,  full  of  common 


•  iEsch.,  Charph.,  271-274. 
f  Tacitus,  Ann.,  lib.  v. 
X  In  quoting  from  Isaiah  the  phrases 
usually  underNtood  to  be  i^rophetic  of 


' '  the  Christ,"  I  am  reminded  of  a  strange 
old  Jewish  tradition  that  the  Mo&siah 
was  to  be  a  leper. 


THE   FIRST   TOUE   OF    GALILEE.  187 

sense,  adapted  to  human  wants,  yet  lofty  and  spiritual,  and  uttered 
in  a  tone  of  paramount  authority.  His  life  is  blamelessly  pure. 
The  innocency  of  infancy,  the  tenderness  of  womanhood,  the 
strength  of  manhood,  the  gravity  of  a  sage,  the  endurance  of  a 
martyr,  and  the  daring  of  a  hero  must  have  been  the  mingled 
elements  of  his  aspect  and  his  manners.  Serene  and  lofty  and 
sweet,  Jesus  stands,  while  at  his  feet  a  leper  lies,  disgusting, 
loathsome,  rotten.  He  has  been  burning  with  fever  for  many 
years,  for  he  is  "  full  of  leprosy."  It  is  in  his  blood  and  flesh, 
a  fi-et  and  a  torment.  He  has  no  hope  fi-om  medicine  or  nursing. 
He  can  look  forward  only  to  a  death-in-life  existence,  whose  nights 
shall  be  filled  with  dreams  that  scare  and  visions  that  terrify 
(Job  vii.),  and  whose  mornings  shall  be  an  awakening  to  face  an 
approaching  and  inevitable  doom.  This  is  his  only,  his  last 
chance.  He  has  heard  of  the  mighty  deeds  of  Jesus.  His  faith 
in  the  jpoicer  of  Jesus  is  unfaltering.  The  Messiah  will  be  a 
leper-curer.  This  is  the  Messiah.  He  can.  Will  he  ?  That  is 
the  question.  If  the  goodness  of  this  wonderful  Rabbi  be  equal 
to  his  power  the  leper  will  be  saved.  But  perhaps  the  leprosy  is 
the  one  evil  God  has  determined  not  yet  to  remedy,  and  this, 
after  all,  may  not  be  the  Messiah. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  all  these  thoughts  passed  through  the 
mind  of  the  sufferer.  He  saw  in  fancy  his  home,  his  wife,  his 
babes,  and  all  that  makes  the  home  circle  powerful  in  its  attrac- 
tions. If  the  Great  Teacher  should  cure  him  he  should  go  back 
to  all  those  dear  delights.  If  he  refused,  then  the  tombs  and 
wretched  companionship  and  despair  ! 

^VUl  he  ?     Let  us  look  up  from  the  suppliant  to  that  face  of 

lofty  lovingness.     Jesus  is  moved — moved  with  compassion.     Xo 

one  else  had  ever  felt  so  for  the  leper.     All  others 

had  been  moved,  but  it  had  been  with  diso-ust  or    ^,    ,     , 

'  o  the  healer. 

horror.  The  brow  of  Jesus  lifts  itself.  The 
eyes  of  the  teacher  soften  and  brighten.  His  hands  stir  slightly. 
His  lips  quiver  with  emotion.  His  frame  is,  perhaps,  agitated. 
All-health,  unbroken  Wliolesomeness,  untainted  Physical  Purity, 
stands  face  to  face  with  Disease  and  Corruption.  It  is  a  moment 
of  critical  conflict.  He  is  about  to  speak  a  word  which  is  to  be 
decisive  of  his  power  or  his  feebleness.  There  can  be  no  half- 
success.  It  will  be  complete,  and  surpass  in  its  effects  all  other 
words  that  ever  passed  hmnan  lips,  or  be  instantly  followed  by  a 


188  FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESrS. 

surrender  of  moral  power.  ITe  dares  to  utter  that  word,  and 
does  it  with  elevated  calmness,  fearless  of  ceremonial  impurity 
or  infectious  disease.  Stepping  forward,  he  breaks  through  the 
whole  ceremonial  law  that  severed  this  abject  sufferer  from  de- 
cent people,  and  laying  his  fingei*s  on  the  hot  head  of  the  tln-ob- 
bing  leper,  thrilled  the  sufferer  with  a  delicious  sensation,  and 
into  his  ears,  all  stuffed  with  matter  of  corruption,  shot  the  music 
of  the  simple  speech  of  love  and  power :  "  I  will :  be  clean." 
More  quickly  than  can  be  written  the  man  at  his  feet  felt  new 
fountains  of  health  created  at  his  heart,  new  blood  coursing 
through  his  veins,  new  flesh  as  of  a  babe's  pushing  the  rottenness 
from  off  his  bones,  and  he  arose,  shook  himself,  sloughed  off  his 
leprosy,  and  stood  out  clean. 

Immediately'   upon   the   performance   of   this    miracle    Jesus 

charged  the  healed  man  not  to  make  it  known  until  he  had  gone 

to  the  priest,  and  offered  for  his  cleansing  those 

ai^o    esus    {^ijij^fyg -^yiij^^.}^  ;;\j;Qgeg  j^^d  commanded  "  for  a  tes- 
te the  healed  man.  " 

timony  unto  them,"  says  Mark  (i.  44).  The  Jew- 
ish law  at  that  time  was  that  if  a  pei-son  should  be  restored  from 
the  leprosy  he  should  be  examined  by  the  priest  of  his  district. 
After  seven  days  he  underwent  a  second  examination,  pei-f(irmed 
a  lustration,  and  then  went  to  Jerusalem,  where  he  offered  a  pre- 
scribed sacrifice  and  was  pronounced  clean.  There  were  slight 
forms  of  leprosy,  as  still  may  be  found  in  Palestine,  which  were 
curable.  The  sanitary  regulations  referred  to  these.  But  still,  as 
they  Avere  forms  of  leprosy,  the  separation  had  to  be  made.  Seat- 
ed leprosy  was  considered  incurable,  and,  until  the  days  of  Jesus, 
no  cure  is  recorded  except  of  those  who  were  miraculously 
healed  in  the  times  of  the  prophets.  Generally  Jesus  enjoined 
silence  u]wn  those  whom  he  restored,  and  the  reasons  are  api>ar- 
ent.  The  importance  of  his  ministry,  as  is  always  the  case  with 
great  men,  lay  in  his  spiritual  influence  rather  than  in  the  mere 
words  and  acts  which  conveyed  it.  His  miracles  were  only  acces- 
sories. For  the  sj)i ritual  as  well  as  physical  good  of  the  restored  ho 
commanded  quiet.  Nor  did  he  desire  to  have  his  deeds  so  bruited 
abroad  as  that  his  ministry  should  be  obstructed  by  great  crowds, 
nor  such  enthusiasm  generated  as  should  lead  to  mobs  or  political 
complications.  These  were  general  prudential  reasons.  In  one 
case,  at  least  (Mark  v.  0),  m-c  shall  find  that  ho  gave  an  ojijiosite 
direction.     But  in  each  case,  in. addition  to  the  general,  there  wae 


THE   FIRST   TOTJE   OF   GALILEE.  189 

a  special  reason.  The  priest  had  pronounced  him  a  leper :  if  the 
priest,  unmoved  by  the  knowledge  that  Jesus  had  cleansed  liim, 
should  pronounce  him  healed,  the  "  testimony  to  them  "  would  be 
complete  that  Jesus  had  really  performed  this  wonderful  deed 
and  had  thus  established  his  claims  to  the  Messiahship. 

But  the  glad  and  grateful  man  could  not  be  restrained.     He 
blazed  the  matter  abroad  so  much  that  crowds 
came  Hocking  to  Jesus,  until  he  was  compelled  to      J^sus  withdraws 

•^11  ^  '         ^f    '    .  ^.  ■,  .      -,     irom  the  public. 

Withdraw   hnnseli   into   a   solitary  place.     And 

there  for  some  days  he  refreshed  his  soul  by  devotional  exercises. 
It  w^as  needful,  for  trouble  was  brewing  for  the  great  teacher. 
A  Messiah  that  removed  himself  from  the  public  was  not  the 
Messiah  for  the  Jews.  He  returned  to  his  chosen 
home  in  Capernaum.  His  fame  had  grown  in  his  ,/^f*^*^'..^^"  ^~^' 
absence.  People  flocked  to  the  house  he  occupied.  Luke  v  17-26  "^ ' 
Whether  it  was  a  residence  he  had  hired,  or  one  that 
belonged  to  some  disciple,  we  cannot  learn.  But  it  was  known  to 
the  inhabitants  of  Capernaum,  and  to  the  strangers  therein.  He 
commenced  teaching.  Among  his  hearers  were  certain  Phari- 
sees and  doctors  of  the  law,  wiio  had  come  down  from  Jerusalem. 
It  is  not  quite  easy  to  determine  the  motives  of  these  listeners. 
They  may  have  been  drawn  by  the  fame  of  Jesus,  or  they  may 
have  been  emissaries  come  to  collect  testimony  against  the  young 
rabbi  who  had  made  such  a  commotion  on  his  visit  to  Jerusalem. 
Both  classes  probably  were  represented  in  this  assembly,  for  Luke 
intimates  that  he  healed  some,*  while  some  were  severely  critical 
upon  his  mode  of  expression  in  a  miracle  which  he  performed  in 
their  midst.     The  miracle  was  on  this  wise : 

Four  men  brought  upon  a  pallet  their  friend,  who  was  a  paraly- 
tic. The  entrance  to  Oriental  houses  is  ordinarily  by  the  one  front 
door.  This  was  blocked  by  the  excessive  crowd, 
so  that  it  was  impracticable  to  press  through;  '^^^^  ^^^^  * 
but  the  desire  of  these  men,  increased  probably  ^^  ^  ^°' 
by  the  urgency  of  the  patient,  was  so  great  that  they  ascended 
the  roof,  probably  through  the  adjoining  house,  and,  crossing  the 
parapet,  either  removed  the  hatchway,  if  Jesus  was  sitting  in  the 

*  The  construction  here  is  a  little  i  these  Pharisees  and  doctors,  as  on  its 
difficult.  The  avTovs  in  the  original  has  face  it  seems  to  do,  for  there  was  noth- 
no  grammatical  antecedent.  It  is  rather  .  ing  in  their  cases  to  make  them  recep- 
tmnatural  to   interpret  it  as  meaning  ( tive  of  his  curative  power. 


190  FIRST   AND   SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

upper  chamber  or  removed  tlie  awning,  if  Jesus  was  sitting  in  the 
court-vard.  In  readin^r  the  statement  of  the  evauirelical  liisto- 
rians  we  must  recollect  the  construction  of  eastern  houses.  What 
might  be  impossible  as  European  and  American  liouscs  are  built  in 
our  cities  was  not  an  insuperable  difficulty  in  the  East.  But  it  was  a 
difficulty ;  and  when  Jesus  saw  the  earnestness  of  all  parties  he  said 
to  the  pui-alytic,  "  Son,  be  of  good  cheer ;  thy  sins  are  forgiven  thee." 
llow  much  depends  upon  a  little  word !  This  speech  by  Jesus 
was  the  turning-point  in  liis  history.  If  he  had  said,  "  May  thy 
sins  be  foi-given,"  he  would  simply  have  uttered 
po  ceo  a  ^^^  as2)iration  of  piety.  But  undcrtaldug  to  de- 
clare upon  his  own  individual  authority  the  for- 
giveness of  the  man's  sins,  in  other  words,  for(/iving  him,  he  vol- 
untarily took  a  vast  step  forward,  ascended  to  a  higlier  and  more 
conspicuous  platform  of  claim,  and  aroused  against  himself  all 
the  philosophic,  religious,  and  traditionary  prejudices  of  liis  peo- 
ple. It  was  the  commission  of  a  most,  if  not  the  most,  grievous 
crime  known  to  the  Jews.  It  was  hlasphemy.  It  was  a  claim  to 
exercise  the  prerogative  of  God.  It  was  making  himself  equal 
with  God.  It  was  making  himself  God.  And  there  Avas  no  re- 
treat for  Jesus.  He  had  said  it.  The  learned  visitors  sat  reason- 
ing with  themselves,  "  Who  can  forgive  sins  but  God  only  ? " 
Jesus  read  their  thoughts,  and  manifested  his  penetration  by  tell- 
ing them  just  what  was  passing  in  their  minds. 

He  proceeded  to  establish  this  awful  claim.  Any  fool  or  crazy 
man  may  claim  anything  which  is  not  susceptible  of  proof  or  dis- 
proof. What  evidence  is  furnished  that  heaven 
ratifies  the  assertion  of  any  human  being  that  the 
sins  of  another  human  being  are  forgiven?  It  is  a  pertinent 
question.  The  claim  may  be  at  once  futile  and  sinful.  Jesus 
asked  them  this  question :  "Which  is  easier — to  sa}'  '  Thy  sins  are 
forgiven,'  or  to  say  'Eise,  take  tliy  bed  and  walk?'  "  To  forgive 
sins  is  not  less  diflicult  than  to  heal  disease,  to  one  who  can  do 
both ;  but  it  is  less  easy  of  proof,  as  the  latter  is  open  to  the  senses. 
But  ncitlier  can  be  done  without  the  will  of  God,  and  God  Mill 
not  indorse  blasphemy  by  a  mii-acle,  and  therefore  Jesus  said  to 
them,  "  That  you  may  know  that  I  have  power  to  forgive  sins, 
listen  and  behold."  Aiul  turning  to  the  sick  man  he  said,  "Rise, 
take  up  your  bed,  aiul  go  to  your  own  house."  There  was  no 
struggle,  no  slow  stretching  of  himself,  no  painful  effort  to  drag 


THE   rmST   TOUE   OF   GALILEE.  191 

himself  and  his  pallet  through  the  crowd.  Immediately  he  stood 
up  before  them,  he  gathered  up  that  on  which  he  had  been  lying 
and  started  for  his  home.  The  crowd  disparted.  They  made  way 
for  this  new  wonder.  The  man  went  home  shouting.  Amaze- 
ment, fear,  and  gladness  took  hold  of  the  people.  The  great 
power  of  God  had  come  down  among  men. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  how  Jesus,  in  the  methods  of  this  miracle,  sets 
forth  the  close  connection  between  an  unwholesome  spiritual  con- 
dition  and   the   physical  maladies  of  mankind. 
TT     .        .         T  1  •(!   -.  •        Body  and  soul. 

He  treats  a  disease  somehow  as  ii  it  were  a  sin. 

"  Your  sins  are  forgiven,  rise  up,  go  home."  In  this  case,  as  per- 
haps invariably  in  cases  of  paralysis,  some  sin,  some  excessive 
self-indulgence,  hes  at  the  root  of  this  bodily  disablement.  Jesus 
Is  compassionate  to  the  sufferer,  but  honest  with  the  sinner.  He 
addresses  him  tenderly  but  faithfully.  He  calls  him  "  son,"  but 
gives  him  to  understand  that  his  sympathy  with  suffering  does 
not  for  a  moment  blind  him  to  the  badness  of  the  sin  from  which 
it  sprang  So  indescribably  sublime  was  the  self-possession  of 
Jesus  that  no  crisis  threw  him  from  his  balance,  and  yet  so  obvious 
is  it  that  he  never  thinks  of  self-possession  and  mental  equipoise. 
His  greatness  inheres. 

Shortly  after  the  healing  of  the  paralytic  Jesus  was  found  at 
the  sea-side,  teaching  multitudes  who  gathered  about  him. 

Making  a  short  excursion  from  Capernaum  along  the  Lake  of 
Gennesaret,  discoursing  on  religious   subjects,  he   came   to   the 
road  from  Damascus,  which,  crossing  the  Jordan 
by  "Jacob's  Bridge,"  went  along  the  lake  coast  to       Matthew's  call. 

,/  -11.  -J  r^     ^^  ■  1  r^  ^^tt.  ix.  ;     Luke 

the  neigli  boring  cities.     Un  this  road,  near  Caper-    ^  .  -^^^  ^ 

naum  or  some  other  town,  it  is  quite  probable 
there  would  be  a  toll-house.  Such  a  station  somewhere  Jesus 
came  upon,  and  there  found  Mattuew,  called  also  Levi,  who  was 
discharging  the  duties  of  a  'Roman  j)oriitor,  or  tax-gatherer,  com- 
monly called  "  publican  "  in  our  version.  It  was  the  most  degrad- 
ing employment  in  which  a  Jew  could  be  found.  It  was  making 
liimself,  for  gain,  a  servant  of  the  oppressor  of  his  people.  Jesus 
seems  to  have  known  him.  He  simply  said  to  him,  "  Follow  me," 
and  Matthew  immediately  obeyed.  Here  was  another  shock  given 
to  Jewish  prejudice.  It  was  intolerable  that  he  should  select  his 
circle  of  nearest  friends  and  disciples  from  men  whose  reputation 
was  so  ruinously  bad. 


192 


FIEST   Ain)    SECONT)   TASSOVEK   IN   TITE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


Matthew's  feast. 


But  something  more  was  done,  probably  on  tliat  very  day,  to  in- 
tensify the  growing  opposition.  The  newly  called  disciple  made 
a  great  feast  at  his  house.  All  his  old  companions 
were  welcome  to  his  table.  On  this  day  he  must 
have  consulted  Jesus,  who  did  not  object  to  dining  with  publicans 
and  those  technically  called  sinners  by  the  scientifically  religious 
Pharisees.  And  so  there  was  a  great  crowd  of  bad  men,  and  Jesus 
and  his  disciples  eating  with  them.  This  seemed  the  crowning 
outrage.  lie  had  pronounced  a  man  forgiven  who  had  not  gone 
through  the  ritual,  thus  bursting  the  bands  of  sacerdotal  succes- 
sion and  ecclesiastical  exclusiveness.  lie  then  broke  down  the 
pales  of  social  life,  which  were  also  themselves  of  ecclesiastical 
construction.  The  Pharisees  remonstrated  with  his  disciples. 
But  when  Jesus  heard  it  he  said  to  them,  with  splendid  irony, 
''  They  that  are  whole  need  not  a  physician,  but  they  that  are 
sick.  Go  learn  what  God  meant  when  he  spake  by  his  prophet, 
'  I  will  have  mercy  aiid  not  sacrifice.'  (Ilosea  vi.  6.)  And  I  am 
not  come  to  call  the  righteous,  but  sinnei-s,  to  repentance." 

His  reply  was  silencing  to  the  Pharisees,  and  should  be  instruc- 
tive to  people  of  all  ages.     It  first  quotes  the  proverb,  "  The  physi- 
cian is  not  for  the  whole,  but  for  the  sick,"  which 

1.   i.1,^  fju°  •  ^^^    was  known  to  Jews  and  Gentiles,  and  is  of  uni- 
te the  Pharisees.  ,    '    _ 

versal  use.*  It  was  employed  ironically  against 
these  Pharisees.  They  were  as  unsound  as  the  sinners  that  sat  at 
meat  with  him,  the  difference  being  that  the  latter  knew  them- 
selves sin-sick  and  the  former  did  not.  Seriously,  the  place  for 
the  physician  is  in  the  wards  of  the  hospital,  and  not  in  the  crowd 
of  hearty,  healthy  laborers.  The  man  whose  purity  and  exaltation 
of  character  are  not  such  as  will  draw  the  low  to  his  higher  plat- 
form, and  not  be  degraded  to  theirs,  is  not  the  man  to  be  even  a 
Moral  Reformer,  not  to  say  a  Great  Regenerator.  Men  cannot 
from  great  distances  do  good  to  their  fellow-men.  It  is  amid  the 
amenities  of  social  life  that  much  is  done  for  good  morals. 

And  then  he  quoted  from  their  sacred  books :  "  I  will  have 
mercy  and  not  sacrifice,"  says  God.  When  afflictions  come  in 
Ilis  providence  they  may  have  a  chastening  effect ;  but  lacerations 
of  oureelves  or  others,  of  our  bodies  or  our  souls,  are  not  accept- 


*  It  is  found  in  tho  Talmud  {Tal. 
B"f>j/l.,  tit.  Bora  Kama,  fol.  46,  col.  2). 
Ubed  by  Antisthenes  in  Laertius,  Dio- 


genes in  StobffiUB,  Pausauias  in  Plutarch, 
Ovid  in  "  De  Ponto." 


THE   FIKST   TO  UK    OF    GALILEE.  193 

able  to  God,  who  prefers  a  life  of  love  to  all  self-tormenting. 
Jesus  seems  to  teach  that  whatever  sacrifice  a  man  may  make  fcj* 
God,  if  there  be  no  charity,  it  all  counts  for  nothing  ;  that  cliarity 
must  animate  all  toils  to  make  them  beautiful  in  the  sight  of  God. 
As  if  he  had  said,  "  You  Pharisees  offer  great  sacrifices,  and  yet 
are  unmerciful  to  your  poor  brethren  who  make  no  religious  pro- 
fession.    You  are  merciless  ;  how  can  you  expect  mercy  ?  " 

From  the  proverb  and  the  scripture  he  ascends  to  an  authorita- 
tive declaration  concerning  himself :  "  I  am  come  to  call  sinners 
to  repentance,  not  the  righteous."  In  this  there  seems  some  irony, 
but  the  proposition  involves  a  profound  truth.  In  every  age, 
from  every  teacher,  only  those  receive  benefit  who  are  conscious 
of  needing  help.  The  Pharisees  of  every  age  are  those  whose  ex- 
terior deceives  them  as  to  their  inward  condition,  and  they  are 
the  very  people  who  receive  the  least  good  from  the  beneficial 
agencies  abroad  in  the  world.  Sinners,  who  being  sinners,  know 
themselves  to  be  sinnei*8,  are  those  to  whom  salvation  comes.  It 
is  not  the  lack  of  power  in  the  spiritual  agencies  that  keeps  men 
from  being  good,  but  generally  the  lack  of  a  sense  of  their  own 
need,  and  a  willingness  to  throw  themselves  open  to  the  sweet  in- 
fluences of  the  spiritual  world.  And  thus  he  answered  the 
Pharisees. 

They  had  talked  to  his  disciples ;  then  the  disciples  of  John 

talked  to  him,  and  said,  "  We  and  the  Pharisees  fast  often  :  why 

do  not  your  disciples  fast?"     Let  us  make  all 

„  p     1       •,      p        .1  mi     •  John's  disciples 

allowance  or  chanty  tor  these  men.     1  heirs  was    ^y^^^^ 

a  pitiable  condition.  Their  master  was  in  prison, 
and  they  could  not  bear  to  see  Jesus  in  the  midst  of  festivities. 
Their  school  had  wellnigh  broken  up.  Many  of  John's  disciples 
had  attached  themselves  to  Jesus.  There  were  probably  a  few  of 
the  stanchest  and  most  obstinate  followers  of  the  Baptist,  who 
were  ready  to  acknowledge  what  was  good  in  Jesus,  but  clung 
closely  to  the  modes  and  teachings  of  John,  and  in  their  obstinacy 
classed  themselves  with  the  Pharisees.  After  such  numberless 
demonstrations  of  the  folly  of  such  a  course,  it  is  amazing  how 
men  persist  in  clinging  to  the  dawn,  and  in  suffering  as  it  broad- 
ens into  the  fulness  of  the  day.  Jesus  answered  them  by  almost 
echoing  the  words  of  their  great  master.  John  liad  spoken  of  the 
pleasure  which  the  friend  of  the  bridegroom  enjoyed  as  he  heard 
the  voice  of  the  bridegroom.  Jesus  replies  to  these  querulous  dis- 
13 


194  FIRST   AND    SECOND    PASSOVER   IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESL'S. 

ciples  of  John,  "  Can  the  sons  of  the  bi-idechamher  mouni,  as 
long  as  the  bridegroom  is  M'ith  them  ?  but  the  days  will  come, 
when  the  bridegroom  shall  be  taken  from  them,  and  then  shall 
the  J  fast.     Kg  man  putteth   a  patch  of  new  cloth  unto  an  old 

garment;  for  that  which  is  ])nt, 
in  to  fill  it  up  taketh  fntm  tlie 
garment,  and  the  rent  is   made 
worse.      Neither    do  men   pour 
new   wine   mto  old   skins:   else 

nmneth  out,  and  the  skins  perish  :  but  they  put  now  wine  into 
new  skins,  and  both  are  preserved." 

He  thus  does  several  things  in  one  reply.  lie  reminds  them  of 
the  light  in  which  their  master  had  received  him,  namely,  as  ful- 

^  filling  the  prophecies  by  coming  to  espouse  the 

epyo  esus.  |^j.j^|g  (Isai.  liv,  5-10.)  It  ought  to  be  a  festive 
season.  The  gladdest  day  of  a  man's  life  should  be  the  day  of 
his  nuptials.  The  disciples  were  represented  as  the  intimate 
fi-iends  of  the  bridegroom,  those  Avho  were  accustomed  to  go  with 
him  to  the  bride's  house  to  bring  her  to  her  home  with  great  re- 
joicings. It  was  not  meet  tliat  they  should  fast,  for  it  was  the 
Jewish  teaching,  as  we  learn  from  Maimonides,  "  that  all  fasting 
should  cease  in  the  days  of  the  Messiah,  and  tliat  tliere  should  be 
then  only  holidays  and  festivals,  as  it  is  wi-itten  in  Zechariah 
viii.  19." 

He  reminds  them  of  the  difference  between  the  old  and  the 

new.     The  old  must  pass  away.     He  was  come  to  inaugurate 

^,      , ,      ,  .      the  new.     In  the  old  hard  dispensation  there  were 
The  old  and  the     »     ^  ,  ,  ,,  /.mi 

jjg^^  last-days,  when  all  must  fast.     There  was  to  be 

nothing  of  the  kind  thereafter.     It  is  amazinsr 

^-^  CD 

how  this  is  overlocjked  by  Church  and  by  State  in  the  absui-d  ap- 
pointing of  special  days  when  all  the  community  must  fa.'^t  or 
feast  togetlior.  'What  is  one  man's  fast  may  be  another  man's 
festival.  When  a  man  has  the  sense  of  his  Maker's  love  and 
presence — his  Maker  is  In's  liusband,  according  to  the  old  Hebrew 
idea — he  has  no  occasion  to  fast.  As  long  as  that  remains  he 
should  keep  perpetual  holiday.  It  is  only  a  sense  of  His  absence 
that  should  make  a  man  fast,  and  that  might  befall  him  on  an 
ai)j)ointcd  festival. 

And  so,  having  spoken  of  a  wedding,  garments  and  wine  are 


THE   FIRST   TOUR   OF   GALILEE. 


195 


naturally  suggested,  and  from  them  he  derives  two  very  striking 
illustrations  of  the  proposition,  that  it  is  prepos- 
terous to  attempt  to  work  the  new  into  the  old,    ^^^strations. 
the  new  Present  into  tlie  old  Past,  the  new  Jesusism  into  the  old 
Judaism.     A  man  does  not  put  a  patch  of  new  cloth  on  an  old 
worn  garment,  lest  the  strong  patch  tear  away  the  weak  cloth  in 
whicli  it  is  inserted,  and  thus  the  rent  become  larger.     Jesusism 
is  to  be  a  totally  new  thing.     It  is  not  to  be  worked  into  the  cere- 
monials of  Judaism.     It  is  to  be   quite  a  new  robe,  all  new. 
There  is  no  more  need  of  the  old  Judaism.     You  may  give  it 
away  to  poor  beggarly  creatures  who  may  be  content  to  cover 
their  nakedness  with  the  faded  spangles  and  rent  skirts  of  its 
threadbare  ritualism,  but  the  new  ages  are  to  wear  a  new  dress. 
And  how  greatly  every  effort  of  the  later  times  to  make  the  work 
of  Jesus  a  mere  improvement  upon  Judaism,  has  made  the  whole 
matter  worse.      Jesus  swept  away  old  things;  "old  types,  old 
ceremonies,  old  burdens,  sacrifices,  priests,  sabbaths,  and  holy 
days  are  all  passed  away:  behold  all  things  have  become  new."  * 
It  was  the  style  of  Jesus  to  advance  from  some  thought  sug- 
gested by  an  occurrence,  or  question,  or  objection,  to  higher  and 
higlier  truths,  drawing  men  up  to  spiritual  things 
by  the  ordinary  methods  of  human  intercomrauni-     ■^^^^^''  *'^*'^^- 
cation.     The  garment  is  external.     Wine  in  the  skins  f  is  some- 
thing internal.     If  these  skins  Nvere  old,  the  new  and  fermenting 
wine  would  burst  them,  so  that  the  wine  m-ouM  be  lost  and  the 
bottle  be  rendered  worthless.     Just  such  a  result,  Jesus  taught, 
would  take  place  when  men  attempted  to  put  the  new  wine  of 
his  gospel  into  the  old  bottles  of  ceremonials  :  the  whole  would  be 
lost.     Yery  early  men  tried  to  hold  the  living  spirit  of  Christian- 
ity in  the  dead  body  of  Pharisaic  Judaism,  and  the  result  was  that 
they  made  neither  good  Christians  nor  decent  Jews.     The  spirit 
which  Jesus  brought  into  the  world  was  the  spirit  of  regeneration 
rather  than  reformation  of  manners.     In  the  individual  man  the 
new  life  of  progress  comes  into  him,  and  works  itself  out  into  the 
production  of  all  proprieties.     He  cannot  be  made  a  new  man  by 


*  Dean  Alford.  Greek  Testament^  in 
loco. 

\  Milk  and  oil,  water  and  wine,  are 
Btill  in  the  East,  as  they  were  in  the 
days  of  Jesus,  carried  in  bottles  made 


of  the  skins  of  animals,  commonly  of 
goats.  To  this  day  they  may  be  seen 
at  almost  every  turn  in  Egypt  and  Syria. 
It  is  an  ancient  arrangement,  as  appears 
from  Homer  and  Herodotus. 


196  FIRST   AND    SECOND   PASSOVER   IN   TnE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

mending  liim  outwaKlly.  But  if  any  attempt  to  confine  the  cnr« 
rent  of  the  gospel  within  the  banks  of  certain  prescribed  forms, 
all  good  results  will  be  lost. 

Jesus  and  the  spirit  of  his  gospel  are  against  nibric  and  ritual 
and  ceremonial,  and  churchism  generally.  lie  does  not  seek  to 
make  churchmen,  but  Christians.  That  is  taught  in  the  saying 
in  reply  to  the  question  of  the  disciples  of  John.  It  is  taught 
everywhere.  But  it  is  a  lesson  professed  Christians  seem  loth 
to  leam.  They  have  repeated  in  all  times  the  folly  of  putting 
new  wine  in  old  bottles.  Examples  might  be  produced  from  all 
the  ages  and  all  the  sects.  Men  battle  heroically  for  the  liberty 
which  they  will  not  grant  othei-s. 

The  history  of  the  world  is  divided  into  two  parts,  and  the  line 

is  the  life  of   Jesus.     Before  him  there  was  not  the  animatinjr 

T        x^    ^.  .,    spirit  of  progress.     Ilumanitv  went  forward,  but 
Jeaua,  the  divid-    .  r  j  •  » V 

ing  line  of  history.    ^^  went  torvN-ard  in  a  rut.     After  him  it  began  to 

spread  itself  in  all  directions.  But  still  men  en- 
deavored to  hand  it  down  from  generation  to  generation  in  old 
skins  that  would  bui-st  and  spill  the  wine.  Hence  the  delay  of 
Christianity  in  taking  the  world.  The  intention  of  Jesus  was  to 
establish  a  religion  M'hich  should  have  no  binding  forms,  no  pre- 
scribed temple-service,  no  priesthood,  nothing  of  the  old,  but  be 
new,  and  in  spirit,  and  reside  in  the  hearts  of  men  ;  and  this  we 
find  frequently  set  forth  in  his  teachings.  It  was  the  flinging 
away  of  the  old  bottles  which  has  made  modem  times  so  progres- 
sive. It  is  the  powerful  influence  of  Jesus  which  helps  men  to 
do  broad,  great,  good  things,  even  if  it  be  objected  that  they  are 
not  old  things. 

It  was  such  conduct  as  this,  and  such  teachinn:,  that  brouf'ht 
against  him  the  M-rath  of  scribe  and  Phari^^ee,  of  priest  and  Levite. 
Old  Bottles  or    If  he  had  been  content  to  put  his  "new  wine" 
^®**^  into  their  "  old  bottles,"   they  would  have  been 

ready  for  the  arrangement.  But  so  great  \vas  his  spirit,  and  so  far- 
seeing  his  indescrihal)ly  clear  intellect,  that  he  never  for  a  moment 
yielded  to  dcnominationalism  and  sectarianism.  He  knew  what 
the  result  would  be.  He  knew  that  he  had  not  come  into  the 
world  merely  to  reform  the  Jewish  Church.  lie  had  come  to 
emancipate  and  regenerate  the  ages,  and  to  save  the  world.  lie 
flung  the  glove  down  to  "  the  Church  "  then  existing,  and  the  re- 
Bult  was  that  he  was  finally  murdered.      Any  pure  man  who  at- 


TlIE   FIRST   TOITR   OF   GALILEE. 


197 


tempts  to  follow  Jesus  in  tins  particular  may  expect  some  simi- 
lar fate.  Old  bottles  are  generally  considered  more  valuable 
than  new  wine,  by  sectarians.  "  The  Old  Bottles  or  Death !  "  is 
the  alternative  of  their  battle-cry.  Jesus  preferred  to  die  and 
trust  his  new  wine  to  the  comino;  generations. 


AXOIEKT  BOTTLSS 


PART  IV. 

FKOM  THE  SECOND  UNTIL  THE  THIRD  PASSOYER 
IN  THE  PUBLIC  MINISTRY  OF  JESUS. 

ONE  TEAR— PROBABLY  FROM  A.D.  28  TO  A.D.  29. 


CHAPTER    I. 


THE    SABBATH    QUESTION. 

So  far  from  striving  to  allay  the  dislike  engendered  l)y  his  dis- 
regard of  the  ceremonials  and  traditions  of  the  Jews,  Jesus  soon 
makes  an  attack  upon  Pharisaism  in  its  stronghold,  namely,  the 
punctilious  observance  of  the  Sabbath. 

The  Passover  *  drew  near,  and  Jesus  went  up  to  Jerusalem  to 

celebrate  it.   "Within  the  city,  and  near  the  Sheep-gate,  there  was  a 

jerugaiem.  HonfleK)f.  P^^l,  Called  in  the  Svro-Chaldee,  which  was  the 

Outpouring.    John  v.   vemacular  of  Jesus,  Baith-IIisdaw,  or  Bethesda, 

1-47.  ,  .  ' 

that  18,  jrouse-qf-Oufpourin(/,  the  Y>yeci&Q  location 
of  which  it  is  probably  now  impossible  to  indicate.  For  a  long 
time  Betliesda  was  supposed  to  be  identical  with  a  large  excava- 
tion near  St.  Steplien's  Gate,  the  immense  depth  of  which,  sev 
enty-five  feet,  makes  this  most  improbable;  it  is  now  believed  to 
be  a  fosse  which  guarded  the  northern  side  of  the  fortress  of  An- 
tonia.     The  most  probable  site  is,  as  Dr.  Robinson  {Researches,  i. 


*  This  Passover  commenced  on  Wed- 
nesday, the  9th  of  April.  That  this 
festival  is  here  meant,  is  endent  not 
only  from  the  whole  context  and  con- 
nected history,  but  from  a  variuty  of 
other  considerations,  which  cannot  here 


be  specified  for  want  of  space.  The 
absence  of  the  definite  article  ("  a 
feast,"  verse  1)  is  no  proof  against  this 
view,  for  where  John  refers  to  any  other 
feast,  he  expressly  mentions  its  appro- 
priate name  (John  ^•iL  2  ;  x.  22). 


THE  SABBATH  QUESTION. 


199 


501,  508)  has  shown,  the  "Fountain  of  the  Virgin,"  in  theYalley 
of  Kedron,  a  sliort  distance  above  the  Pool  of  Siloam,  with 
which  it  has  subterranean  connection,  as  perhaps  also  with  the 
fountain  under  the  Great  Mosque.  Around  this  pool  were  built 
five  porches,  which  gave  shelter  to  the  invalids  who  came  to 


POOI.  OF   HEZEEIAU. 


enjoy  the  benefits  supposed  to  be  conferred  by  the  medicinal  pro- 
perties of  this  water.  It  was  the  popular  belief  of  the  Jews  that 
at  certain  seasons  an  angel  went  down  into  this  water  and  stirred 
it,  and  whoever  thereupon  first  stepped  into  the  pool  was  made 
whole.*    Great  numbers,  therefore,  of  chronic  cases  of  blindness, 


*  The  4th  verse  of  chapter  v.  of  John 
reads  thus :  "  For  an  angel  went  down 
at  a  certain  season  into  the  pool,  and 
troubled  the  water :  whosoever  then 
first  after  the  troubling  of  the  water 
stepped  in,  was  made  whole  of  what- 
soever disease  he  had."  It  is  a  con- 
trovei-ted  passage,  but  the  weight  of 
authority  seems  to  me  to  fall  against 


its  genuineness.  (But  Dr.  Howard  Cros- 
by, who  is  high  authority,  is  of  the  op- 
posite opinion  and  considers  it  genuine. ) 
It  is  easy  to  see  how  it  might  havo  come 
into  the  text.  Take  it  out  and  you 
have  the  history,  namely,  that  there 
was  such  a  pool,  and  that  impotent  folk 
lay  there,  and  that  Jesus  found  one  such 
and  made  him  whole.     To  account  for 


200  SECOND   AIsD   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN    THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

of  paralysis,  of  other  diseases,  brought  themselves  to  these  porches, 
aud  when  the  agitation  of  the  water  took  place  the  first  to  enter 
it  was  believed  would  be  benefited. 

It  was  the  Sabbath-day.      Jesus,  in  his  walk,  came  upon  the 

IIouse-of-Mercy.      Among  the  infirm  persons  lie  saw  one  who 

arrested  his  attention.      He  had  been  an  invalid 

The  impotent  man.  , 

thirty-eight  years.  How  long  he  had  been  on  the 
watch  for  the  stirring  of  the  water  is  not  recorded.  Paralysis,  it 
would  seem,  had  stricken  down  body  and  mind.  He  was  helpless 
and  hopeless.  Jesus  said:  "Will  you  be  healed?  "  The  man  an- 
swered :  "  Sir,  I  have  no  one,  when  the  ptjolis  troubled,  to  put  me 
in  ;  but  while  I  am  coming,  another  stej)S  down  before  me."  Poor 
man  !  He  had  long  and  h^ngingly  gazed  at  the  pool,  and  when 
the  sudden  rising  came  he  strove  to  step  in ;  but  so  helpless  was 
his  body  that  he  failed ;  another  preceded ;  and  this  was  repeated 
until  he  had  grown  hopeless  and  languid.  Jesus  said :  "  Rise, 
take  up  your  bed,  and  walk."  It  was  a  command  of  power.  He 
was  not  a  convalescent ;  he  was  well.  He  was  not  recovering ; 
lie  was  whole. 

"WHiat  was  life  to  this  man  was  death  to  the  peace  of  Jesus.  The 
cure  was  on  the  Sabbath-day.      The  joyful  man  went  homeward 
Cored  on  the  Sab-  caiTyiiig  liis  pallet.    Some  Jewish  elders  met  hun 
bath-day.  ^j^^j  rebukcd  him  for  doing  this  on  the  Sabbath- 

day.  The  reply  of  the  man  contained  that  undesigned  ajtpear- 
ance  of  ingenuity  which  we  often  find  in  perfect  ingenuousness  : 
"He  that  made  me  wliole,  the  same  said  to  me,  Take  uj)  yoiw  bed 

the  appearance  of  all  these  people  at    Robinson  and  his  companion  discovered 


this  pool  some  annotator  gave  truth- 
fully what  was  the  popular  opinion,  and 
in  many  copyings  it  would  ea.sily  creep 
into  the  text,  and  thus  seem  to  be,  what 
it  might  not  have  been,  the  opinion  of 
the  historian.  How  it  came  to  be  the 
popular  ojiinion  is  accoimted  for  by 
some  on  the  ground  that  the  pool  did 
possess  some  qualities  which  were  bene- 
ficial to  some  invalids,  which  qualities 
came  from  gases  generated  in  the  earth 
or  from  the  blood  of  the  victims  sacri- 
ficed in  the  Temple,  and  coming  by  pri- 
vate conduit  down  to  thi.s  pool.  To 
this  day  there  is  an  irrogularity  in  the 
flow  of    water  in  this  fountain.     Dr. 


it  one  day  when  they  were  measuring 
the  fountain.  The  water  very  suddenly 
rose  more  than  a  foot,  and  as  suddenly 
subsided.  A  woman  who  came  up  at 
the  moment,  and  who  was  accustomed 
to  wash  at  the  fountain  daily,  said  that 
she  had  seen  it  dry.  and  men  aud  cattle 
suffering  from  thirst,  wheu  all  at  once 
it  would  boil  up  again,  and  that  this 
boiling  or  flowing  was  at  irregular  inter- 
vals. The  common  people  have  aban- 
doned the  beautiful  fancy  of  an  angel 
in  the  fountain,  and  now  say  that  a 
great  dragon  lies  within ;  that  wheu  ho 
sleeps  it  Hows,  and  when  he  wakes  it 
stops. 


THE  SABBATH  QUESTION.  201 

amd  walk?''  His  argument  lay  in  the  assumption  that  whoso  could 
do  so  great  a  thing  as  by  one  sentence  to  give  entire  health  to  a 
paralyzed  man  is  one  whose  command  to  carry  burdens  on  the 
Sabbath  might  be  safely  obeyed.  But  the  leading  learned  men 
of  the  Jews  did  not  think  so.  The  health,  or  even  the  life  of  a 
human  being  was  not  to  be  set  in  the  scale  against  a  tradition  of 
the  elders.  They  knew  that  Jesus  was  doing  mighty  works.  They 
suspected  who  had  told  the  man  to  carry  his  bed.  If  Jesus — and 
who  else  could  it  be  % — they  had  an  occasion  for  an  open  contro- 
versy with  him.  But  the  man  did  not  know  the  name  of  his 
benefactor. 

Afterward  Jesus  found  him  in  the  Temple,  and  said  to  him : 
"  Behold,  you  are  made  whole ;  sin  no  more,  lest  a  worse  thing 
come  unto  you."    It  would  seem  that  his  excesses 

,       ,     ,  ,  .  p    1   •         1         •       1      -T  Recognizes  Jesiu. 

had  been  the  occasion  or  his  physical  aihnents, 
and  to  the  act  of  healing  Jesus  added,  what  is  often  better  than  a 
cure,  an  exhortation  to  a  more  sanitary  mode  of  life.  But  the  in- 
terview made  Jesus  known  to  the  healed  man,  who  went  and  told 
the  eldei-s  that  it  was  Jesus  who  had  made  him  whole.  It  was 
not  as  informer  that  the  man  could  have  communicated  this. 
The  Sabbath  question  was  not  so  important  to  him  as  his  own  re- 
covery. It  was  not  who  had  commanded  him  to  carry  his  little 
pallet  home  on  the  Sabbath,  but  who  had  healed  him.  He  looked 
on  that  side,  the  elders  on  the  other.  It  aroused  the  whole  hate 
of  their  nature,  and  they  opened  with  Jesus  a  controversy  that 
was  to  terminate  with  his  death. 

In  our  day  it  seems  strange  that  such  connection  should  exist ; 
that  a  most  good  man  should  be  slaughtered  because  he  would  not 
conform  to  what  even  we  might  consider  a  wholesome  regulation. 
But  it  did  occur  in  the  case  of  Jesus,  and  has  occurred  in  times 
much  nearer  our  own.  At  this  point  in  the  progress  of  Jesus 
we  reach  the  Sabbath  question. 

The  references  to  this  subject  in  the  Old  Testament  may  be 
supposed  to  be  familiar  to  the  readers  of  this  book,  but  must  be 
glanced  at.  The  first  is  in  the  history  of  the  ere-  The  sabbath  before 
ation,  in  Genesis  i.  and  ii.  The  next  is  in  the  ^^'^ 
Patriarchal  period,  and  in  several  places,  some  more  patent  and 
some  more  obscui-e.  For  instance,  in  Genesis  iv,  3  is  the  phrase 
"/ti  process  of  time  .  .  Cain  brought  of  the  fruit  of  the 
ground  an  offering  unto  the  Lord."     In  the  Hebrew  it  is  ^^At  the 


202         SECOND   A>T)   THIRD    PASSOVER   EN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


end  of  day. 'i!'''  Again:  in  chapter  vii.  4,  10,  "seven  days"  are 
mentioned,  as  also  in  chapter  viii.  10  and  12  :  these  in  reference  to 
the  dehige.  In  chapter  xxix.  25-30,  the  "  week  "  is  mentioned  as 
a  well-known  division  of  time,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  that  other 
Sahl)atic  period  of  seven  years  is  mentioned  in  the  same  passage. 
In  chapter  1.  it  is  said  that  "  Joseph  made  a  mourning  for  his  father 
Beven  days." 

These  are  before  the  days  of  Moses.  In  Exodus  xvi.  we  have 
the  account  of  the  sending  of  manna,  and  the  ordinance  that  twice 

The  Sabbath  in  the  the  usual  amouut  sliould  be  gathered  on  the  sixth 
Decalogue.  ^j^y^    AYlietlicr  tliis  wholc  passage  indicates  a  pre- 

vious Sabbath  observance  or  announces  it  as  a  new  institution,  each 
reader  must  determine  for  himself,  as  the  position  of  the  article  in 
the  Hebrew  and  the  general  passage  may  impress  him.*  Tlie 
next  passage  is  the  most  important  in  the  history  of  the  Sabbath. 
In  Exodus  XX.  it  is  embodied  in  the  Decalogue,  with  specifications. 
To  the  Jew  the  Decalogue  was  not  merely  a  religious  syml)ol,  it 
was  also  a  national  ensign.  To  violate  the  Decalogue  Mas  to  be 
guilty  at  once  of  sin  and  of  treason,  and  they  came  afterward  to 
make  the  Sabbath  the  chief  of  these  ten  items  of  national  cove- 
nant, so  that,  as  one  of  their  writers  said, "  He  that  violates  the 
Sabbath  is  as  he  that  worships  the  stars,  and  both  are  heathens." 

Whoever  fairly  reads  the  Old  Testament  at  large,  whether  he 
believes  the  Hebrew  institutions  to  have  been  given  by  Almighty 
God  or  to  be  the  product  of  the  wisdom  of  man, 
must  know  tliat  the  Jews  believed  them  to  be  of 
divine  origin,  and  must  feel  that  under  all  the  circumstances  of 
Hebrew  nationality  they  were  wise  and  beneficent  regulations. 
The  law  of  the  Sabbath  is  obviously  such.  It  is  to  be  remarked 
that  a  Sabbatic  idea  runs  tln-ongh  all  the  Hebrew  Institutes. 
There  was  to  be  a  seventli  day  consecrated  to  rest,  to  enjoyment, 
and  to  reb'gion.  There  was  a  seventh  month  set  aside  to  festivals, 
opening  with  the  Feast  of  Trumpets,  and  containing  that  most 
joyful  of  Hebrew  liolidays,  tho  Feast  of  Tabernacles.  There 
was  tlio  seventli  year,  in  which  the  land  was  to  rest  from  the  hand 
of  the  tiller.  At  each  close  of  seven  times  seven  years,  each  week 
of  years,  came  in  the  year  of  Jubilee,  when  debts  were  cancelled 


Of  divine  origin. 


*  The  learned  Grotius  believed  that 
the  day  had  been  already  known  and 
observed  as  holy,  bnt  that  the  law  as  to 


labor  was  now  given  for  the  first  time, 
and  shortly  after  more  implicitly  im- 
posed in  the  Fourth  Commandment. 


THE  SAUBATH  QUESTION.  203 

and  when  slaves  went  free.  The  original  intent,  as  indeed  the 
original  observance  of  the  Sabbath,  was  not  oppressive  or  afflictive, 
but  rather  festive.  At  only  one  point  of  the  Sabbatic  cycle  is  any 
mention  of  humiliation.  The  people  were  to  "  afflict  their  souls 
on  the  Day  of  Atonement."  (Levit.  xxiii.  27-29.)  Every  Sab- 
bath except  that  was  to  be  for  recreation,  by  rest,  by  enjoyment, 
or  by  glad  and  happy  devotion  to  the  offices  of  religion. 

It  will  be  perceived  that  the  physical,  social,  and  moral  welfare 
of  all  the  people  was  sought  by  these  wise  regulations.  The 
lesson  so  important  to  know  and  so  hard  to  learn.  Lessons  of  the  sai>- 
that  man  has  no  proprietorship  in  anything  earthly;  ^'^*^- 
that  he  is  holding  it  for  God,  and  obtains  its  best  uses  only  as  he 
uses  it  for  God :  this  is  the  great  lesson  of  the  Sabbath.  Time 
belongs  to  God,  which  man  was  to  acknowledge  by  the  tribute  of 
the  seventh  day.  Land  belongs  to  God,  which  is  recognized  in 
the  Sabbatic  year.  All  things  upon  which  a  man  may  lay  any 
claim  of  ownership,  as  npon  the  moneys  due  him  from  his  credit- 
ors, as  in  the  case  of  his  servants,  bought  or  inherited,  belong  at 
last  to  God,  and  to  him  mnst  be  remitted,  as  the  Jubilee  sets  forth. 
Socially  men  were  to  be  profited  by  the  Sabbath.  It  was  to  be  a 
festive  day.  The  rich  gave  feasts.  The  poor  saved  their  best  for 
the  seventh  day  enjoyment ;  men  walked  abroad  and  visited,  as 
well  as  met  amid  joyful  celebrations  of  God's  praise  in  taber- 
nacle. Temple,  or  synagogue.  Labor  was  suspended.  The  body 
must  rest ;  it  rested  on  the  Sabbath.  No  journeys,  no  business, 
no  servile  labor  could  be  performed.  It  was  a  democratic  insti- 
tution. Master  and  servant  equally  suspended  toil  and  took  re- 
freshment. 

In  other  parts  of  the  law  there  were  given  constructions  of  the 
prohibition  of  labor  in  the  Decalogue.  It  was  forbidden  to  light 
a  fire.     (Exodus  xxxv.  3.)     For  o-atherins;  sticks 

\  T  /^T  Prohibitions. 

on  the  babbath  a  man  was  stoned.  (JNum.  xv. 
32.)  Isaiah  uttered  solemn  warnings  against  the  violation  of  the 
Sabbath,  and  promises  of  blessings  to  those  who  should  scrupu- 
lously observe  it.  (Isa.  Iviii.  13.)  Jeremiah  denounced  the  gen 
eral  violation  of  the  Sabbath  in  his  dav,  when  men  wi*ouo;ht  as 
much  and  carried  burdens  in  their  traffic  as  much  as  on  other 
days.  (Jerem.  xvii.  21-27.)  And  in  the  days  of  Ezekiel  there 
was  sucli  a  general  falling  off  that  the  secularization  of  the  Sab- 
batli  is  ranked  foremost  among  the  national  sins  of  the  Jews. 


204 


SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JE8TTS. 


(Ezekiel  xx.  12-24.)  Nehemiah  (xiii.  15-22,  and  viii.  9-12)  at- 
tributed their  severe  national  calamity  to  the  specially  heinous 
offence  of  neglecting  the  Sabbath  ;  and  he  gives  an  account  of  his 
measures  for  restoring  the  day  to  its  proper  observance,  among 
which  was  the  representation  to  the  people  that  the  Sabbath  was 
a  festival.  "This  day  is  holy  unto  the  Lord  your  God:  mourn 
not,  nor  weep.  Go  your  way,  eat  the  fat,  and  drink  the  sweet, 
and  send  portions  unto  them  for  whom  nothing  is  prepared  ;  for 
this  day  is  wholly  unto  our  Lord  :  neither  be  ye  sorry  ;  for  the  joy 
of  the  Lord  is  your  strength."  "  AVith  many  such  words  he  cheered 
tlie  people,  and  they  went  their  way  to  eat  and  to  drink,  and  to 
send  portions,  and  to  make  a  great  mirth,  because  they  had  under- 
stood the  words  that  were  declared  unto  them."  *  It  will  be  seen 
that  this  method  of  observing  the  Sabbath  is  very  different  from 
that  prescribed  by  subsequent  Jewish  and  modern  Puritans,  who 
have  made  the  Sabbath  a  burden,  a  darkness,  and  a  curse,  whereas 
God  meant  it  for  a  blessing,  and  considers  "  holy  day  "  the  equiv- 
alent of  holiday. 

The  Pharisees  and  the  rabbins,  following  up  the  work  of  Ne- 
hemiah,  committed  the  error  of  carrying  their  exactions  too  far, 
and  thus  absolutely  abrogating  the  spirit  by  their 
super-exact  adherence  to  the  letter  of  the  law. 
Because  Moses  had  forbidden  the  Israelites  to  go  out  of  the  camp 
to  gather  manna  against  God's  command,  a  sect  was  established 
whose  prime  article  of  faith  and  practice  was  the  maintaining 
throughout  the  day  the  posture  in  which  they  should  hapj^en  to 
be  when  they  first  awoke ;  a  terrible  way  of  resting.  This  of 
coui-se  exceeded  even  the  usual  rigor  of  Sabbath  observance. 
Because  Jeremiah  had  denounced  the  bearing  of  tlie  burdens  of 
traffic,  men  were  forbidden  to  lift  any  article.  It  was  against 
the  law  to  hunt  on  the  Sal)bath,.  therefore  the  Pharisaic  and  rab- 


Fhorisaic  exactions. 


*  As  showing  that  the  Sabbath  was 
not  to  be  a  day  of  gloom  and  weeping, 
comi)are  with  the  above  what  is  written 
in  2  Chron.  xxx.  21-2G,  Ps.  xcii. ,  and 
many  other  passagos  in  the  Psahns  ;  Isa- 
iah xxx.  2!),  Jeremiah  xxi.  12-14,  Ilosca 
ii.  11.  This  contrasta  greatly  with  cer- 
tain Puritan  regulations,  such  as  these : 
"21.  No  one  shall  run  on  the  Sabbath- 
day,  or  walk  in  his  garden,  or  elsewhere, 


except  reverently  to  and  from  meeting. 
22.  No  one  shall  travel,  cook  victuals, 
make  beds,  sweep  house,  cut  hair  or 
shave,  on  the  Sabbath-day.  2:}.  No 
iromnn  shnll  kl^s  her  child  on  the  SaMiath. 
24.  The  Sabbath  shall  begin  at  sunset  on 
Saturday."  See  Blue  Ltiint  of  Keie 
ILiien  Cd'iny,  etc..  compiled  by  an  An- 
tiquary, R.  R.  Hinman,  Esq.  (Hartford, 
1838). 


TIIE    SABBATH    QUESTION.  205 

binical  schools  forbade  the  catching  of  a  flea  as  a  species  of  hunt- 
ing. The  law  prohibited  the  gathering  of  sticks,  for  the  reason 
that  that  led  to  cooking,  and  while  the  Sabbath  was  to  be  a  festival 
it  was  also  to  be  a  rest,  so  that  the  feast  must  be  made  ready  on 
the  sixth  day :  but  these  priests  held  that  it  was  a  violation  of  the 
law  to  mount  a  tree,  because  a  branch  or  twig  might  thus  be 
broken.  Grass  might  not  be  walked  upon,  as  it  might  be  bruised, 
and  that  is  a  sort  of  threshing ! 

An  examination  of  the  records  concerning  Jesus  \vill  show,  1 
think,  that  he  never  broke  the  Jewish  law  of  the  Sabbath,  nor 
did  his  disciples ;  they  were  never  charged  with  jesus  never  broke 
that.  But  he  did  set  at  naught  the  exactions  of  *«  sabbath  law. 
the  traditions  of  the  elders.  lie  would  not  be  bound  by  the  regu- 
lations of  those  who  had  no  authority  to  overload  the  word  of 
God  with  their  own  fanciful  interpretations ;  but  he  did  employ 
the  Sabbath  for  all  its  sweet  restoring  uses,  and  did  affirm  the 
great  principles  on  which  the  Sabbatic  institutions  rested. 

Thus,  he  walked  out  on  the  Sabbath-day.  Laborious  travel 
was  forbidden,  but  not  recreative  exercise.  He  visited  the 
"House  of  Mercy,"  and  finding  an  abject  suffer-  But  disregarded  pha- 
er  there  he  healed  him.  He  commanded  him  to  "^^°  glosses. 
take  up  his  little  pallet,  such  as  beggars  carried  with  them  to  rest 
upon,  and  go  to  his  home.  This  was  no  toil  that  could  weary 
him.  He  was  in  fresh  strength.  It  would  have  been  preposter- 
ous to  lie  there,  just  where  Jesus  found  him,  and  continue  all  the 
remainder  of  the  Sabbath-day  in  the  posture  which  he  held  when 
healed.  This  would  have  been  according  to  the  teaching  of  the 
sect  of  Dositheus,  but  it  would  have  been  most  unnatm-al.  Jesus 
sent  him  home  with  his  bed  in  his  hands. 

The  Jews  raged  and  sought  to  kill  Jesus,  not  the  healed inan.  It 
was  not,  then,  the  burden-bearing,  but  the  healing,  that  exasperated 
them.  He  addressed  the  spiritual  leaders  of  the  Jews  in  defence 
of  himself.  He  does  not  appear  to  ha^e  been  called  before  the  San- 
hedrim, or  even  any  lower  court ;  but  the  persons  to  whom  the  words 
were  addressed  had  official  position,  and  the  words  may  therefore 
be  considered  as  spoken  in  defence.  The  address  drawn  out  by 
this  Sabbath  incident  is  given  at  large  by  John  in  his  fifth  chap- 
ter, and  is  worthy  our  careful  study. 

In  reply  to  the  charge  of  working  on  the  Sabbath,  Jesus  said 
to  them,  "  My  Father  worketh  hitherto,  and  I  work."  He  corrects 


206         6EC0XD   AXD   THIRD   PASSOVER   IX    THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

their  false  ideas  of  Ood's  rest,  as  if  it  were  a  liarren  cessation 
Hia  reply  to  accusal  froiii  all  activltv.    All  the  Sabhaths  from  the  crca- 
****"*  tioii  had  been  marked  by  the  holy  activity  of  the 

Creator,  warming  and  shining  in  the  sun,  brightening  in  flowers, 
glowing  and  flowing  in  fountains  and  streams.  As  the  Son  ol 
the  Father,  being  in  special  relationship  to  him,  Jesus  claimed 
that  just  so  he  worked,  and  that  his  works  were  no  more  viola- 
tions of  the  Sabbath  than  were  the  works  of  the  Father.  This- 
intensified  their  exasperation.  He  had  broken  the  Sal)bath  law  ; 
he  had  involved  Jehovah  in  the  crime;  and  he  had  claimed 
equality  with  Jehovah.  This  last  was  the  most  specially  aggra- 
vated offence.  The  words  themselves,  standing  alone,  hardly 
seem  to  justify  this  interpretation.  The  Jewish  rulers  must  have 
heard  something  else  from  him  before  this,  which  gave  this  par- 
ticular complexion  to  this  short  statement.  But  their  belief  that 
he  did  mean  this,  he  himself  proceeded  to  justify  by  the  remark- 
able discourse  which  John  has  preserved,  and  which  we  give 
entire : 

"  Verily,  I  say  to  you,  Tlie  Son  can  do  nothing  from  himself,  but  what  he 
seeth  the  Father  doing:  for  -what  things  lie  doeth,  these  also  doeth  the  Sou 
likewise.  For  the  Father  loveth  the  Son,  and  showeth  him  all  things  that  He 
Himself  doeth :  and  He  will  show  him  greater  works  than  these,  that  ye  may 
marvel.  For  as  the  Father  raiseth  the  dead,  and  giveth  life,  even  so  the  Son 
giveth  life  to  whom  he  wnll.  For  the  Father  judgeth  no  one,  Init  hath  com- 
mitted all  judgment  to  tlie  Son:  that  all  should  know  the  Son,  even  as  they 
know  the  Father.  lie  that  honoretli  not  the  Son  honoreth  not  the  Father  who 
hath  sent  him.  Verily,  verily,  I  say  to  you,  He  tliat  heareth  my  word,  and 
believeth  on  Him  that  sent  me,  hath  perpetual  life,  and  doth  not  come  into 
condemnation  (or  judgment),  but  hath  pa.<y5ed  from  death  unto  life.  Verily, 
verily,  I  say  to  you.  An  hour  is  coming,  and  now  is,  when  the  dead  shall  liear 
the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God:  and  they  who  hear  shall  live.  For  as  the 
Father  hath  life  in  Himself,  so  also  hath  he  given  to  the  Son  to  have  life  in 
himself;  and  hath  given  him  authority  to  execute  judgment  also,  because  he 
is  the  Son  of  man.  Marvel  not  at  this,  for  an  hour  is  coming  in  whicli  all 
that  are  in  the  graves  shall  hear  his  voice,  and  shall  come  forth ;  they  wlio 
have  done  good,  unto  the  resurrection  of  life;  and  they  that  have  done  evil, 
unto  tlic  resurrection  of  judgment. 

"I  can  of  mine  o\v\\  self  do  nothing:  as  I  hear  I  judge;  and  my  judgment 
is  just ;  because  I  seek  not  mine  own  will,  l)ut  the  will  of  Him  who  sent  me. 
If  I  bear  witness  of  myself,  my  Avitness  is  not  true.  There  is  another  that 
beareth  witness  of  me;  and  ye  know  that  the  testimony  which  he  tcstifieth  of 
me  is  true.  Ye  sent  unto  John,  and  he  bare  witness  unto  the  truth.  But  I 
receive  not  testimony  from  man :  but  these  things  I  say  that  ye  may  be  saved. 


THE   SABBATH   QUESTION. 


207 


He  was  the  buraing  and  shining  lamp :  ye  were  willing  for  a  season  to  rejoice 
in  his  light. 

*'  But  I  have  a  greater  witness  than  that  of  John  :  for  the  works  which  the 
Father  hath  given  nie  to  finish,  the  same  works  that  I  do,  bear  witness  of  me, 
that  tlie  Father  hath  sent  me.  And  the  Father  Himself,  which  hath  sent  me, 
bath  borne  witness  of  me.  Ye  have  neither  heard  His  voice  at  any  time,  nor 
seen  his  shape.  And  ye  have  not  His  word  abiding  in  you :  for  whom  He 
hath  sent,  him  ye  believe  not. 

"Ye  search  the  Scriptures;  for  in  them  ye  think  to  have  eternal  life:  and 
they  are  they  which  testify  of  me.  And  ye  will  not  come  to  me  that  ye  maj 
hsvie  life.  I  receive  not  glory  from  men.  But  I  know  you,  that  ye  have  not 
the  glory  of  God  among  yourselves.  I  have  come  in  my  Father's  name,  and 
ye  receive  me  not :  if  another  shall  come  in  his  own  name,  him  ye  will  receive. 
How  can  ye  believe,  receiving  glory  one  of  another,  and  seek  not  the  glory 
that  Cometh  from  the  only  God  ?  Do  not  think  that  I  will  accuse  you  to  the 
Father :  there  is  one  that  accuseth  you,  even  Moses,  in  whom  ye  have  hoped. 
For  had  ye  believed  Moses  ye  would  have  believed  me :  for  he  wi'ote  concern- 
ing me.     But  if  ye  believe  not  his  writings,  how  shall  ye  believe  my  words  ? " 

It  would  seem  that  no  one  can  read  this  speech  without  being 
impressed  with  the  thorough  sincerity  of  the  speaker.  lie  be- 
lieved all  he  said.*  lie  made  assertions  of  himself,  which,  if 
true,  are  not  only  profound,  and  touching  all  the  awful  mysteries 
of  life  and  eternity,  but  sepai-ate  him  from  all  other  laiown 
human  beings. 

lie  first  assumes  the  fatherhood  of  the  Deity.  God  is  father. 
It  is  of  His  essence.  lie  does  not  become  a  father  by  creating, 
but  creates  because  He  is  a  father.  The  human  .j^^  Fatherhood  of 
relationship  between  the  begetter  and  the  begotten  ctod  and  the  sonhood 
furnishes  us  with  the  idea,  but  it  has  ahvays  sub- 
sisted in  God.  Unbeginning  fatherhood  implies  unbeginning 
sonhood.  In  point  of  fact,  is  there  siich  a  son  ?  Jesus  not  only 
declares  that  there  now  is,  and  consequently  always  has  eternally 
been,  but  that  he  himself  is  that  very  son,  not  a  son,  as  any  other 
man  may  claim  to  be,  but  the  Son  of  God.  If  the  unbesun  son, 
the  always-existent  son,  then  he  does  make  himself  equal  with  the 


*  It  must  be  remarked  here,  as  else- 
where in  the  speeches  of  Jesus,  that  our 
coranaents  are  not  made  in  order  to  form 
a  system  of  theology.  This  is  intended 
to  be  purely  a  history — a  history  of  the 
deeds  and  speeches  and  consciousness  of 
Jesus.     We  are  concerned  merely  to  dis- 


cover what  he  meant  to  say,  and,  having 
found  that  meaning,  not  to  defend  or  to 
condemn,  but  to  show  the  effect  of  the 
holding  and  the  propagating  of  such 
thoughts  upon  the  life  of  the  man  Je- 
sus, and  perhaps  upon  the  subsequent 
history  of  the  world. 


203         SECOND    AST)   TIITRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

Father,  as  there  cannot  be  two  Gods.  The  loii»^-inculcated  mono* 
theism  of  the  Tlebrews  made  it  impossiljle  for  them  to  conceive 
two  persons  in  one  God,  and  it  is  probably  a  metaphysical  im- 
practicability for  any  mind  in  which  the  idea  of  God  is  that  of 
an  infinite  or  even  of  a  snpreme  Existence,  to  conceive  two  Gods. 
If,  then,  Jesus  claims  to  be  the  Only  Begotten,  being  one  with 
the  Father,  the  Father  and  the  Son  not  having  had  precedent  and 
subsequent  existence,  then  he  stands  before  all  the  laws  of  human 
thought  the  equal  of  God,  the  very  God,  Kight  or  wrcjiig,  such 
eternity  of  sonship  and  such  divine  equality  Jesus  believed  he 
held,  and  he  acted  and  spoke  always  as  we  should  a  j^riori 
expect  a  person  with  such  a  belief  to  speak  and  act. 

lie  confirms  the  impression  upon  the  minds  of  his  enemies  by 
statements  made  with  the  formula  he  always  employed  when  he 
designed  to  make  his  asseverations  specially  solemn,  "  Verily, 
verily  ; "  "  Amen,  amen."  If  they  regarded  him,  the  ?nan  Jesus, 
^^sible  to  them,  as  the  sole  and  egoistic  performer  of  such  mira- 
cles as  that  which  had  been  wrought  at  the  House  of  Mercy,  they 
wei'e  mistaken.  He  does  them  as  the  Son  of  God,  and  does  what 
the  Father  shows  him.  lie  asseits  that  the  subsistence  of  the 
existence  of  Father  and  Son  is  love.  They  are  one  in  their  love. 
Nothing  is  done  by  the  Father  which  is  not  kno^vn  to  the  Son. 
These  things  they  had  seen  are  but  a  small  part  of  a  stupendous 
whole.  God  is  perpetually  vivifying  and  revivifying,  wherefore 
the  Son  must  also  be  constantly  discharging  the  quickening  func- 
tion of  the  life-power  that  is  in  him  as  the  Son  of  God.  Not  only 
does  all  life  proceed  from  him,  but  he  is  the  judge  of  the  living 
and  the  dead  ;  so  that  no  honor  is  to  go  to  God  which  does  not 
come  to  Jesus  as  the  Son. 

He  asserts,  furthermore,  that  those  who  hear  his  teachings,  and 

thus  believe  in  God  by  believing  in  him,  have  already  everlast- 

infj  life, — do  not  wait  for  death  to  introduce  them 

Porpetoal  life.  i  •  .      i        i   i  •      i  rr«i 

thereinto,  indeed  liare  no  judgment  to  pass,  ine 
hearing  of  the  voice  of  the  Son  of  God  gives  passage  into  a  life 
that  is  perpetual,  and  that  is  wholly  unaffected  by  the  mere  inci- 
dent of  jjhysical  dissolution.  But  as  touching  the  judgment  of 
men,  he  asserts  that  t/iat  is  placed  in  his  hands,  because  he  is  the 
Son  of  Man.  Man  judges  man.  He  that  lias  had  the  trials, 
weaknesses,  human  emergencies,  fearful  despondencies,  appetites 
and  passions  of  a  man,  and  therefore  hath  all  human  sympathy,  is 


THE    SABBATH   QUESTION.  209 

to  pass  judgment  on  the  character  and  acts  of  men.     lie  is  God's 
equal  in  divine  purity  and  man's  equal  in  humaneness. 

The  proof  of  the  truth  of  what  he  says  he  rests  upon  several 
grounds.  In  the  first  place,  he  was  not  hearing  egotistical  testi- 
mony  to   himself.      All   that   he  said   and   did 

111  1  /-(11X-I1-  JesoB  no  egotist. 

brought  glory  to  the  great  (jrod,  the  Ji,verlastnig 
Father,  and  in  this  he  was  to  be  distinguished  from  the  pseudo- 
Messiahs.  In  the  next  place,  they  had  sent  to  John,  who  was  a 
resplendent  light,  and  had  from  him  received  testimony  to  the 
JMessiahship  of  Jesus,  who,  nevertheless,  makes  little  of  all  human 
testimony  to  himself,  even  of  John's  ;  and  says  that  he  was  willing 
for  them  to  hear  John,  that  they  might  have  all  helps  to  their 
faith  they  could  fiud,  because  he  desired  that  they  might  be  saved. 
But  the  really  reliable  external  proof  is  the  works  he  did,  and 
the  really  reliable  internal  proof  each  man  should  have  would  be 
the  voice  of  God^  bearing  witness  in  his  soul  that  this  Jesus  had 
come  out  from  God.     But  the  Jews  had  silenced  that  voice. 

Without  this  subjective  evidence  men  will  not  believe  on  him, 
no  matter  what  quality  and  quantity  of  evidence  may  be  adduced. 
For  instance,  they  had  the  Scriptures  of  the  Old 

m  .  1      .  .1  1  Til  Subjective  evidence. 

iestament  in  their  midst,  and  studied  them. 
They  believed  that  the  way  to  life  lay  mapped  out  therein.  But 
those  Scriptures,  Jesus  held,  pointed  clearly  to  him.  lie  fulfilled 
them.  And  yet  he  does  not  glorify  himself  therefor,  but  he  does 
glorify  the  Father.  And  yet  they  will  not  believe  him.  Let 
another  come  *  glorifying  himself,  and  although  he  fulfil  no 
scripture,  he  will  be  received  by  these  hard-minded  men  who 
desire  to  kill  Jesus — not  so  much  for  blasphemy,  nor  for  the  vio- 
lation of  the  real  Sabbath  law,  as  for  disregarding  a  legal  Sab- 
bath. 

It  is  a  deformity  of  the  will.  They  had  put  a  gloss  on  the 
Scripture.  They  had  narrowed  it  to  their  national  hopes.  They 
looked  for  national  deliverance  and  splendor,  and  for  a  Messiah 
who  should  bring  grandeur  to  Judaism,  and  thus  glory  to  God  ; 
and  they  could  not  understand  how  God  could  be  glorified  and 
the  Jewish  nation  not  aggrandized.  The  very  ground  on  which 
they  reject  him  is  the  very  ground  of  his  proof  that  he  had  come 
out  from  God. 


*  This  assertion  was  verified  by  the 
crowds  that  subsequently  followed  those 
14 


who  were   manifest  impostors.     Com- 
pare Acts  V.  36,  37. 


210  SECOND    AXD   TIITRD   PASSOVER    IN    TlIE    LITE    OF   JESUS. 

And  now  he  retorts  upon  them.     They  accuse  him  of  violat- 
ing one  law  of  !Mosc8.     lie  accuses  them  of  rejecting  the  writinj^s 
of  Moses  bodily.     He  asserts  that  Moses  wrote 

Jesns  retorts.  „   _  _,,  ,.,  ,  -  ii-i 

or  Jesus,  lliey  did  not  understand  and  did  not 
believe  Moses.  So  Jesus  may  hardly  expect  them  to  believe  him. 
If  they  extinguish  their  light  they  cannot  see.  If  they  truly 
believed  in  Moses  it  would  be  impossible  to  avoid  believing  in 
Jesus,  if,  as  he  asserts,  the  writings  of  Moses  are  full  of  Jesus. 
So,  then,  the  greatest  human  authority  to  the  Jews, — that  under 
which  their  leaders  are  arraigning  and  endeavoring  to  try  and 
convict  Jesus  that  they  may  destroy  him, — that  very  authority  is 
against  them.  Moses,  not  Jesus,  will  rise  up  in  the  judgment  and 
condemn  them,  for  "  if  they  believed  not  the  writings  of  Moses, 
how  should  they  believe  the  words  of  Jesus  ?  " 

Wliether  they  were  a  "  Board  of  Jewish  Magistracy,"  or  merely 
leading  Jewish  magistrates  contriving  a  conspiracy  to  crush  him, 
disarmed  by  this  powerful  and  impressive  discourse,  his  persecu- 
toi*s  were  compelled  to  let  him  go.  They  could  not  gainsay  the 
words  he  had  uttered. 

But  the  battle  had  been  begun.  The  assault  was  on  the  strong- 
hold of  Pharisaism,  namely,  such  rigorous  observance  of  the  Sab 
bath  as  should  make  it  a  burden  to  the  people 
and  an  instrument  of  torture  in  the  hands  of  the 
priesthood.  Jesus  had  attacked  that,  and  they  determined  to 
destroy  him.  He  never  sought  and  never  declined  a  conflict  for 
principle,  but  went  steadily  on  his  way,  avoiding  giving  any 
ground  of  justification  to  the  charge  that  he  recklessly  rushed 
against  even  men's  foolish  and  hurtful  prejudices,  but  never 
avoiding  doing  what  was  right  because  the  popular  prejudice 
was  against  it. 


CHAPTEE    II. 


THE    SABBATH   QUESTION   AGAIN. 


IIe  departed  for  Galilee.  It  seems  to  have  been  the  Sabbath 
after  that  on  which  he  had  healed  the  man  at  the  Bethesda  Pool, 
when,  passing  through  a  field  of  ripe  barley,*  Matt.  xii. ;  Mark  ii. ; 
accompanied  by  his  disciples,  they  began  to  pluck  Lukevi.  The  sabboth 
the  ears  of  grain  and  eat  them  to  satisfy  their 
hnnger.  The  Sanhedrim  at  Jerusalem  had  entered  upon  a  rigor- 
ous persecution  of  Jesus.  He  was  to  have  no  more  peace.  De- 
tectives dogged  his  f(Wtsteps  everywhere.  Some  of  them  lurked 
about  this  field,  and  when  they  saw  the  disciples  eating  they  came 
upon  Jesus  with  the  allegation  that  he  and  his  company  were 
violating  the  Sabbath.  They  could  not  accuse  them  of  stealing, 
for  the  law,  as  stated  in  Deuteronomy  (xxiii.  25),  allowed  a  hun- 
gry man  when  passing  through  his  neighl)or's  field  to  pluck  what 
grain  would  appease  his  ci-aving,  while  it  forbade  putting  the 
sickle  in.  They  did  not  care  to  make  issue  on  such  a  charge : 
the  Traditional  Sabbath  was  the  chosen  ground  of  conflict.  Ac- 
cording to  its  enactments  a  man  might  be  stoned  for  plucking 
grain  if  he  did  it  to  desecrate  the  Sabbath,  and  not  to  remove 
hunger,  as  such  plucking  was  a  species  of  threshing. 

Jesus  defended  his  disciples.  They  had  done  no  wrong.  He 
retorts  upon  their  accusers,  charging  them  with  ignorance  or  wil- 
ful ne2:lect  of  the  Scriptures.     He  referred  them  _ 

^  '-  The  example  of  David. 

to  that  model  of  piety,  David,  wliat  he  did  in  an 
emci-gency,  how  he  took  the  shewbread,  which  stood  in  the  Tem- 
ple as  the  sign  of  Jehovah's  communion  with  the  priests,  which 
bread  was  given  him  by  a  distinguished  priest  and  was  shared  by 
David  ^\nth  his  followers.  Here  was  not  a  question  of  tradition, 
but  a  distinct  violation  of  a  divinely  ordered  ceremonial,  between 


*  We  say  barley,  as  wheat  does  not 
ripen  in  Galilee   until  a  month  later, 


this  passage  having  occurred  probably 
in  April. 


212         SECOND   ANT)   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

who&e  ()bser\aiK'e  and  tlie  preservation  of  life  sneh  men  a? 
A])iatliar  tlie  priest,  and  David,  God's  elect,  did  not  long  hesi- 
tate.* 

Bnt  his  enemies  might  have  rei)lied,  and  probably  did  reply, 

that  thiit  had  nothing  to  do  with  this  ease ;  that  Sabbath  profana- 

.^     ■        tion  was  the  cnhni nation  of  offences,  the  Sabbath 

Example  of  the  priests.  _  ' 

law  bein<;  the  fjreatest  of  the  commandment?.  Hid 
reply  to  that  is,  that  in  the  Temple  the  priests  in  carrying  forward 
the  ceremonials  of  worship  do  continually  violate  what  all  agreed 
was  the  distinct  law  of  the  Sabbath,  as  to  outM-ard  observance,  as, 
instead  of  resting,  they  were  to  do  Temple- work,  in  pi-eparing  and 
presenting  sacrifices.  (Kum.  xxviii.  9.)  But  they  were  blameless. 
It  was  necessary  for  the  maintenance  of  public  worshi}).  The 
Temple  Avas  greater  than  the  Sabbath.  He  then  made  the  re- 
mai-kable  assertion  :  "  A  (jreater  thing  than  the  Teiii2>Je  is  hereP 
It  would  seem  to  be  a  reference  to  himself,  and  the  meaning  to  be 
that  those  disciples  were  in  the  discharge  of  religious  duties  in 
fi)llo\viiig  him,  and  in  a  much  higher  S}»hore  than  the  priests  in 
the  Tcm[)le,  so  that  if  these  wei-e  not  in  fault,  much  more  those 
were  not  to  be  blamed. 

Again  he  repeats  to  them  the  words  of  the  prophet  Ilosea :  f 
"  I  will  l;ave  mercy  and  not  sacrifice,"  teaching  them  that  all 
God's  laws  are  laid  upon  the  basis  of  mercy  and  not  pain-giving ; 
and  that  no  amount  of  sacrifice  in  any  shape,  whether  in  ofiFering 
victims  upon  the  altar  or  in  the  afflicting  of  one's  self,  is  at  all 
acccj)table  U)  God  unless  the  heart  be  full  of  love  and  mercy. 
And  thus  out  of  their  law,  and  out  of  their  most  cherished  his- 
tory, and  out  of  their  prophets,  he  confutes  them. 

But  he  does  not  rest  on  that;  he  lays  down  the  memoral)le  pro- 
position which  is  the  key  of  the  whole  Sabbatic  idea  and  arrange- 
Koy  to  the  Siibbath  lueut  I  "  The  Sahhcith  was  made  for  7nan,  and 
thonght.  ^^^  man  for  the  SalhathP     AVhatever  ]-egulation 

for  the  observance  of  the  Sabbath  may  be  set  up  by  human  au- 


*  Compare  1  Sam.  xxi.  ;  also  xxii. 
20-23;  2  Sam.  viii.  17;  1  Chron.  xv. 
11.  In  the  first  of  these  references 
Ahimelech  is  mentioned  ns  the   priest 


son.  The  latter  became  (listin{ruished 
in  the  reign  of  David,  and  seems,  from 
the  Old  Testament  narratives,  to  have 
been  present  when  the  shewbruad  was 


who  gave  the  bread  ;  bnt  in  Mark  ii.  2<i    given  by  his  father  to  David, 
the  occurrence  is  stated  as  in  the  days  i      f  ^^^e  Ilosea  vi.  0,  with  which   com- 
of  Abiathar.    Both  are  historically  true,    pare  the  beautiful  words  in  1  Samuel 
Ahimelech  was  the  father,  Abiathar  the  I  xv.  22. 


THE   SABBATH    QUESTION   AGAIN.  213 

thority,  wliich  fails  to  make  it  a  deliglit,  a  profit,  a  culture  in 
happy  goodness,  is  wht^lly  invalid  and  is  to  be  rejected.  Man  is 
not  to  be  the  slave  of  the  Sabbath  ;  the  Sabbath  is  to  be  the  ser- 
vant of  man.  Man  is  greater  than  the  Sabbath.  He  rules  it. 
And  then  Jesus  added  those  other  words,  which  ke  connects  with 
the  former  by  logical  process  :  "  Wherefore  the  Son  of  Man  is 
Lord  of  the  Sahlath-day?''  He  who  is  the  Consmnmate  Man,  who 
is  Essential  Manhood,  who  is  to  exist  in  the  minds  of  the  coming 
ages  as  the  Representative  Man,  he,  in  virtue  of  this  Manness,  is 
the  Ruler  of  the  Sabbath-day,  and  has  a  right  to  say  what  may 
be  done  and  what  may  not  be  done  on  the  Sabbath.  It  will  be 
seen  from  this  that  he  made  no  intimation  of  the  abrogation  of 
the  Sabbath ;  no  man  abrogates  a  kingdom  by  dechu-iug  liimself 
king.  He  reaffirms  it.  He  re-establishes  it  by  removing  it  from 
the  wretched  circumstances  of  tradition  and  placing  it  where 
God  originally  intended  it,  on  the  rational  biisis  of  being  the  sup- 
ply for  a  demand  widely  created  in  man.  Xow,  it  commends 
itself  to  the  reason  of  men.  Now,  we  can  take  the  ideas  of  Jesus 
and  by  their  light  survey  the  Sabbath  as  an  institution  of  divine 
beneficence.     If  it  be  not  that,  it  is  a  curse. 

The  battle  on  the  Sabbath  question  contimied  to  be  urged  by 
the  Pharisees  and  bravely  fought  by  Jesus.  He  shrank  from 
none  of  its  issues.  He  was  retiring  into  Galilee,  j^^^.  ^  .  jr^rkiv.; 
On  the  very  next  Sabbath  after  the  scene  in  the  Luke  vi.  The  uattie 
barley-field  he  entered  into  a  synagogue.  It  is 
not  certain  in  what  town  this  particular  synagogue  was  located. 
Some  infer  from  Mark  iii.  1  that  it  was  Capernaum,  but  there 
is  no  authority  for  this,  and  the  absence  of  the  article  in  the 
original  slightly  favors  the  opinion  that  it  was  some  other  s}ti- 
agogue.  As  his  custom  was,  lie  began  to  teach  the  people  when 
occasion  for  exhortation  was  given.  The  intense  hatred  of  the 
Pharisaic  party,  and  their  conspiracy  to  crush  him,  reappear  in  a 
still  more  significant  manner.  It  seems  to  have  been  arranged 
that  there  should  be  present  a  man  who  had  an  arm  that  had  been 
withered  by  a  wound  or  by  disease,  that  they  might  see  whether 
Jesus  would  heal  on  the  Sabbath. 

That  they  might  direct  the  attention  of  Jesus  to  this  afflicted 
man,  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  asked  him  :  "  Is     Question  of  healing 
it  lawful  to  heal  on  the  Sabbath-days  ? "     Accord-  °"  '^^  ^'^"^"'''^  • 
ins:  to  the  strictest  teachino;  of  their  school  it  was  not.     Sham- 


214         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN  THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

mai,  the  preceptor  of  the  Great  Ilillcl,*  and  one  of  the  earliest 
founders  of  their  sect,  had  distinctly  laid  down  the  law  :  "  Let  no 
one  console  the  sick  nor  visit  the  mourning  on  the  Sabbath-day." 
They  might  therefore  accuse  Jesus  if  he  healed  on  the  sacred 
day.  Eeading  their  intents,  Jesiis  said  to  the  man  with  the  with- 
ered hand  :  "  llise  and  stand  forth  in  the  midst."  And  tlie  man  f 
arose  and  took  a  conspicuous  position.  It  is  to  be  noticed  that 
when  a  man  has  a  real  malady,  and  there  appears  any  pi-ospect  of 
relief,  liow  indifferent  he  becomes  to  all  the  philosophical  theories 
of  the  modes  of  treatment,  and  how  absorbed  in  the  practical 
matter  of  fact  in  which  his  personal  comfort  is  most  deejily  con- 
cerned. 

This  was  a  fine  stroke  upon  the  part  of  Jesus.     It  held  up  the 

sufferer  to  the  gaze  of  the  assembly.     It  appealed  to  the  humanity 

of  the  persecutors,  and  invited  the  symijathv  of 

A  counter-question.  -i  \  •       "^ 

the  sjjectators.  Jesus  then  turned  upon  his  pur- 
suers with  this  movement.  They  had  narrowed  the  question  to 
the  dohig  or  the  not  doing  on  the  Sabbath.  By  a  counter-ques- 
tion he  lifted  the  whole  subject  to  a  loftier  light :  "  Is  it  lawful 
to  do  good  on  the  Sabbath-days,  or  to  do  evil  ?  to  save  or  destroy  ? " 
The  question  was  double-edged:  on  one  side  it  cut  the  knot  of 
their  question  ;  on  the  other  side  it  smote  them.  They  were  filled 
with  hatred.  They  were  pursuing  him  on  the  Sabbath-day,  trying 
to  kill  liim.  He  was  about  works  of  goodness,  giving  life,  and 
more  life, — making  life  joyful  that  had  been  almost  intolerable. 
"  Now,  who  will  be  to  be  blamed,  you  who  are  full  of  murderous 
intent,  or  I,  if  I  heal  this  suiferer  ?  "     They  were  silenced. 

But  he  })uslied  the  question  home  to  them:  "  Su])])ose  one  of 
you  owned  a  single  sheep,  and  on  the  Sabbath  it  should  fall  into 
a  cistern ;  would  he  not  lay  hold  upon  him  and  pull  him  out  ? 


*  Hillel  was  held  in  the  very  highest 
CHteem  as  the  most  learned  in  the  laws 
of  the  Jews.  He  was  more  liberal  than 
his  master  Shamniai,  and  the  differ- 
ences of  their  teaching  led  their  di.sci- 


"  Gospel  according  to  the  Hebrews" 
(an  apocryphal  book,  seemingly  an  adul- 
terated version  of  St.  Matthew,  and 
much  in  use  among  the  Naziircnes  and 
Ebionites),  says   that   this   man  was   a 


pies  to  blows,  which  resulted  in  the  stone-mason,  and  told  his  occupation  to 
death  of  several  persons.  Hillel  is  re-  Jesiis,  adding  that  he  was  compelled  to 
ported  by  some  as  the  grandfather  of  obtain  his  fond  by  the  labor  of  his 
that  Gamaliel  who  was  preceptor  to  ,  hands,  and  i)rayed  Jesus  to  heal  him, 
Saul  of  Tarsus.  that  he  might  no  longer  basely  beg  hia 

f  St.    Jerome,     who    translated   the    bread. 


THE   SABBATH  QUESTION   AGAIN.  ''20) 

A  man  is  much  better  than  a  sheep.  Wherefore  to  do  good 
on  the  Sabbath  is  lawful."  It  appears  from  An  aa  /wminem 
this,  that  in  the  days  of  Jesus,  this  pulling  of  question. 
a  sheep  out  of  the  pit  on  the  Sabbath  was  a  thing  allowed 
amongst  them  ;  else  this  ad  hom{7ie7n  appeal  had  had  no  force. 
Subsequently  it  was,  in  express  terras,  forbidden  in  the  Gemara ; 
and  only  permitted  to  lay  planks  for  the  animal  to  come  out ! 
Stier  suggests  that  this  explicit  regulation  was  made  because  of 
the  words  of  Jesus,  But  the  puritanic  instinct  would  dominate, 
holding  on  to  the  property  while  appearing  very  sanctimonious 
about  the  moral  law. 

His  enemies  were  still  silent.     Their  hardness  towards  the  suf- 
ferer, their  hatred  towards  himself,  their  spiritual  blindness  in 
not  seeing  the  merciful  intent  of  all  moral  law, 
aroused  mingled  feelings  in  Jesus.     He  was  ano-ry     "^^^  ^"""^"^  thewith- 

o  o  r>  J     eredhand. 

and  was  sorry.  He  exhibited  in  the  most  sur- 
passing manner  that  which  appears  in  all  noble  souls,  a  tender- 
ness for  the  sinful  man,  while  the  sin  is  hated.  But,  turning 
toward  the  waiting  patient,  he  said,  "  Stretch  forth  thy  hand." 
The  man  obeyed.  He  lifted  it.  It  was  as  whole  as  the  other 
arm.  The  cure  was  instantaneous  and  complete.  It  was  a  dis- 
play of  mighty  power  and  goodness.  He  flung  himself  into  the 
hands  of  his  foes  to  save  this  unknown  sufferer.  No  selfishness 
held  him.  He  saw  his  peril,  but  he  chose  to  face  his  fate  i-ather 
than  turn  from  a  work  of  beneficence  standing  before  him  to  be 
done. 

The  Pharisees  were  filled  with  rage  at  this  new,  bold,  defiant 
disregard  of  their  traditions.  If  their  Sabbath  laws  could  be  set 
aside  thus,  then  was  their  authority  at  an  end.  The  blasphemy 
of  two  weeks  ago  they  might  overlook ;  the  apparent  violation  of 
the  Sabbath  by  his  disciples  they  might  forgive,  as  it  had  not  been 
done  by  him  in  person ;  but  this  distinct  avowal  that  their  tra- 
dition was  of  no  force  was  intolerable :  they  hated  him.  But 
what  could  they  do  with  him  ?  He  had  not  mixed  medicines  to 
give  the  sick.  He  had  made  no  journeys  to  hunt  up  and  console 
sufi^erers,  in  the  simple  way  of  ordinary  Jewisli  duty.  He  had 
gone  into  the  synagogue,  and  simply  said  to  a  man,  "  Stretch 
forth  thy  liand."  It  seemed  impracticable  to  make  a  judicial 
case  on  such  ground.  They  were  as  mnch  puzzled  as  tliey  were 
enraged ;  and  so  they  went  out  and  took  counsel  witii  the  Hero- 


216         SECOND   AND   TIIIKD    PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

dians,  how  they  might  compass  the   destruction  of  liim  whoso 
crime  was  the  healing  of  a  fellow-man  on  the  Sahljath-da}-. 

"  The  Ilerodians  "  are  menti(jned  several  times  by  the  Kew- 

Testament  historians.     They  were  those  who  were  the  open  and 

avowed  political  adherents  to  the  family  of  the 

The  Herodians.        tt  i        • 

Ilerods,  in  whose  interest  they  were  ready  to 
make  any  combination,  and  use  any  of  the  ecclesiastical  parties 
and  theological  sects  that  might  be  in  existence  from  time  to  time. 
They  were  Jews  more  influenced  by  political  than  by  religious 
considerations.  The  independent  nationality  of  the  Jews  was  the 
fii"st  and  last  consideration  with  them.  They  believed  that  tlie 
Ilerodian  family  had  the  talent  and  the  ambition  to  make  head 
against  the  Roman  power,  and  so  were  willing  to  submit  to  them, 
although  they  were  of  foreign  origin,  and  not  strict  observers  of 
the  Mosaic  ritual.  If  they  were  lending  their  influence  to  a  do- 
mestic tyranny,  they  were  thus  at  least  saved  from  a  direct 
heathen  domination.  On  this  ground  some  of  the  Pharisees  would 
be  of  their  party.  Then  there  were  those  who  might  be  called 
liberal  Jews,  who  had  become  quite  lax  in  their  belief  in  tlie 
dogmas  of  Judaism  and  in  the  observance  of  its  stringent  ceremo- 
nials. They  favored  the  Ilerods  as  being  the  most  promising 
agents  in  bringing  about  a  combination  of  the  Hebrew  faith  with 
the  heathen  civilization.  On  this  ground  some  of  the  Sadducees 
would  be  of  their  party.  Thus  the  leading  sects  would  be  found 
at  different  times  co-operating  with  the  Ilerodians,  and  the  Ilero- 
dians using  either  of  these  sects,  as  the  occasion  might  seem  to 
indicate  it  could  be  used,  for  increase  of  political  power. 

In  this  particular  case  the  popularity  of  Jesus  was  so  great  that 
the  Pharisees  could  not  openly  attack  him.  The  Ilerodians  might 
be  induced  to  employ  their  influence  with  Ilerod  to  have  Jesus 
put  out  of  the  way  on  political  grounds. 

Discovering  the  formation  of  this  powerful  conspiracy  against 

him,  Jesus  retired  with  his  disciples  to  the  shore  of  the  Luke  of 

Gennesaret.    Vast  crowds  followed  him,  not  mere- 

crowa.  follow  je«u«.  ]vfrom  the  neighboring  district  of  Galilee,  but 

Mark  nl. ;  Matthew  xiL       •  O  »  ' 

also  from  Judaea  generally,  as  well  as  from  the 
city  of  Jerusalem,  and  even  from  Idumji3a  on  the  soutli,  and  from 
Perea  beyond  the  Joi-dan,  and  from  the  coasts  of  Tyre  aiul  Sidon 
on  the  north-west.  It  was  the  fame  of  his  miracles  that  drew 
them.     Among  the  orientals,  to  this  day,  the  name  and  fame  of  a 


THE   SABBATH   QUESTION   AGAIN.  217 

prophet  or  a  miracle- worker  will  agitate  large  sections  of  country, 
and  people  will  abandon  their  ordinary  employments  to  follow 
him.  Jesus  healed  their  diseased  people  and  restored  their  insane. 
All  had  the  benefit  of  his  marvellous  power  and  surpassing  good- 
)iess.  ^V^len  those  who  had  "  unclean  spirits  "  cried  out  to  him, 
"  Thou  art  the  Son  of  God,"  addressing  him  in  language  that  ac- 
knowledged him  as  the  Messiah,  he  rebuked  them,  and  very  strictly 
charged  all  who  received  his  favor  to  abstain  from  proclaiming 
him.  It  would  seem  to  have  been  his  intent  to  do  all  the  good 
he  could,  scattering  his  blessings  with  royal  bounty,  but  to  do  this 
unobtrusively,  so  as  not  to  appear  to  provoke  a  controversy  with 
his  ecclesiastical  and  political  enemies.  "Whenever  they  provoked 
it  he  never  shrank,  but  met  them  promptly,  skilfully,  and  with 
blows  aimed  so  adroitly  and  delivered  so  powerfully  that  the  pop- 
ulace rejoiced  in  the  discomfiture  of  the  rulers.  In  all  other  par- 
ticulars he  so  carefully  avoided  publicity  and  general  popularity 
that  to  one  of  his  biographers  at  least  (Mark  iii.  17)  were  recalled 
the  striking  words  of  Isaiah  (xlii.  1-4) :  "  Behold  my  servant  whom 
I  uphold;  my  chosen,  in  whom  my  soul  delighteth  :  I  have  put 
my  spirit  upon  him  ;  he  shall  bring  forth  judgment  to  the  nations, 
lie  shall  not  cry,  nor  lift  up,  nor  cause  his  voice  to  be  heard  in  the 
street.  A  bruised  reed  shall  he  not  break,  and  the  smoking  flax 
shall  he  not  quench."  To  us  at  a  distance  this  reticence,  with  this 
power,  seems  to  be  marvellous.  To  those  who  were  in  daily  and 
full  sight  of  both  it  must  have  produced  a  wonderful  impression. 
So  great  was  the  crowd  that  his  friends  procured  for  him  a 
small  boat,  which  could  be  used  as  a  kind  of  movable  pulpit,  so 
that  from  it  he  could  preach  to  the  people  on  the 

I'liii  -I         T  ■        ■^  movable  pulpit. 

beacii  at  a  distance  which  should  not  render  his 
voice  inaudible,  while  it  should  save  him  from  the  pressure  of  the 
crowd.     There  mi<>;ht  also  have  been  the  additi(.)nal  reason  of  beinjj 
able  to  go  quickly  from  one  side  of  the  lake  to  the  other,  and  thu3 
elude  the  machinations  of  his  enemies. 


CHAPTER  III. 


THE   TWELVE. 


It  was  a  crisis  with  Jesus.     He  had  attained  immense  popular- 
ity with  the  masses,  and  had  aroused  the  deadly  hatred  of  power- 

A  criris.  Matthew  ful  ccclesiastics  and  ])oliticians.  The  posture  of 
X.;  Markiii.;  Lukevi.  j^jg  affairs  was  sucli  that  it  became  him  to  move 
M'ith  great  caution,  and  to  act  with  great  despatch.  We  have 
learned  what  his  opinions  of  himself  were,  and  have  seen  some- 
thing of  his  character  by  his  words  and  acts  in  the  emergencies 
into  which  his  career  brought  him.  lie  must  have  had  the  sa- 
gacity to  see  noio  that  there  was  only  .one  of  two  coui-ses  before 
him:  to  go  forward  in  what  he  believed  to  be  the  establishing  of 
the  kingdom  of  God,  or  to  retreat,  give  up  the  mission,  and  letire 
into  the  utmost  privacy  and  draw  out  an  insignificant  life,  and 
leave  the  world  merely  a  torso  of  a  memory.  To  do  the  former 
was  certain  death ;  to  do  the  latter  was  an  abandonujent  of  the 
Messiahship. 

Out  of  Capernaum  he  went  to  a  neighboring  mountain  alone, 
and  spent  the  night,  we  must  suppose,  in  looking  the  dread  near 

A  night  in  a  moun-  f  uture  In  the  face.  He  must  have  canvassed  all 
**^  the  probabilities  on  both  sides.     It  must  have 

been  a  night  of  torture  to  him.  But  he  saw  his  way  clear,  and 
came  forth  in  the  morning  prepared  to  walk  it  at  all  hazards.  He 
must  not  take  measures  to  avoid  the  supreme  fate,  if  death  were 
necessary  to  achieve  the  great  result  he  had  set  before  himself  as 
the  mission  of  his  life.  But  he  must  not  both  die  and  fail.  He 
must  manage  himself  and  his  affaii-s  in  such  a  manner  that  before 
his  enemies  could  kill  him  he  should  have  so  im])lantcd  the  germ 
of  his  doctrines  in  the  woi-ld  tiuit  it  would  gi-ow  after  his  depar- 
ture. He  must  so  instruct  othei-s  in  the  kingdom  of  God  that 
they  might  be  able  to  place  the  torch  of  light  in  the  u])turned 
hands  of  the  comiiiir  jrenerations.  He  must  so  breathe  his  spii-it 
into  other  souls  that  even  when  dead  ho  could  through  them 
cause  his  relii;ioii  to  live  and  'n-o\v  in  tlie  hcai'ts  of  men. 


THE   TWELVE.  219 

Wlien  the  moniing  came  he  called  together  all  those  who,  from 
whatever  motive,  had  followed  him,  or  shown  attachment  to  his 
person,  or  interest  in  his  movements.     And  from 

'■  '  111        Selection  of  the  Twelve. 

them  he  set  apart  twelve  men,  who  were  to  be 
near  his  person,  to  be  carefully  instructed  in  his  doctrine,  to  re- 
ceive of  his  power  to  cure  physical  and  mental  maladies,  and  to 
be  representatives  to  the  world  of  the  principles  he  had  taught. 
It  will  be  interesting  to  make  a  study  of  the  character  of  each  of 
the  men  whom  Jesus  would  put  in  this  extraordinary  position,  the 
men  whom  his  choice  has  made  immortal.  AYe  shall  take  them 
in  the  order  in  which  they  are  named  in  the  sixth  chapter  of 
Luke,  calling  attention  to  the  fact  that  they  are  there  catalogued 
in  pairs,  as  we  are  informed  in  the  sixth  chapter  of  Mark  they 
were  sent  out  "  by  two  and  two."  It  will  also  be  noticed  that  the 
first  seven  had  received  some  kind  of  call  from  Jesus  before  this 
definite  setting  apart  to  the  Apostleship. 

1.  At  the  head  of  the  list  stands  the  navae  of  Simon  I.,  whom 
Jesus  named  Peter.  Simon,  "I'^aS,  signifies  "  hearer."  Kr)(f)a<i,  Ce- 
phas, or  n6Tpo<;,  Peter,  signifies  "  rock."  It  will 
be  recollected  that  Avhen  Jesus  first  saw  him  this 
name  was  given  the  Apostle.  (Matt.  xvi.  18.)  His  father's  name  was 
Jonas  ;  his  mother's  name,  according  to  tradition,  was  Johanna, 
lie  resided  originally  at  Bethsaida,  and  afterward  in  his  own  house, 
or  the  house  of  his  mother-in-law,  in  Capernaum.  (Luke  xiv.  38.) 
He  was  brought  up  to  liis  father's  occupation ;  he  was  a  fisherman 
on  the  lake  of  Tiberias.  This  was  not  a  very  exalted  employment, 
nor  was  it  degrading.  It  developed  his  corn-age,  his  watchfulness, 
his  fortitude,  in  the  self-denying  labors  on  the  sea,  the  night-watches, 
the  frequent  and  trying  postponements  which  men  who  make 
their  livelihood  by  fishing  often  encounter.  He  became  a  rough, 
ready,  impetuous,  hard  man.  He  had  the  vices  of  his  class.  He 
was  not  always  truthful,  and  he  was  profane.  We  judge  these  to 
Iiave  been  the  vices  of  his  youth,  as  we  generally  find  that  when 
a  fierce  temptation  assails  a  man  in  advanced  life  it  brings  out 
his  earliest  vices.  AYlien  Peter's  crisis  came,  in  the  hour  of  his 
Master's  trial,  he  used  both  falsehood  and  profanity  for  his  own 
safety.  (John  xviii.  15,  17,  25-27.)  He  was  not  a  wholly  unedu- 
cated man.*     He  must  have  enjoyed  the  benefit  of  the  public 

*  Smith  well  remarks  that  the  state-  I  perceived  that  they  (Peter  and  John) 
ment  in  Acts  iv.  13,  that  "  the  council  1  were  unlearned  and  ignorant  men,"  ifl 


220 


SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


schools  maintained  Ly  the  commnnity  in  whicli  he  lived,  which 
the  young  were  compelled  to  attend,  according  to  a  law  enacted 
by  Simon  Ben-Shelach,  one  of  the  great  leaders  of  the  Pharisaic 
})arty  under  the  Asmonean  dynasty.  The  Holy  Scriptures  and  the 
history  of  his  country  he  probably  knew  from  his  earliest  child- 
hood. The  regular  attendance  upon  the  spiagogue  service  would 
have  been  a  species  of  education.  And  these  remarks  api:»ly  to 
all  the  disciples.  Moreover,  in  the  case  of  Peter  there  was  the 
culture  which  came  from  trade  and  intercourse  with  cultivated 
foreigners.  lie  seems  to  have  picked  up  some  rudimental  knowl- 
edge of  the  Greek  tongue,  and  to  have  profited  generally  by 
miuirlino:  with  his  fellow-men  of  diverse  education. 

He  was  not  a  very  poor  man.  His  father,  Jonas,  was  a  person 
in  good  circumstances.  Fishing  was  lucrative.  The  great  popu- 
lation of  the  district,  the  influx  of  people  from  among  the  culti- 
vated heathen,  and  the  pleasure-seekers  whom  the  beauty  of  the 
lake  atti-acted,  must  have  afforded  a  good  market.  He  may  have 
also  acquired  money  by  his  marriage,  as  the  house  to  which  he 
invited  Jesus  and  his  fellow-disciples  would  seem  to  have  been 
roomy,  and  to  have  been  his  property,  or  that  of  his  mother-in- 
law.  He  makes  mentif^n  of  the  sacrifices  which  he  had  incurred 
to  follow  his  Master,  and  Jesus  does  not  deny  that  they  were 
great.*  Peter  seems  to  have  man-ied  in  early  life,  and  to  have 
been  a  devoted  and  affectionate  husband.  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, whose  testimony  is  made  more  valuable  by  the  fact  that  he 
was  connected  with  the  church  founded  by  St.  Mark,  tells  us  from 
very  ancient  traditions,  as  other  historians  do,  that  the  name  of 
Peter's  wife  was  Perpetua,  by  whom  he  had  a  daughter,  and  per- 
haps other  children,  and  that  she  suffered  martyrdom.  Paul 
informs  us  that  Peter  was  accustomed  to  be  accompanied  by  his 
wife  on  his  apostolic  journeys. 

The  cpuility  Peter  most  lacked  is  precisely  that  which  seems  to 
be  indicated  by  his  name,  firmness.  In  no  way  does  the  word 
"  rock "  recall  Peter,  except  as  it  reminds  us  of  his  hardness. 


/lot  at  all  incompatible  with  tbe  state- 
ment made  above,  and  tbe  translation 
of  this  passage  in  the  authorized  version 
is  rather  exjjggerated.  the  word  ren- 
dered "unlearned"  being  rather  equiv- 
alent to  "laymen" — men  of  ordinary 


education,  not  specially  trained  in  the 
schools  of  the  rabbis— so  that  the  term 
might  have  been  applied  to  a  man  thor- 
oughly conversant  with  the  Scriptures. 
•  Matt.  xix.  27. 


THE    TM'ELVE. 


221 


He  was  liard  and  unstable.  He  asked  Jesns  to  invite  him  to 
come  to  him  on  the  watei*,  and  when  bidden  he  started  off  boldly, 
soon  lost  courage,  and  began  to  sink.*  At  the  last  supper  which 
Jesus  had  M'ith  his  apostles,  the  Master  offered  to  wash  the  feet 
of  his  disciples  as  a  symbol.  Peter  vehemently  refused,  but  at  a 
w^ord  from  Jesus  impetuously  thrust  forward  his  hands  and  his 
head.f  When  his  Master  was  betrayed  he  frantically  undertook, 
single-handed,  to  fight  the  whole  body  of  Eoman  soldiers;  but 
when  Jesus  ordered  him  to  put  up  his  sword  he  fled,  and  left  his 
Master  in  the  hands  of  his  foes.;}:  With  another  disciple  he  fol- 
lowed Jesus  into  the  palace  of  the  high-priest,  and  w^hen  the 
crisis  came  he  denied  all  knowledge  of  his  Master,  and  did  this 
with  oaths  and  vehement  protestations.§  After  the  Christian 
society  began  to  take  form,  he  was  in  the  front  of  the  movement 
to  baptize  converted  Gentiles ;  but  wdien  opposition  came  from 
the  Judaizing  element  in  the  Christian  community,  he  inglorious- 
ly  abandoned  his  position.! 

And  yet  there  was  something  so  daring  and  dashing,  so  eagle- 
swift,  so  unthoughtful  of  consequences,  so  sjmipathetic  and  elas- 
tic in  this  man,  as  to  make  him  most  receptive  of  such  spiritual 
influences  as  the  character  of  Jesus  would  produce  upon  the 
human  heart,  and  most  capable  of  being  the  ardent  pioneer 
preacher  of  a  new  faith.  He  led  the  band  of  Apostles  as  a  bold 
chieftain  would  his  clan. 

2.  The  next  Apostle  in  the  catalogue  is  Andrew,  whose  name  is 
Greek,  'AvBpia^;,  and  signifies  "  maidy."  He  may  have  had  a 
Hebrew  name,  and  this  Greek  surname  been 
given  him  as  indicative  of  the  manliness  of  his 
spirit.  The  name,  we  know,  was  in  use  among  the  later  Jews.^ 
Andrew  may  have  been  a  Hellenist  on  his  mother's  side,  a  con- 
jecture perhaps  favored  by  the  circumstance  of  his  introducing 
to  Jesus  certain  Grecians  who  desired  to  see  the  Great  Master.** 
His  position  in  the  New-Testament  history  is  not  nearly  so  im- 
portant as  that  of  his  brother  Peter ;  but  the  few  glimpses  we  catch 
of  him  show  the  eager  spirit  of  one  who  is  anxious  for  the  spir- 
itual welfare  of  others,  and  who  has  a  simple  manly  trust  in  liis 


Andrew. 


*  Matt.  xiv.  28-30. 

f  John  xiii.  6,  8,  9. 

X  John  xviii.  10 ;  Matt.  xxvi.  56. 

§  John  xviii.  15,  17,  25-27. 


B  Acts  X.  47,  48. 
T[  Josephus,  Ant.,  xii.  2,  2. 
**  John  xii.  22.     See  also  p.  114  of 
this  book. 


222 


SECOND    AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIEE   OF   JESUS. 


James  I. 


great  spiritual  Leader.  He  had  been  a  disciple  of  John  tlie  Bap- 
tist, but  he  became  one  of  tlie  earliest  followers  of  Jesus,  to 
which  coui-se  he  was  prompted  by  John's  expressly  pointing  out 
Jesus  as  "  the  Lamb  of  God."  *  His  earliest  act  as  a  follower  of 
Jesus  was  his  bringing  his  brother  Peter  to  the  newly  found  Mas- 
ter, lie  is  mentioned  with  thi-ee  other  disciples  as  being  in  a 
confidential  interview  with  Jesus,  making  inquiries  concerning 
the  destruction  of  the  holy  city.f  lie  also  appears  in  connec- 
tion M'ith  the  history  of  the  feeding  of  the  five  thousand.:}:  Be- 
yond this  there  appears  no  reference  to  Andrew. 

3.  The  third  Apostle  is  James,  whom  we  designate  as  J.virES  I., 
to  distinguish  him  from  James  the  son  of  Alphneus.  There  were 
perhaps  eight  of  this  name  mentioned  in  the  New 
Testament  Scriptures.  As  held  by  the  Apostles 
it  was  "  Jacob,"  and  it  has  been  noticed  that  in  them  it  reappears 
for  the  fii-st  time  since  it  was  borne  by  the  Patriarch  himself. 
The  Greeks  called  it  'IaKa^o<;,  accenting  the  first  syllable,  and 
the  Latins  J'acol/zis,  probably  accented  as  the  Greek  name,  since 
the  Italian  is  Giticomo,  or  Idcomo.  In  Spanish  it  took  two  forms, 
lago  and  Xayme,  or  Jayme,  pronounced  Ilayme,  with  strong  ini- 
tial guttural.  In  French  it  became  Jaccpies  and  Jame,  from  which 
the  transition  is  easy  to  our  James.  It  exists  in  Wycliffe^s  Blhle^ 
1381.§     In  the  East,  St.  James  is  still  St.  Jacob,  Mar  Yakoob. 

This  James  was  the  son  of  Zebedee,  a  well-to-do  fisherman  on 
the  Lake  of  Galilee.  He  was  the  brother  of  that  John  mIio, 
according  to  his  own  account,  became  such  a  favorite  with  his 
Master.  The  year  before  his  ai)i)ointment  to  the  Apostolic  col- 
lege he  had  been  called  to  be  a  disciple  of  Jesus.||  As  we  trace 
the  history  of  Jesus  we  shall  find  James  admitted  to  the  raising 
of  Jainis's  daughter,^  and  also  made  one  of  the  three  witnesses 
to  the  Transfiguration.**  His  furious  temper  is  shown  in  his  de- 
sire to  call  down  fire  from  heaven  to  destroy  a  Samaritan  village.f  f 
The  ambition  of  himself  and  his  brother  John  is  sliown  in  their 
rc(piest,  through  their  mother,  to  be  i)romoted  to  the  joint  premier- 
ship in  the  new  kingdom  which  they  believed  Jesus  as  tlie  Messiah 


♦  John  i.  30. 
f  ]\I.irk  xiii.  3. 
X  Jolin  XV.  9. 

5^  For  this  see   a  full  note   l>y  Mr. 
Grove,  in  Smith's  Dictionary. 


I  Mark  i.  20. 

i[  Mark  v.  37;  Luke  viii.  51. 
**  Matt.  xvii.  1  ;  Luke  ix.  2a 
f  f  Luke  ix.  54. 


THE    TWELVE,  223 

was  about  to  inaugurate.*  He  was  present  at  the  agony  in  tlio 
garden  of  Gethsemane,f  and  is  mentioned  in  connection  with 
the  Ascension.:}:  In  the  year  4-i,  as  it  is  supposed,  about  the  time 
of  the  Passover,  he  was  put  to  death  by  Herod  Agrippa,  a  bigoted 
Phai-isee,  who  slew  James  with  the  sword,§  according  to  the 
Jewish  law,  that  if  seducers  to  a  strange  worship  were  few,  they 
should  be  stoned  ;  if  many,  they  should  be  beheaded. 

It  has  been  noticed  that  earlier  in  the  history  John  is  mentioned 
as  the  brother  of  James,  showing  the  superior  age  or  position  of 
the  latter ;  but  in  the  later  history  the  place  of  honor  is  assigned 
to  John  by  calling  James  his  brother.  James  was  the  first  of  the 
Apostles  to  suifer  martyrdom. 

4.  John,  son  of  Zebedee  by  Salome,  being  brother  to  James,  is 
ordinarily  mentioned  with  him,  as  Andrew  is  with  Peter.  These 
four  were  the  leading  spirits  of  the  body  of  the 
disciples.  To  James  and  John  Jesus  gave  the 
name  -j^an-ra,  Boan'erget's,  the  Galilaean  pronunciation  of  the 
Syro-Chaldee  words  yi"]  "^53,  Benai  Eegaz,  "  Sons  of  Commotion," 
or  "  Sons  of  Thunder,"  probably  given  because  of  their  impetuous 
temper.  The  name  John  has  its  equivalent  in  Theodore,  meaning 
« the  gift  of  God." 

In  the  N^ew-Testament  memoirs  he  is  represented  as  the  inti- 
mate friend  and  almost  constant  companion  of  Simon  Peter,  and 
as  the  most  single-minded  and  devoted  of  all  the  men  who  loved 
and  followed  Jesus.  lie  had  been  brought  up  to  a  life  of  labor, 
but  does  not  seem  to  have  come  from  the  very  poorest  class.  His 
father,  Zebedee,  and  mother,  Salome,  were  above  many  of  their 
fellow-citizens.  We  hear  that  the  father  employed  "hired  ser- 
vants "  on  his  fisheries  (Mark  i.  20) ;  that  probably  after  his  death 
the  mother  had  some  substance  (Luke  viii.  3),  and  that  John  him- 
self had  "  his  own  house."  (John  xix.  27.)  He  had  had  the  usual 
instruction  of  Jewish  lads,  had  gained  what  a  quick  boy  would 
gather  from  his  regular  religious  ^nsits  to  the  Temple,  and  had 
probably  sympathized  with  the  occasional  political  movements 
that  contemplated  the  throwing  off  the  Poman  yoke  fi-om  the 
Hebrew  neck.  His  name  was  one  which  began  to  be  given  to 
children  born  in  the  sacerdotal  circles,  and  was  probably  rendered 


*  Mark  x.  33.  \      %  Acts  i.  13. 

f  Matt.  xxvi.  37.  |     §  Acts  xiL  1. 


22-i         PECOXT)    AXD   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

all  the  more  popular  by  tlic  circumstances  of  marvel  which  liad 
attended  the  birth  of  John  the  Baptist,  and  by  the  general  hope 
that  "  God's  gift,"  Jehovah's  special  gift  of  grace,  the  Messiah, 
was  about  to  be  bestowed  upon  the  world. 

Jolin  must  liave  been  quite  young  when  called  to  the  Aposto- 
late,  as  we  learn  that  he  was  still  alive  in  the  days  of  the  Emperor 
Trajan.  The  appearance  of  John  the  Baptist  at  Jordan  roused 
the  religious  fervor  of  the  young  man,  who  became  a  disciple  of 
his  namesake.  lie  was  an  earnest  seeker  after  truth,  and  this  led 
him  to  follow  Jesus  on  John's  saying  that  he  was  the  Lamb  of  God 
that  taketh  away  the  sins  of  the  world,  and  this  predt)miiiant 
characteristic,  notwithstanding  his  faults  of  temper,  won  him  the 
love  of  Jesus.  AVith  Peter  and  James  we  find  him  in  the  cham- 
ber where  the  dead  daughter  of  Jairus  was  brought  to  life,  amid 
the  dazzling  splendors  of  the  Transfiguration,  at  the  solemn  an- 
nouncement of  the  impending  destruction  of  the  holy  city,  in  the 
garden  of  Gethsemane,  at  the  fearful  agony,  and  near  the  cross 
as  Jesus  expired.  He  had  nothing  of  that  soft  effeminate  manner 
which  is  so  usually  assigned  to  him. 

lie  never  married.  lie  was  very  passionate,  narrow-minded, 
ambitious,  and  vain,  as  is  shown  in  his  hatred  of  the  Samaritans, 
his  desire  to  consume  a  village  with  fire,  his  attempt  to  extort  a 
pledge  from  Jesus  to  share  the  highest  honors  of  the  new  dynasty 
between  himself  and  his  brother,  and  the  way  he  alludes  to  him- 
self in  his  writings.  But  he  loved  the  truth,  and  he  loved  Jesus 
with  a  supreme  passion,  which  subsequently  ripened  and  mellowed 
his  character  into  exceeding  sweetness  and  beauty.  And  Jesus 
loved  him.  He  leaned  on  the  bosom  of  the  blaster  at  the  Last 
Supper,  and  received  from  him  the  tender  consignment  of  his 
mother  when  the  Master  died.  To  him  and  Peter,  Mary  of  ^^lag- 
dala  brought  the  news  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus.  Although 
Peter  had  denied  the  Lord,  the  old  friendship  8ur\'ived,  and  the 
penitent  friend  was  received  again  Avith  warmth.  John  grew  out 
of  his  narrowness  so  much  as  to  lose  all  his  prejudices  against  the 
Samaritans,  and  to  become  willing  to  reoeive  them  into  the  Chris- 
tian society,  in  which  his  subsequent  position  was  one  of  honor 
and  usefulness,  organizing,  teaching,  encouraging.  There  is 
much  legendary  notice  of  his  latest  years,  some  very  trivial  and 
Bome  very  beautiful,  but  not  much  that  is  reliable  or  worth  men- 
tioning in  a  history. 


TITE    TWELVE. 


225 


PhUip. 


5.  Tlie  Apostles  are  catalogued  in  groups  of  fours,  Simon  Peter 
being  at  the  head  of  the  first,  and  Philip  of  the  second  quaternion. 
Of  tliis  Apostle  the  Gospels  give  us  very  slight 
memorials.  lie  is  said  to  have  been  of  Bethsaida, 
the  city  of  Andrew  and  Peter,  whether  a  native  or  inhabitant 
does  not  appear.*  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  Jesus  is  said  to  have 
found  hiui  (John  i.  43),  as  though  he  had  been  seeking  him,  and 
that  to  Philip,  first  of  all  the  Apostles,  does  he  address  that  re- 
markable appeal,  "  Follow  me,"  which  was  to  become  the  terms 
of  Christian  discipleship  for  all  succeeding  ages.  He  was  quite 
eager  to  declare  the  discovery  he  had  made  of  the  character  of 
Jesus  to  Nathanael,  with  whom  he  seems  to  have  been  in  relations 
of  intimacy,  both  being  men  of  earnest  simple-heartedness,  and  both 
looking  for  the  Deliverer.  Yet  the  faith  of  Philip  was  not  such 
as  to  make  him  ready  to  expect  any  miraculous  display.  At  the 
feeding  of  the  great  multitude,  Jesus  addressed  Philip  specially, 
as  to  how  to  provide  food  for  so  large  a  number :  f  and  this  he 
did  "  to  try  him."  It  does  not  easily  appear  why  this  should  have 
been  done,  as  Philip  does  not  seem  strikingly  weak  in  the  faith 
which  soars  above  the  externals,  as  Chrysostom  suggests.  But  his 
calculation  of  the  money  in  hand  and  the  cost  of  feeding  such  a 
multitude  shows  that  Philip  was  not  expecting  a  miracle. 

The  next  glimpse  we  have  of  him  is  in  John  xii.,  where  we  are 
told  that  certain  Greeks  who  had  come  up  to  the  feast  had  a  great 
desire  to  see  Jesus,  and,  attracted  probably  by  the  Greek  form  of 
Philip's  name,  applied  to  him  to  introduce  them  to  his  Master. 
With  a  modesty  to  be  noticed,  Philip  first  goes  to  his  friend 
Andrew,  and  they  together  convey  to  Jesus  an  expression  of  the 
desire  of  the  Greeks.  He  must  have  heard  the  voice  from  heaven 
which  replied  to  the  remarkably  striking  words  of  Jesus,  which 
we  shall  consider  when  we  reach  them  in  the  regular  narrati\e. 
Philip  probably  brooded  over  the  address,  "  Father^  save  me  ! 
Father,  glorify  thy  name  ! "  and  so  when,  in  his  latest  interviews 
with  his  disciples,  Jesus  spoke  of  going  to  the  "Father,"  the 


*  John  i.  44.  Greswell  calls  attention 
to  John's  use  of  the  jirepositions  oto 
and  t| ,  the  former  meaning  an  inhabi- 
tant, and  the  latter  a  native  of  the  place 
mentioned.  ( Dissert,  xxxii. )  The  for- 
mer is  the  preposition  used  in  this 
passage.  But  Alford  thinks  this  dis- 
]5 


tinction  futile.     ( Gr.  Test. ,  in  loco. ) 

\  John  vi.  5.  Bengel,  on  this  pas- 
sage, suggests  that  Philip  was  one  of 
the  disciples  to  whom  the  domestic  ar- 
rangements for  the  company  were  com- 
mitted.    Seep.  115,  ante. 


226         SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

childlike  simplicity  of  Philip  gave  vent  to  the  request,  "  Lord, 
Bhow  us  the  Father,  and  it  sufHccth  us." 

This  is  the  last  we  see  of  Philip,  unless  we  suppose  him  to  have 
been  one  of  the  two  unnamed  disciples  in  that  group  to  whom 
Jesus  is  said  to  have  exhibited  himself  after  his  resurrection,  in  a 
scene  described  in  John's  last  chapter. 

6,  Of  the  excellent  Nathanael,  who  was  of  Cana  in  Galilee, 
only  two  notices  are  made,  both  in  John's  Gospel :  one  in  the 

early  ministry  of  Jesus,  and  one  after  his  resur- 

Nathanael.  _ 

rection.  "VVlien  Philip  was  first  called  by  Jesus, 
shortly  after  the  terrible  passage  of  his  temptation,  he  went  im- 
mediately in  search  of  his  friend  Nathanael,  whom  he  brought  to 
the  person  announced  by  John  the  Baptist  as  the  Messiah.  Upon 
sight,  Jesus  declared  Nathanael  to  be  "  an  Israelite  indeed,  in 
whom  was  no  guile."  (John  i.  47.)  And  then  no  more  mention 
is  made  of  him  until  after  the  resurrection,  when  he  is  named  in 
the  company  of  the  fishermen  who  had  such  a  fruitless  night  of 
toil,  to  be  followed  by  a  morning  in  which  the  crucified  and  buried 
Master  should  reveal  himself  to  them,     (John  xxi.  2.) 

And  this  is  all  that  is  said  of  this  guileless  man  whom  Jesus  so 
connncnded.  But,  l)eing  thus  associated  with  the  chief  of  the 
Apostles,  and  praised  above  them  all  by  the  Master  of  the  com- 
pany, it  is  perplexing  to  find  so  little  mention  of  Nathanael.  This 
has  led  to  the  l>elief  that  Bartholomew  is  the  same  as  Nathanael, 
the  former  signifying  son  of  Tholmai,  being  a  surname  of  the  lat- 
ter, as  Barjonas  was  of  Simon,  The  reason  assigned  for  this  be- 
lief is,  that  John  mentions  Nathanael  twice  and  Bartholomew 
never,  while  the  name  of  Bartholomew  occurs  in  the  (»ther  three 
Gospels,  but  that  of  Nathanael  is  totally  omitted.  In  John, 
Nathanael  is  associated  with  Philip  in  both  instances,  while  in 
the  other  gospels  Bartholomew  is  in  like  manner  alwavs  associated 
with  Philip.* 

If  Nathanael  and  Bartholomew  be  the  same  individual,t  he  was 
associated  after  the  ascension  with  the  body  of  the  Apostles,  as 
we  learn  from  Acts  i.  13. 

7.  ^rAiTiiKw  is  the  surname  of  Levi.  He  calls  himself  "the 
publican,"  in  his  own  Gospel,  but  is  not  so  called  by  the  other 

•  See  Matt.  x.  3  ;  Mark  iii.  18;  and  I  wfis  an  Apostle;  so  does  St.  Gregory. 
Luke  vi.  14;  and  p.  XWS.Kute.  Others  have  held  that  Nathanael  and 

f  St.  Augustine  denies  that  Nathanael  I  Bartholomew  were  different  persons. 


THE   TWELVE.  227 

biogi-aphers.     "We  learn  that  he  was  the  son  of  Alphseus.     lie 
must  have  been  a  man  of  low  estate  and  of  gen- 

.  ,  Levi  or  Matthew. 

eral  bad  character,  otherwise  he  would  not  have 
accepted  the  position  of  sub-collector  of  taxes,  a  post  filled  only 
by  the  meanest  of  the  Jews.  The  real  publican  was  one  who 
farmed  the  taxes  of  a  province,  paying  so  much  to  the  empire  for 
the  privilege.  The  sub-collectors  {portitores)  were  those  to  whom 
the  collection  of  the  taxes  was  relet.  The  former  were  generally 
Roman  knights ;  the  latter,  mercenary  inhabitants  of  the  province, 
who  made  all  they  could  by  oppressing  the  people.  In  the  case 
of  a  Jew,  a  portitor  was  a  special  object  of  dislike,  as  he  kept 
before  the  Hebrew  mind  perpetually  the  sign  of  the  national 
degradation.  Of  course  no  Jew  of  any  respectability  would  ac- 
cept such  an  odious  office.  Matthew  (x.  3)  frankly  acknowledges 
that  he  had  fallen  that  low,  a  circumstance  which  the  other  biog- 
raphers refrain  from  mentioning. 

Of  this  man,  in  whom  Jesus  saw  something  of  a  religious  ele- 
ment, and  whom  he  called  to  be  one  of  the  earliest  and  chief 
propagators  of  his  religion,  this  is  all  we  know,  except  that  he 
contributed  one  of  the  four  collections  of  Memorabiha  of  his 
great  Master,  upon  which  the  world  depends  for  its  knowledge  of 
Jesus.  His  reticence  concerning  himself  is  a  remarkable  display  of 
modesty  in  a  biographer  who  had  every  temptation  and  occasion 
to  glorify  himself  as  being  so  intimately  associated  with  his  hero. 

8.  The  last  of  the  second  quaternion  of  Apostles  was  Thomas, 
who  is  coupled  with  Matthew  in  Matt.  x.  3,  Mark  iii.  IS,  and  Luke 
vi.  15.     Ilis  name  in  Hebrew  signifies  "twin," 

..  ^  111.        T-\.T  Thomas. 

and  IS  so  translated  by  J  ohn,  who  calls  him  Didy- 
mus,  which  is  the  Greek  for  "  a  twin."  It  is  not  known  where  he 
was  born.  A  tradition,  however,  indicates  Antioch  as  the  place. 
There  are  three  prominent  incidents  mentioned  of  his  connection 
with  the  history  of  Jesus.  When  his  Master  determined  to  go  to 
Bethany,  upon  learning  that  Lazarus  was  dead,  Thomas  appealed 
to  his  colleagues  to  accompany  Jesus  and  share  his  peril  on  a  jour- 
ney which  Thomas  believed  would  prove  ruinous  to  the  whole 
party.  (John  xi.  16.)  At  the  Last  Supper,  when  Jesus  had  been 
speaking  in  an  exalted  and  poetic  strain  of  his  departure  into  the 
realms  of  the  unseen  world,  Thomas  showed  his  prosy,  incredu- 
lous nature  by  saying,  "  Lord,  we  know  not  whither  thou  goest, 
and  how  can  we  knovr  the  way  ? "     (John  xiv.  5.)     After  the  Cru- 


228         SECOND   AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   TflE   LIFE    OF   .TESU8. 

cifixiou  liis  bruther  Apostles  reported  to  him  that  they  had  seen 
Jesus.  (Johii  XX.  25.)  lie  broke  into  the  vehement  exclama- 
tion, "  Except  I  shall  see  in  his  hands  the  print  of  the  nails,  and 
put  my  fintrer  into  the  print  of  the  nails,  and  thrust  my  hand  into 
his  side,  I  will  not  believe." 

These  incidents  show  that  he  was  skeptical,  6k)W  to  believe, 
demanding  unusual  proofs, — that  he  was  not  sanguine,  but  rather 
despondent, — and  that  he  loved  Jesus  ardently.  Although  he  i-e- 
garded  the  journey  to  Bethany  as  almost  certain  destruction,  his 
love  for  Jesus  prompted  him  to  go  and  die  with  him.  Although 
he  could  see  nothing  before  him  in  the  future,  and  his  practical, 
matter-of-fact  mind  could  not  appreciate  the  spiritual,  and  dark- 
ness lay  on  the  path  into  the  unseen  world,  his  love  for  Jesus 
made  liira  long  to  know  how  to  follow  him  in  tho^  paths  which 
the  Master  dimly  indicated.  Although  he  would  not  believe 
that  Jesus  had  risen  from  the  dead,  and  although  he  demanded 
what  at  first  sight  seems  to  be  a  most  gross  and  repulsive  method 
of  conviction,  the  very  form  in  which  he  puts  it  shows  how  the 
person  of  Jesus,  in  the  mangled  condition  in  which  he  had  last 
seen  it,  was  the  most  affecting  picture  of  all  things  retained  by  his 
memory. 

Beyond  this  we  know  nothing,  but  that  lie  was  with  the  Apostles 
after  the  Ascension.     (Acts  i.  13.) 

9.  In  the  lead  of  the  last  class  of  the  Apostles  is  the  other 
James,  whom  we  distinguish  as  James  II.  He  is  also  called 
James  the  Less.  He  was  the  son  of  Mary  by 
Alphaeus,  who  was  brother  of  Joseph,  whom  John 
calls  Clopas,  and  thus  cousin  to  Jesus.  I  am  satisfied  that  this 
James  was  n<jt  the  one  who  is  called  "  the  brother  of  the  Lord." 
None  of  the  children  born  of  Mary  to  Joseph  after  the  birth  of 
Jesus  became  believers  in  him  until  after  the  resuirection.  They 
were  not,  thei-efore,  among  the  Ap<^stles.  On  one  occasion  they 
became  indignant  at  him  for  what  they  considered  his  intemperate 
zeal  and  excessive  labors  in  preaching,  so  much  so  that  they 
were  going  to  lay  hold  on  him  and  compel  him  to  suspend  hia 
work,  (^rark  iii.  20,21,31.)  This  James,  the  Apostle,  was  in- 
side the  house  wliile  that  James,  the  brother,  6t(K)d  outside  with 
his  mother.  During  the  lifetime  of  Jesus  James  II.  is  no  more 
seen,  except  at  this  organization  of  the  Apostolatc,  wlien  lie 
and    liis   brother    Ju<le    are    in    the    catalotrue    of    the    twelve. 


THE    TWELVE. 


229 


After  the  Resurrection  he  continned  with  the  Apostles,  and  is  sa 
mentioned. 

Twenty-fonr  years  afterward  we  find  him  still  at  Jerusalem,  and 
now  holding  a  high  position  and  discharging  important  ecclesiasti- 
cal functions.  Saul  of  Tarsus  had  been  a  convert  to  Jesus  by  the 
space  of  seventeen  years,  and  then  visited  Jerusalem,  where  he  was 
introduced  to  the  Chi-istian  brethren  by  Barnabas,  and  found 
James  sharing  the  management  of  the  infant  society  with  Peter. 
All  allusions  to  him  afterwards  seem  to  set  him  forth  as  the  Bishop 
at  Jerusalem,  that  is,  as  chief  pastor  of  the  congregation  and 
President  of  the  Apostolic  Council.*  A  large  number  of  quota- 
tions might  be  made  from  the  earliest  Christian  writers  confirm- 
ing this  view. 

So  excellent  was  the  character  of  this  man  that  he  obtained 
among  his  countrymen  the  title  which  Aristides  won  from  the 
Greeks,  "  the  Just."  lie  is  represented  as  being  held  in  great 
reverence  by  the  Jews,  notwithstanding  his  connection  with  the 
Christian  sect.  He  was  a  most  strict  and  exemplary  observer  of 
all  the  Jewish  rites  and  ceremonies,  so  much  so  that  there  is  a 
tradition,  hardly  probable  as  to  the  fact,  but  showing  his  lofty 
reputation,  that  he  was  allowed  to  enter  the  holiest  place.  A 
stringent  ritualist  himself,  he  was  so  very  liberal  that  he  did  not 
believe  the  yoke  and  burden  of  Leviticism  should  be  laid  on  new 
converts  to  the  Christian  faith  who  came  in  from  among  the  Gen- 
tiles, lie  had  a  practical  mind,  and  was  manifestly  the  man  of 
common  sense  among  the  Apostles,  as  his  admirable  "  Epistle " 
shows.  That  letter  reminds  us  of  his  work  in  Jerusalem,  looking 
after  the  Jewish  converts,  both  resident  and  visitors. 

There  is  a  tradition,  handed  down  from  Ilegesippus,  a  Christian 
of  Jewish  origin,  who  lived  in  the  second  century,  as  to  the  man- 
ner of  the  life  and  the  mode  of  the  death  of  James  the  Just.  He 
was  a  Nazarite,  abstaining  from  animal  food  and  strong  drink, 
and  oils  and  baths.  He  wore  only  linen  clothing,  and  prayed 
so  much  that  his  knees  grew  as  hard  as  a  camel's.  And  thus  he 
came  to  have  great  influence  of  the  people  because  of  his  sanc- 
tity.    "\\lien  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  of  Jesus  began  to 


*  Compare  the  following'  passages: 
A.cts  xii.  17;  Acts  xv.  13,  19;  Gal.  ii. 
9  ;  Acts  xxi.  18.  In  the  passage  in  Gal. 
pre-eminence  is  assigned  him  over  Peter 


and  John,  and  wHith  them  he  is  called 
a  "pillar  in  the  church."  On  his  first 
visit  Paul  seems  to  have  met  that  other 
James,  "the  Lord's  brother." — Gal.  i.  19. 


230         SECOND   AND    THIRD    PASSOVER    IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

liavp  rryeat  power  of  the  people,  some  of  the  Scribes  and  Phari- 
sees placed  James  in  one  of  the  galleries  of  the  Temple,  that  he 
might  teach  the  periple  ahont  Jesns,  expecting,  it  -would  seem,  that 
lie  should  teach  tliem  what  would  correct  their  impression  that 
Jesus  had  risen  from  the  dead.  AVhen  questioned  he  answered  : 
"  ^Vliy  ask  ye  me  about  Jesus  the  Son  of  Man  ?  He  sits  in  heaven, 
on  tlie  riglit  hand  of  great  power,  and  will  come  on  the  clouds  of 
heaven."  This  convinced  many,  who,  on  the  weighty  authority  of 
James,  cried  aloud,  "  ITosannah  to  the  Son  of  David."  This 
made  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  so  angry  that  they  threw  him 
from  the  gallery,  and  stoned  him,  while  he  prayed  for  his  perse- 
cutors ;  and  a  fellow  took  the  club  with  which  he  was  accustomed 
to  beat  out  the  clothes,  and  despatched  the  Just  James  by  striking 
him  a  blow  on  the  head.  The  tradition  further  s<^ates  that  they 
buried  him  on  the  spot  where  he  was  killed,  and  erected  a  monu- 
ment to  him.  AVliile  there  are  several  points  of  difficulty  in  this 
tiadition,  it  comes  from  so  early  an  age,  and  is  so  vivid  a  picture 
of  a  good  man,  and,  as  to  his  general  character,  so  confirmatory 
of  what  we  know  of  him  from  other  sources,  that  we  furnish  it 
to  our  readers.* 

Josephus  {Ant.,  xx.  9)  gives  a  different  account  of  the  death  of 
James.  lie  says  that,  in  the  interval  between  the  recall  of  Festus 
and  the  entry  of  All)inus  upon  the  procuratorship,  the  younger 
Ananus,  the  high-priest,  called  together  the  Sanhedrim  and  pro- 
cured the  condemnati(^n  of  James  the  Just,  whom  he  delivered 
over  to  be  stoned  ;  that  the  people  complained  to  Albinus,  who 
was  angered  by  the  proceeding,  and  that  Agrippa  was  moved  to 
deprive  Ananus  of  the  office  of  high-priest.  AVliether  this  be 
strictly  accurate  or  not,  we  have  in  it  another  confirmation  of  the 
tradition  of  the  high  respect  in  which  James  was  held  l»y  the 
people. 

10.  The  next  in  the  Apostolic  Catalogue  is  the  name  of  Jit).vs, 
"not  Iscariot."  Matthew  (x.  3)  calls  him  "Lebbeus,  whose 
Bunuime  is  Tliaddeus : "  Mark  (iii.  18),  simiily 
"  Tliaddeus  ;  "  Luke  (vi.  IG)  and  the  writer  of  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles  (i.  13),  "Judas  of  James."  Tliat  these 
three  names  attached  to  one  pei*8on  I  think  must  be  conceded ; 
but  that  Judas  was  "  the  brother "  of  James   is   not  so   clear. 

•  See  EneebiuB  ii.  23,  and  Routh'a  RcUqtUB  Sacra,  Ox.  ed.  p.  208. 


i 


THE   TWELVE.  231 

Indeed,  it  is  contrary  to  the  usage  of  language.  "  The  son  of 
James"  is  probably  the  proper  tilling  of  the  ellipsis.  But  of  lohat 
James  we  have  now  no  means  of  knowing.  He  is  not  to  be  con^ 
founded  with  the  Judas  who  wrote  the  General  Epistle,  who  was 
not  of  the  number  of  the  Apostles.  (Jude,  ver.  17.)  Of  the  Apos- 
tle Judas  we  have  no  record  except  in  John's  Gospel  (xiv.  22), 
where  mere  mention  is  made  of  his  taking  part  in  the  last  con- 
versation which  the  disciples  had  with  Jesus,  and  asking  him  how 
it  was  that  he  would  manifest  himself  to  them  and  not  to  the 
world,  showing  the  material  views  his  disciples  had  of  Jesus  up 
to  the  last  moment  of  his  mission,  and  how  little  they  sympathized 
with  his  lofty  spiritual  ideas. 

11.  SraoN   II.   we   so  call   to   distinguish    him   from    Simon 
Peter.     Matthew  *  and  Mark  f  call  him  "  Simon  the  Canaanite ; " 
Luke  X  speaks  of  him  as  "  Simon  called  Zelotes," 
and  in  the  Acts  §  of  the  Apostles  he  is  mentioned  """"^ 

as  "  Simon  Zelotes."  All  we  know  of  this  man  we  gather  from 
the  names  "  Canaanite"  and  "  Zelotes,"  both  words  signifying  the 
same  thing,  and  given  to  distinguish  him.  The  writers  of  the 
New-Testament  memorabilia  fail  to  record  anything  he  may  ever 
have  said  or  done.  The  descriptive  addendum  to  his  name  does 
not  imply  that  he  was  a  descendant  of  Canaan,  nor  that  he  was  a 
native  or  inhabitant  of  Cana.  The  Greek  word  in  each  case 
would  have  been  different.  It  comes  from  the  Syro-Chaldee  word 
Kanean  (or  Kanaun)  which  has  its  Greek  equivalent  in  "  Zelotes," 
and  signifies  "  zealous."  Simon  most  probably  had  belonged  to 
a  sect  who  exhibited  great  zeal  against  all  who  proposed  any 
innovation  on  the  Mosaic  ritual.  At  a  later  period  it  degenerated 
into  a  fierce  political  sect,  whose  outrages  are  chronicled  by 
Josephus.II  Simon  probably  brought  to  the  work  of  the  Christian 
ministry  the  warmth  of  character  which  had  formerly  led  him  to 
attach  himself  to  the  Zealots,  moderated,  it  is  to  be  supposed,  by 
the  better  teachings  of  Jesus. 

12.  JtjDAs  the  Second  is,  in  all  the  lists  of  the  Apostles,  named 
last,  and  distinguished  by  the  epithet  "  Iscariot  "  in  Matthew,  T" 
Mark,**  and  Luke,tt  each  of  whom  also  adds  a  mention  of  the 


*  Matthew  x.  4. 
t  Mark  iii.  18. 
X  Luke  vi.  16. 
g  Acts  L  13. 


1  Wars  of  the  Jews,  iv.  3,  §  9. 
1  Matt.  X.  4. 
**  Mark  iii.  19. 
+t  Luke  vi.  16, 


232         SECOND   AND    THIRD   PAS?OVER   IN   'HIE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

betrayal.  John  savs  that  he  was  tlie  son  of  Simon,  a  common 
name  amono^  the  Jews  of  that  dav.  The  name 
iscariot  IS  supposed  to  be  a  Greek  foiin  for  the 
TTebrew  Jsli-KeriSth,  tlie  man  of  Kerioth,  a  town  in  tlie  limits  of 
the  tribe  of  Jndah,  of  which  place  he  is  supposed  to  have  been  a 
native.  Other  derivations  are  suggested,  but  none  seem  so  pro- 
bable as  this.     He  was  the  only  Apostle  who  was  not  a  Galilnean. 

The  part  which  Judas  came  to  play  in  the  tragedy  which  closed 
the  life  of  Jesus  has  always  excited  a  horror  which  has  been  so 
intensified  by  oratory,  poetry,  and  painting,  that  it  requires  some 
effort  to  examine  his  case  with  perfect  freedom  from  all  preju- 
dice, which,  however,  it  is  necessary  to  do,  not  only  for  strict  his- 
torical fidelity,  but  in  order  to  comprehend  the  relations  which 
Jesus  voluntarily,  as  well  as  those  which  he  involuntarily  sus- 
tained toward  Judas.  We  have  no  reason  to  8U])pose  that  his 
childhood  and  youth  were  marked  with  any  more  prognostications 
of  a  bad  manhood  than  those  of  Peter  and  John.  Indeed,  he  was 
not  so  much  exposed  to  tlie  danger  of  contracting  vicious  habits 
as  those  youngsters  in  a  small  fishing  town.  Ilis  subsequent 
defection  flings  its  shadow  back  ;  but  it  is  to  be  remembered  that 
crimes  have  been  committed  in  his  maturer  years  by  many  a 
man  who,  if  he  had  died  young,  would  have  been  canonized 
because  his  youth  had  been  so  saintly.  The  foolish  stories  of  the 
Apocryphal  New  Testament  are  mere  fantasies.  Tlie  first  inti- 
mation of  him  in  the  Gospel  histories  is  that  he  had  Messianic 
hopes,  was  looking  for  the  deliverance  of  Israel,  with  ]u-obable 
secular  aspirations,  but  not  more  worldly  than  those  which  ani- 
mated the  sons  of  Jonas  and  of  Zebedee,  and  thousands  of  other 
ardent  young  Hebrews.  It  is  possible  that  he  was  among  the 
disciples  of  John,  and  had  been  led  by  his  indication  to  follow 
Jesus  as  the  leader  of  the  great  national  hopes. 

There  is  this  much  certain,  that  nothing  had  a]>]>eared  in  his 
conduct  to  arouse  any  suspicion  in  the  minds  of  his  brother  Apos- 
tles. There  was  no  prejudice  against  him.  On  the  contrary,  he 
was  a  trusted  man  among  them,  and  was  made  the  treasurer  of 
the  exchequer  which  contained  their  own  slender  means,  and 
whatever  was  conti  ihiitcd  from  time  to  time  to  be  disbursed  by 
tlieir  cliarity  to  the  poor.  This  post  of  trust  and  honor  he  held 
to  the  very  hist,  and  no  one  seems  to  have  suspected  any  baseness. 
And  Jesus  chose  to  add  liim  to  the  number  of  those  who  should 


THE   TWELVE.  233 

ky  the  foundation  of  his  kingdom  in  the  hearts  of  men.     And 
yet  he  betrayed  his  great  and  good  Friend. 

The  selection  of  Judas  as  one  of  his  Apostles  is,  to  historians, 
perhaps  the  most  puzzling  of  all  the  movements  of  Jesus,  the  act 
which  is  specially  pressed  by  unfriendly  critics.  But  perhaps  it 
is  not  wholly  inexplicable  even  upon  critical  grounds.  Judas  was 
a  powerful  man.  lie  had  prodigious  passions  and  he  had  enor- 
mous self-control.  AVlien  Jesus,  as  a  warning  to  the  other  dis- 
ciples, dissected  the  character  of  Judas,  running  the  scalpel 
around  his  heart,  this  wonderful  man  had  such  iron  nerve,  and 
muscle,  and  blood,  that  by  neither  twitch  nor  pallor  did  he  allow 
his  colleagues  to  see  that  Jesus  was  dissecting  him.  He  had  great 
financial  skill,  and  men  of  thought  have  always  had  a  kind  of  awe 
for  the  man  who  can  make  money.  Merchant  princes  are  greater 
wonders  and  objects  of  homage  to  the  scholar  than  the  profound 
and  scholarly  philosophers  are  to  the  wealthy  tradesman.  The 
disciples  admired  this  in  Judas,  and  probably  expected  that  when 
the  "  kingdom  "  should  be  set  up  their  friend  Judas  would  be 
made  "  Chancellor  of  the  Exchequer." 

Judas  had  undoubtedly  professed  great  attachment  to  Jesus, 
and  must  have  felt  upon  his  rugged  nature  the  sweet  influences  of 
such  a  character.  He  was  also  among  the  expectants  of  the  Mes- 
siah. The  other  disciples  kept  him  in  their  circle,  and  as  Jesus 
winnowed  and  winnowed,  and  the  chaff  flew  away, — such  as  loved 
father  or  mother  more  than  Jesus,  such  as  must  bury  their  dead 
before  they  could  follow  Jesus,  such  as  must  be  as  secure  of  a 
bed,  at  least,  as  the  foxes  and  the  birds,— as  those  who  could  not 
endure  the  tests  of  the  new  discipleship  dropped  back,  strange  as 
it  may  seem,  it  is  nevertheless  the  historical  fact,  that,  for  some 
motive,  Judas  clung  to  Jesus.  The  motive  may  have  been  very 
Ijase, — we  all  now  agree  in  belie^^ng  that  at  least  some  baseness 
was  in  the  motive, — but  the  disciples  did  not  detect  what  may 
have  been  very  apparent  to  their  sagacious  Master.  AYhen  he 
came  to  say  which  twelve  of  all  the  disciples  had  exhibited  the 
greatest  devotion  to  his  cause  and  his  person,  it  was  manifest  to 
the  whole  crowd  that,  after  the  other  eleven  had  been  named,  no 
one  else  stood  in  the  company  who  had  any  claims  upon  Jesus  and 
upon  his  nearest  friends  which  could  compete  with  those  of  Judas 
Iscariot. 

Now,  if  Judas  had  not  been  selected,  who  should  have  been  the 


234:         SKCONT)    AND    THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

twelfth  ?  The  disciples  trusted  him.  lie  had  the  purse  of  the 
coinpauy.  lie  was  as  well-behaved  as  any,  probably  much  more 
polished  than  the  rude  Galilsean  fishermen  about  him.  He  had 
followed  Jesus  as  closely,  he  had  been  as  useful  as  the  others. 
"Wliy  should  he  not  be  chosen  ?  Some  reason  would  have  been 
demanded  by  the  eleven,  at  least.  He  could  mar,  we  know  :  such 
men,  it  is  usually  believed,  can  make.  He  had  probably  painted 
the  glories  of  the  coming  Messianic  reign  very  brilliantly  to  the 
imagination  of  his  co-disciples.  Why  should  he  not  continue  of 
them  ?  They  had  selected  him  as  their  treasurer.  These  twelve 
had  been  coming  into  closer  communion  every  day  for  many 
months.     Why  should  Jesus  reject  one  of  the  friends  ? 

Jesus  knew  what  was  in  man,  what  was  in  Judas..  If  he  re- 
jected Judas,  that  man  of  powerful  passions  might  have  thwarted 
the  designs,  disordered  the  discipleship,  and  j)recipitated  the  des- 
tiny of  Jesus.  If  added  to  the  nmnber  of  the  Apostles,  Judas 
could  be  kept  under  the  eye  and  under  the  magnetism  of  the 
presence  of  Jesus,  so  that  if  he  had  "  a  devil,"  as  Jesus  declared, 
and  if  he  should  betray  his  Master,  as  Jesus  predicted,  that  e\il 
might  be  postponed  until  the  "  seed  of  the  kingdom  "  should  be 
60  planted  as  no  longer  to  need  the  personal  presence  of  Jesus, 
but  be  vigorous  and  well-grown  enough  to  need  only  his  spiritual 
fostering  for  its  growth  to  maturity.  On  this  account  it  were  well 
to  retain  Judas. 

And,  then,  it  is  not  to  be  forgotten  that  no  historical  personage 
displays  so  much  lovingness  as  Jesus  of  Nazareth.  His  power 
over  the  world  to-da}-  lies  not  so  much  in  his  position  in  history, 
not  in  his  superior  brain,  not  in  any  special  thing  he  has  done,  nor 
in  the  remarkable  thoughts  he  has  uttered,  as  in  the  transcendent 
lovimjness  which  intensities  and  transfigures  and  glorifies  all  his 
deeds  and  all  his  words.  Devilish  as  might  have  been  the  char- 
acter of  Judas,  wliy  might  it  not  have  been  right  to  afford  him  all 
the  sweet  influences  which  reside  in  the  tender  comnnmings  of  a 
noble  brotherhood,  whose  spiritiuil  father  was  such  a  soul  a.s  Jesus? 
He  could  but  betray  Jesus  at  the  last.  Let  Jesus  do  nothing  to 
hasten  catastro})hcs.  His  life  is  to  be  too  grand,  and  his  influence 
over  the  ages  to(j  powerful  to  make  him  afraid  lest  sonie  critic  of 
subsequent  times  should  suggest  that  in  one  case  at  least  he  com- 
mitted a  l)1under.  It  was  no  blunder;  it  was  a  subHme  adven- 
ture of  love. 


THE    TWELVE.  235 

As  in  the  case  of  the  other  Apostles,  vre  shall  trace  the  histor}' 
and  examine  the  motives  of  Judas  Iscariot  more  minutely  in  con- 
nection with  that  of  his  Master.  For  the  present  we  are  merely 
taking  a  view  of  the  general  characteristics  of  those  whom  Jesua 
first  admitted  to  his  intimacy  and  subsequently  appointed  hi.^ 
lieutenants. 

That  this  was  a  special  setting  apart  to  a  special  work  seems 
quite  apparent  from  the  very  face  of  the  history.  Up  to  this  date 
these  men  had  mingled  with  the  crowd  of  disci-      ..„,  „   ,    ,. 

_^  .  J,  ,      .  "The  Twelve." 

pies,  and  bore  no  signs  of  separation  fi-om  their 
brethren,  except  as  they  closed  up  in  r/iore  solid  friendship  for 
each  other  and  for  Jesus.  The  language  of  the  historians  shows 
that  they  were  now  regarded  as  charged  with  a  mission  peculiar 
and  responsible.  The  whole  body  received  a  name.  Never  before, 
but  almost  always  after  this  election  they  are  called  The  Twelve, 
oi  Sc68e/ca,  to  distinguish  them  from  the  other  disciples.  Never 
before,  but  by  Jesus  at  their  election,  and  by  their  brethren  after- 
wards, they  were  called  "Apostles."  (Luke  vi.  13.)  It  is  noticed 
that  not  before,  but  after  this  event  the  name  "  Peter "  is  con- 
stantly applied  to  Simon  the  son  of  Jonas,  as  his  Master  had  con- 
ferred this  name  upon  him  at  his  selection,*  according  to  a  well- 
known  Oi-iental  custom.f 

The  number  of  the  Apostles  deserves  some  consideration. 
Although  many  very  foolish  and  fanciful  things  have  been  writ- 
ten in  regard  to  the  svmbolism  of  numbers,  no 

o  "       _  ;  Why  this  number? 

careful  student  of  the  ancient  records  can  fail  to 
see  that  some  meaning  was  among  all  nations,  and  not  the  least 
among  the  Hebrews,  assigned  to  special  numbers.  Thus  1  sym- 
bolizes unity ;  2,  antithesis ;  3,  synthesis  and  the  divinity  ;  4,  hu- 
manity, or  the  world,  as  we  are  reminded  of  the  four  corners  of 
the  earth  and  the  four  elements,  as  anciently  supposed,  of  the  four 
seasons  and  the  four  points  of  the  cc^mpass ;  7,  the  sum  of  3  and 

*  See  Mark  iii.  16  and  Luke  vi.  14.  t  (as  in  ch.  iv.  18),  and  after  the  ordina- 
There  seems  to  be  an  exception  in  Luke  I  tion   uses   only  the   name  Peter.     See 


V.  8,  but  there  the  name  " '  Peter ' '  is 
merely  added  to  that  of  Simon,  and 
thLs  addition  is  supposed  to  be  a  mar- 
ginal note  which  has  crept  into  the  text. 
Again:  Matthew  introduces  the  name 
Peter  with  that  of  Simon  before  the 
ordination,  but  he  couples  both  names 


Greswell,  Diss.  xxvi. 

f  This  custom  still  prevails  in  the 
East.  Chrysostom  notices  that  masters, 
upon  purchasing  slaves,  frequently 
changed  their  names,  as  a  sign  of  the 
right  acquired  over  them. 


236 


SECOND   AND   THIED   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LITE   OF   JESUS. 


4,  the  relatiou  of  God  to  the  world ;  10,  completeness  ;*  12,  the 
product  of  3  and  4,  God's  indwelling  in  the  world,  and  we  call  to 
mind  the  twelve  patriarchs  and  twelve  tribes,  and  the  twelve  foun- 
dations and  twelve  gates  of  the  heavenly  Jerusalem.  That  Jesus 
had  the  twelve  tribes  in  his  mind  in  fixing  the  number  of  the 
Apostles  is  evident.  "When  Peter  asked  him  what  should  be  the 
reward  of  those  who  forsook  all  and  followed  him,  Jesus  said  that 
they  should  "sit  upon  twelve  thrones,  judging  the  twelve  tribes  of 
Israel."  t  Their  original  mission,  we  shall  see,  was  to  the  twelve 
tribes. 

Their  mode  of  appointment  must  have  had  in  it  something 

that  solemnly  designated  them,  whether  a  mere  call  to  step  f(^r- 

ward  from  the  crowd,  or,  in  addition  thereto,  the 

Their  order.  .  .   ,  i-     i  -,  ^  • 

imposition  of  hands — something  that  put  them 
apart  from  the  promiscuous  crowd  of  disciples.  And  there 
must  have  been  some  order  in  which  they  were  called.  In  the 
enumeration  above  I  have  followed  the  catalogue  as  recited  by 
Matthew,  except  that  I  have  put  his  name  before  that  of  Thomas, 
as  Mark  and  Luke  do.  Ilis  modesty  seems  to  have  led  him  to 
make  this  transposition,  thus  yielding  to  Thomas  what  the  other 
historians  do  not  give,  a  precedence  over  himself.  His  modesty  is 
further  seen  in  adding  to  his  own  name  the  reproachful  designation 
"  a  publican,"  which  Mark  and  Luke  considerately  omit.:}:  That 
the  reader  may  have  before  his  eye  the  slight  variations  in  the 
roll  of  Apostles,  he  will  find  in  a  note  the  order  as  given  by  Mat- 
thew, Mark,  and  Luke,  severally. §     The  precise  order  in  which 

*  Biihr  (in  his  Si/mboUk,  i.  p.  175) 
Bays :  ' '  Ten,  by  virtue  of  the  general 
laws  of  thought,  shuts  up  the  series  of 
primary  numbers  and  includes  all  in 
itaelf.  The  first  decade,  and  of  course 
also  the  number  ten,  is  the  representa- 
tive of  the  whole  numeral  system;  so 
that  10  is  the  natural  symbol  of  perfec- 
tion and  completeness."  This  view  is 
adopted  by  Dr.  Fairbaim  (Ti/pol.  of 
Scrip.,  vol.  ii.  p.  8H),  who  connects  it 
with  the  ten  plagues  of  Egypt,  the  Ten 
Commandments,  and  the  Tithes. 

t  Matt.  xix.  2H. 

X  This  is  the  view  taken  of  this  cir- 
cumstance by  Eusebios,  Demons.  Evan- 
fd.,  iii  V. 


§  MATTHEWS  ORDER. 

LUKES. 

MARE'S. 

1. 

Simon  I.  (sur- 
named  Peter) 

Simon  I. 

Simon  I. 

2. 

Andrew. 

Andrew. 

James  I. 

3. 

James  I. 

James  I. 

John. 

4. 

John. 

John. 

Andrew. 

5. 

Philip. 

Philip. 

Philip. 

0. 

Nathanael  Nathanael.  NathanaeL 

(surnamed 

Bartholo- 

mew). 

7. 

Thomas. 

Matthew. 

Matthew. 

8. 

Matthew. 

Thomas. 

Thomas. 

9. 

James  II. 

James  II. 

James  II. 

10. 

Judas        I. 

Simon  II. 

Jadaa  L 

LebV)!cus   (or 

Thaddajufl). 

THE   TWELVE. 


237 


Types. 


they  were  called  may  not  be  a  matter  of  vital  importance,  but  as 
the  selection  shows  something  of  the  mind  of  Jesns,  it  is  interest- 
ing to  know  whose  name  fell  first  from  his  lips,  whose  next,  and 
next,  to  the  very  close  of  the  calling. 

In  these  men  some  writers  have  seen  fundamental  types  of 
certain  qualifications  needed  for  the  propagation  of  Christianity 
Thus,  Peter  represents  Confession  /  Andrew,  the 
manly  pioneer,  Missionary  Zeal ;  James  I.,  the 
son  of  Thunder,  May'tyrdom ;  John,  "  the  beloved  disciple,"  ^ 
Mysticism  and  Dejpth  and  Calmness  /  Philip,  Coimnunion 
("  Come  and  see ") ;  ISTathanael,  Sincerity^  Sim^plieity,  Devout- 
ness  ;  Matthew,  Ecclesiastical  Learning  •  Thomas,  Inquiry  and 
Sacred  Criticism  ;  James  II.,  Union  and  Ecclesiastical  Govern- 
ment,  Judas  I.  (Lebbpeus),  Pastoral  Faithfulness,  Discipline  ^ 
Simon  II.,  Pastoral  Activity ,'  and  Judas  II.  (Iscariot),  Church 
Pro])erty.\  But  these  seem  to  be  rather  fanciful.  Gentlemen 
who  have  been  missionary  secretaries  and  treasurers,  and  heads 
of  church  publishing  houses,  would  scarcely  consent  to  recog- 
nize Judas  Iscariot  as  their  representative  in  the  Apostolic  col- 
lege. Calm  and  unprejudiced  historians  would  say,  that  while  on 
one  side  of  their  lives  these  characteristics  were  manifested,  quite 
as  conspicuously  on  the  other  side  were  other  things  exhibited; 
and  so  Peter  might  just  as  well  represent  Falsehood  and  Coward- 
ice ;  James,  Bigotry  and  Ill-Temper ;  John,  Yanity  and  Ferocity  ; 
Thomas,  Blind  Infidelity ;  Matthew,  Venality  and  Baseness ;  Si- 
mon II.,  Intolerance  and  Bitualism ;  Judas  Iscariot,  Corruption 
and  Treachery ;  and  all  the  rest  of  the  disciples,  Want  of  Character. 


Matthew's  order.         luke's.  mark's. 

11.  Simon  II.  Judas  I.      Simon  II. 

12.  Judas  II.  (Is-  Judas  II.     Judas  II. 
cariot). 

It  will  be  perceived  that  tbey  aU 
agree  as  to  the  relative  places  of  five  of 
the  Apostles,  making  Peter  1st,  Philip 
5th,  Nathanael  6th,  James  II.  9th,  and 
Judas  Iscariot  12th.  Matthew  and 
Luke  make  Andrew  2d,  James  I.  8d, 
and  John  4th.  Luke  and  Mark  make 
Matthew  7th,  and  Thomas  8th.  Mat- 
thew and  Mark  make  Judas  I.  as  the 
lOth,  and  Simon  II.  as  the  11th.  It 
wiU  be  seen  that  Matthew  and  Luke 
agree  throughout,  except  where  modesty 


led  Matthew  into  putting  himself  last  in 
the  second  class,  and  in  the  relative  po- 
sition of  Judas  I.  and  Simon. 

*  John  twice  speaks  of  himself  as  the 
disciple  "  whom  Jesus  loved  "  (xiii.  23  ; 
XX.  2),  a  fact  which  the  other  historians 
did  not  think  important  enough  to  men- 
tion. But  who  could  help  adverting  to 
the  most  beautiful  fact  of  his  own  life, 
or  make  memorable  a  love  so  exalted 
and  so  distinguishing?  It  may  have 
been  vanity,  but  it  was  a  sweet  and 
lovely  and  loving  vanity,  which  is  not 
offensive  to  God,  and  ought  to  be  par- 
donable to  man. 

f  See  Lange  on  Matthew  x. 


238         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER    IN    THE    LIFE    OF   .JIISUS. 

The  fact  is,  that  when  they  were  called  to  be  special  messen- 
gers and  anibassadoi-s  from  Jesus  to  the  nations,  they  were  not 
TheBcicctionnotpo-  such   men  as   ordinary   prudence   would   select. 
"^*^  There  was  not  one  that  would  compare  with  Saul 

of  Tarsus,  who  afterward  took  the  whole  moulding  of  their  infant 
society.  They  were  all  from  the  middle  ranks.  They  were  nf)t 
learned  in  the  schools,  and  seemed  wholly  unfitted  to  cope  with 
the  sch(»larship  and  measure  arms  M-ith  the  philosophy  of  the 
times.  They  had  no  money,  nor  rich  connections,  nor  political 
associations  or  influence.  They  were,  as  compared  with  refined 
society,  ill-bred,  stupid,  and  incredulous.  If  the  purpose  had 
been  a  political  revolution,  there  was  not  a  man  among  them  who 
could  compare  with  the  Swiss  Tell,  or  perhaps  even  the  Xeapolitan 
Masaniello,  If  they  were  to  overthrow  Jewish  prejudice  and 
silence  the  Rabbis,  there  was  no  one  amongst  them  who  could 
talk,  except  Peter,  and  he  was  always  so  uncertain  that  no  reli- 
ance could  be  placed  upon  him.  In  advance,  one  could  not  tell 
whether  he  would  brag,  or  lie,  or  run.  There  were  ]U'ol)ably  only 
two  who  knew  anything  of  the  Greek  tongue,  namely,  Peter  and 
Philip.  If  the  nations  were  to  be  speedily  moved  by  Christianity, 
it  must,  as  men  would  reason,  be  done  through  the  Roman  power 
or  Greek  civilization.  But  these  men  were  all  laymen,  and  had 
neither  political  influence  nor  intellectual  culture ;  they  had  no 
standing  even  among  their  own  people,  and  certainly  no  influence 
with  their  conqueroi'S  and  (^vil  rulers.  Peter  and  Andrew  were 
brothers.  So  were  James  I.  and  John,  the  friends  of  Petei-  and 
Andrew.  So  were  James  II.  and  Judas  I.  Four  of  them  had  been 
disciples  of  the  ascetic  John  the  Rajitist.  All  of  them,  exci'pl 
Jndufi  Iscariot,  were  of  the  most  uncouth  part  of  the  Jewish  ])opula 
tion  ;  they  were  Galilteans,  and  several  of  them  fishermen.  They 
spoke  their  vernacular  brokenly.  It  is  as  if  a  man  should  select 
a  dozen  negroes,  of  average  character,  from  the  i)lantations  of  the 
Southerii  States  of  America,  and  set  them  on  the  work  of  revolu- 
tionizing the  ])hilosophy  of  all  scho(»ls,  and  the  elements  of  all 
civilization,  and  the  systems  of  all  religion. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  they  did  not  choose  him :    he  chose 

them.     This  he  tells  them.     (John  xv.  16.)     This  is  true  of  their 

They  did  not  choow   l>ublic  Work.     They  had  gathered  about  him  and 

'''™-  clung  together  through  pereonal  love  of  him,  but 

tlicy  had  not  settled  it  in  their  minds  precisely  what  he  wius,  and 


THE   TWELVE.  239 

their  regard  for  him  was  largely  mingled  with  an  expectation  of 
future  secular  good  and  glory,  if  their  general  expectation  should 
prove  correct.  "  AVhat  shall  we  have,  therefore  ? "  was  the  ques- 
tion of  Peter,  who,  with  all  his  faults,  was  certainly  not  the  most 
selfish  among  the  disciples.     (Matt.  xix.  27.) 

It  is  to  be  specially  noticed  that  there  is  nothing  of  the  modern 
Church  idea  in  anything  done  by  Jesus  on  this  or  any  other  occa- 
sion.* These  men  were  not  inducted  into  any  Nothing  of  the 
priestly  ofhce,  or  given  any  pre-eminence  over  "Church "idea, 
their  brethren.  They  were  distinguished,  discriminated,  set  apart 
for  a  special  work,  but  not  clothed  with  corporate  powers.  There 
was  no  baptism  or  any  other  rite  indicative  of  an  entrance  upon 
church  membership.  Jesus  did  not  baptize.  Ilis  disciples  had 
done  so,  but  they  had  taken  the  idea  from  John  the  Baptist,  who 
baptized  those  who  were  already  in  the  church,  and  whose  bap 
tism  was  to  indicate  the  Messiah.  If  an  outward  formal  sign  did 
no  ofood,  it  did  no  hurt,  and  Jesus  had  allowed  it.  But  he  had 
established  no  sacrament.  These  men  had  no  creed.  There  was 
no  creed.  They  loved  Jesus.  They  hoped  great  things  from 
Jesus.  He  loved  them,  and  intended  to  instruct  them,  and  leave 
with  them  "  the  gospel  of  the  kingdom."  AVhat  he  seems  to  have 
seen  in  them,  and  what  was  the  basis  of  their  call,  was  the  reh- 
giousness  of  their  general  character.  Whatever  culture  they 
lacked,  and  whatever  faults  they  had,  they  had  devoutness,  devo- 
tedness,  the  capability  of  giving  themselves  finally  and  fully  up  to 
an  idea:  they  had  some  certain  noticeable  genius  for  religion. 
Them  he  selected  to  instruct ;  but  he  gave  them  no  esoteric  cul- 
ture ;  told  them  nothing  about  himself  which  he  did  not  tell  the 
multitude ;  imparted  nothing  which  should  in  any  manner  give 
them  any  title  to  rule  others  who  believed  on  him.  Luke  (vi.  13) 
says  that  he  "named  them  Apostles,"  and  Mark  (iii.  14,  15)  says 
that  "  he  ordained  twelve,  that  they  should  he  with  him,  and  that  he 
might  send  them  forth  to  preach,  and  to  have  power  to  heal  sick- 
ness and  to  cast  out  de\ils."  To  be  wholly  given  to  the  work  of 
teaching  the  truth,  and  doing  good  to  the  bodies  and  souls  of  men, 
was  the  work  of  these  men  sent  of  Jesus,  and  therefore  calleu 

*  The  word  translated  "  church "  |  seems  to  me,  can  impartial  oriticism 
occurs  only  twice  in  the  histories  of  find  anything  Uke  the  modem  "close 
Jesus,  namely,  in  Matt.  xvi.  18,  and  corporation "  idea.  They  will  be  exam- 
Matt.  s.y\\\.  17,  in  neither  of  which,  it  >  ined  tu  their  places. 


240 


SECOXD   AIO)   THIRD   PASSOVEK   IN   THE   LIFE    (JF   JESUS. 


Apostles.  Some  organization  naturally  to(;k  place,  after  the 
death  of  Jesus,  keeping  together  those  who  loved  him.  But  that 
they  were  to  be  considered  a  close  corporation,  keeping  all  of 
Christianity,  all  the  beautiful  and  precious  legacy  of  Jesus,  tc 
themselves,  with  powers  to  transmit  to  future  generations  of  suc- 
cessoi-s  by  mesne  descent,  never  seems  to  have  entered  the  mind 
of  Jesus,  or  any  of  The  Twelve. 


I 


s 


AMOISNT  LAHP-BTUrSh 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE   SERMON    ON   THE   MOUNT. 


Having  set  apart  his  chosen  ambassadors,  it  remained  that 
Jesus  should  set  forth  the  principles  of  his  religion,  give  some 
such  evidence  of  his  divine  right  to  teach  as  Near  Capernaum, 
should  be  able  to  move  the  generation  around  ^att.  v.,  vi.,  vii. 
him,  and  impart  his  spirit  to  those  who  were  to  infuse  it  into  the 
world.  He  proceeded  at  once  to  this  work.  The  first  movement 
was  the  delivery  of  a  discourse,  which  has  been  known  generally 
as  the  "  Sermon  on  the  Mount^'^  reports  of  which  are  furnished 
us  by  Matthew  and  Luke. 

It  would  require  a  much  larger  volume  than  this  to  give  the  lit- 
erature which  has  grown  around  the  questions  of  the  time  and  place 
of  delivery  of  this  "  sermon,"  and  whether  Matthew  and  Luke 
report  the  same  or  different  discourses.  And  the  literature  of  the 
sermon  itself  would  make  a  library  quite  respectable  in  point  of 
size.     It  is  clear  that  much  must  be  condensed. 

The  place  was  a  mountain.  It  could  not  have  been  very  far 
from  the  lake.  The  earliest  tradition  of  the  spot  is  as  late  as  the 
middle  of  the  thirteenth  century.     That  makes  it 

PlflC6  of  dclivGrv 

what  is  now  called  the  "  Horns  of  Ilattin,"  be- 
tween Tiberias  and  Mt.  Tabor,  seven  miles  from  Capernaum,  in  a 
south-westerly  direction.  Dr.  Robinson  {Researches,  ii.  p.  307) 
gives  the  following  description  of  this  spot :  "  The  road  passes 
down  to  Hattin  on  the  west  of  the  Tell ;  as  we  approached,  we 
turned  off  from  the  path  toward  the  right,  in  order  to  ascend  the 
Eastern  Horn.  As  seen  on  this  side,  the  Tell,  or  mountain,  is 
merely  a  low  ridge,  some  thirty  or  forty  feet  in  height,  and  not  ten 
minutes  in  length  from  east  to  west.  At  its  eastern  end  is  an 
elevated  point  or  horn,  perhaps  sixty  feet  above  the  plain ;  and 
at  the  western  end  another,  not  so  high ;  these  give  to  the  ridge,  at 
a  distance,  the  appearance  of  a  saddle,  and  are  called  Kurun 
Hattin,  'Horns  of  Hattin.'  But  the  singularity  of  the  ridge  is, 
16 


242         SECOND    AND   XnmD   PASSOVKi:    IX   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

tliat,  (»n  reachiiif^  the  top,  you  find  tliat  it  lies  along  the  very  bor- 
der of  the  great  southern  plain,  where  this  latter  sinks  off  at  once, 
by  a  precipitous  offset,  to  the  lower  plain  of  Ilattin,  fi-<»ni  which 
the  northern  side  of  Tell  i-iscs  very  steeply  not  much  less  than  four 
hundred  feet.  .  .  .  The  summit  of  the  Eastern  Horn  ts  a 
little  circular  plaiji,  and  the  top  of  the  lower  ridge  hetween  the 
two  horns  is  also  flattened  to  a  plain .  The  whole  mountain  is  of 
limestone."  Dr.  Stanley  (Stanley's  Sinai  and  Palestine^  p.  360) 
gives  the  following :  "The  ti-adition  [of  the  Latin  Church,  which 
selects  this  spot  as  the  '  Mount  of  Ceatitudes ']  cannot  lay  claim 
to  any  early  date  ;  it  was  in  all  probability  suggested  first  t«j  the 
Crusadei's  by  its  remarkable  situation.  But  that  situation  so 
strikingly  coincides  with  the  intimations  of  Gospel  narrative,  as 
almost  to  force  the  infei-ence  that  in  this  instance  the  eye  of  those 
who  selected  the  spot  was  for  once  rightly  guided.  It  is  the  only 
lieight  seen  in  this  direction  fi-om  the  shores  of  the  Lake  Genne- 
saret.  The  plain  on  which  it  stands  is  easily  accessible  fi-om  the 
lake,  and  f rtun  that  plain  to  the  summit  is  but  a  few  minutes'  walk. 
The  platform  at  the  top  is  evidently  suital)le  for  the  collection  of 
a  multitude,  and  corresponds  precisely'  to  the  Mevel  place'  {roirov 
TreStvov),  (mistranslated  '  plain '  in  Luke  vi.  17)  to  which  he 
'  would  come  down '  as  f  i-om  <jne  of  its  higher  horns  to  address 
the  people.  Its  situatitni  is  central  both  to  the  peasants  of  the 
Galiliean  hills  and  the  fishermen  of  the  Galilcean  lake,  between 
which  it  stands,  and  would,  therefore,  be  a  natural  resort  both  to 
'Jesus  and  his  disciples'  (Matt.  iv.-25,  and  v.  1),  when  they  retired 
for  solitude  from  the  shores  of  the  sea,  and  also  to  the  crowds 
who  assembled  'from  Galilee,  from  Decapolis,  from  Jerusalem, 
from  Judaja,  and  from  beyond  Jordan.'  N(»ne  of  the  other 
mountains  in  the  neighborhood  could  answer  equally  ^vell  to  this 
description,  inasnmch  as  they  are  merged  into  the  uniform  barrier 
of  hills  round  the  lake  ;  whereas  this  stands  separate, — '  the  moun- 
tain,' which  alone  could  lay  claim  to  a  distinct  name,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  the  one  height  of  Tabor,  which  is  too  distant  to  an- 
swer the  requirements." 

The  question  as  to  whether  the  discourse  beginning  in  the  fifth 

chapter  of  Matthew  and  that  in  the  sixth  of  Luke  be  different  or 

Rcporu  by  Matthew  identical  is  (piite  perplexing,  as  there  seem  to  be 

•adLuko.  grave  objections  to  both  8upp(>siti()n8,     That  they 

are  identical  is  believed  by  most  readei-s  upon  a  superlicial  in 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  243 

spection,  and  is  maintained  generally  by  most  German  connnen- 
tatoi's.  And  tlien  efforts  must  be  made  to  explain  tbe  differences 
Avhich  occur  in  the  two.  In  Luke  we  have  only  about  one-third 
the  matter  given  by  Matthew,  four  of  the  beatitudes  being  "  1ml- 
anced  by  four  woes,"  as  Dean  Alford  notices;  and  some  intro- 
ductory sayings  are  recorded  which  do  not  appear  in  Matthew. 
That  they  are  two  different  discourses  is  held  by  a  number  of 
M-riters,  and  among  them  Greswell  {Dissert,  xxvi.).  Against 
this  it  is  urged  as  improbable  that  he  should  have  delivered  two 
distinct  discourses  so  nearly  alike,  and  both  so  near  the  begin- 
ning of  his  public  ministry.  The  beginnings  and  the  conclu- 
sions in  both  discourses  agree.  They  seem  to  be  the  same,  and 
different.  Matthew  tells  us  that  the  sermon  was  delivered  on  a 
mount ;  Luke,  that  it  was  on  a  plain.  If  both  histories  be  read 
carefully  and  without  prejudice,  I  think  the  following  will  occur 
to  the  reader  as  the  probable  state  of  the  case  : 

What  we  find  reported  by  both  Matthew  and  Luke  must  have 
been  delivered  during  the  same  journey  through  Galilee,  and  at 
the  close  of  that  journey.  AVliat  Luke  reports,  if  it  be  not  the 
same,  must  have  been  delivered  immediately  after  the  dit^course 
Matthew  gives ;  but  his  report  is  so  connected  as  to  compel  the 
al)andonment  of  the  theory  that  it  is  a  number  of  the  apoph- 
thegms, delivered  at  different  times,  recollected  by  Matthew  and 
strung  together.  The  people  had  gathered  in  great  crowds  about 
Jesus.  lie  went  up  into  the  mountain.  His  disciples  came  to 
him.  Others  must  have  accompanied  his  disciples.  He  deliv- 
ered the  discourse  which  is  begun  in  Matt.  v.  3.  "When  that  was 
completed  he  commenced  to  descend  the  mountain.  On  the 
plateau  below  he  found  greater  multitudes.  lie  repeated  some 
things  he  had  just  spoken,  and  added  others,  making  together  the 
speech  which  begins  in  Luke  vi.  20.  It  is  not  right  to  speak  of 
tlie  former  as  esoteric  and  the  latter  as  exoterlo.  There  was 
nothing  of  that  style  in  Jesus.  All  is  outspoken  truth — such 
truth  as  individual  men  in  every  stage  of  culture  need.  But  it  is 
to  be  admitted,  to  his  more  select  and  friendly  audience  he  should 
have  spoken  more  freely  of  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  than  to  a 
[)romiscuou8  assemblage. 

This  statement  of  the  case  is,  at  least,  a  natural  one,  as  all  who 
have  preached  to  crowds  in  rural  districts  must  know,  and  consists 
with  all  the  major  and  minor  incidents  related  by  both  historians. 


244         SECOND    AND    THIRD    PASSOVER    IX    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

It  agrees,  too,  with  tlie  physical  conditions  of  tlie  Mount  of 
Beatitudes,  if  that  selected  by  tradition  be  the  mount,  as  the  de- 
scriptions given  above  exhibit,  especially  the  passage  from  Dr. 
Roljinson  winch  is  italicized.  It  agrees  with  such  incidents  as 
this :  Matthew  says  that  he  sat,  Luke  that  he  stood  ;  and  the  former 
he  naturally  would  do  on  rising  ground,  the  latter  on  a  plain. 
Matthew  represents  his  audience  as  coming  to  him  after  he  had 
taken  his  seat,  Luke  as  being  about  him  when  he  began  ;  ami  this 
is  just  what  would  have  taken  place  if  the  case  be  as  is  supjiosed 
above.  It  is  to  be  noticed,  also,  that  the  case  of  the  centurion  in 
Capernaum  follows  close  upon  Matthew's  account,  and  immedi- 
ately upon  Luke's,  thus  drawing  these  two  discourees  together  in 
the  history. 

CIRCn^ISTANCES. 

Before  entering  upon  a  consideration  of  the  teachings  of  this 
extraordinary  sermon,  let  ns  endeavor  to  place  ourselves  amid  the 
circumstances  of  its  delivery. 

The  spot  was  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  all  Palestine.  "While 
on  other  occasions  Jesus  "  preferi-ed  the  unostentatious  and  obscure, 
he  seems  to  have  selected  the  most  enchanting  spot  in  nature  ae 
the  tem])le  in  which  to  open  his  ministry.  Travellers  are  wont 
to  liken  the  mountain  scenery  of  Galilee  to  the  finest  in  their  na- 
tive lands, — the  Swede, Ilasselquist,  to  East  Gothland,  and  Clarke, 
the  Enirlishman,  to  the  romantic  dales  of  Kent  and  Surrev.  The 
environs  of  the  Galila^an  Sea  have  been  compared  with  the  border 
of  the  lake  of  Geneva."*  The  blooming  landscape  lay  l)ef«)re 
the  speaker,  the  neighboring  hills  enriched  with  vineyards,  while 
to  the  west  stood  wooded  Carmel,and  snowy  Ilcrmon  to  the  north, 
and  down  before  him,  seeming  almost  at  his  feet,  the  bright  Lake 
of  Galilee,  glittering  and  rippling  in  its  frame  of  forest.  The  vault 
of  that  cathedral  was  the  oriental  sky,  seen  through  an  atmos[)here 
so  transparent  that  one  wlio  had  spent  a  quarter  of  a  century  in 
the  Holy  Land  says  of  it:  "  One  seems  to  l(X)k  quite  to  the  bot- 
tom of  heaven's  ju'ofoundest  azure,  where  the  everlasting  stars 
abide;"  and,  standing  in  Beirut,  he  says,  "llow  shaii>ly  defined 
is  every  rock  and  ravine,  and  tree  and  house,  on  lofty  Lebanon! 
That  virgin  snow  on  its  summit  is  thirty  miles  off,  and  yet  you 

*  Tholuck.  Eilinh.  liib.  Cab.,  No.  vi.  p.  73. 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE  MOUNT.  245 

could  almost  read  your  own  name  there,  if  written  with  a  bold 
liand  on  its  calm  cold  brow."  * 

It  was  in  the  spring  or  early  summer,  when  Nature  was  in  he) 
most  luscious  richness.  It  was  in  the  early  morning,  when  the  fresh 
est  sweetness  of  the  day's  smile  fell  on  land  and  sea. 

^  .  The  time. 

The  birds  had  not  fallen  from  the  height  of  their 
morniuff  sonsrs  to  the  drowse  of  the  heated  hours.  The  crowds  were 
collecting  from  every  part,  drawn  by  curiosity,  wonder,  love,  or 
by  the  strange  power  with  which  all  crowds  of  people  have  to  swell 
themselves.  The  Messianic  expectations  had  become  more  vehe- 
mently excited,  and  it  was  supposed  that  Jesus  would  soon  declare 
himself,  and  let  the  people  know  what  he  intended  to  do,  and  what 
to  teach.  As  it  was  the  first,  so  it  was  the  grandest  specimen  of 
field-preaching.  Tlie  journeyings  t)f  Jesus,  and  his  works  and 
words,  had  drawn  great  multitudes  from  the  thickly  settled  Galilee, 
from  Decapolis,  from  Jerusalem,  and  the  neighboring  districts  of 
Judoea  ;  from  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  and  from  as  far  -svest  as  the 
coasts  of  Tyre  or  Sidon.  (Mat.  iv.  25,  and  Luke  vi.  17.)  It  was 
an  occasion  of  transcendent  religious  interest  and  importance. 
The  congregation  was  great,  the  expectation  was  great,  the  Teacher 
was  great.  No  discourse  ever  delivered  is  so  worthy  of  study 
and  analysis  as  this.  It  is  worth  the  wliile  to  endeavor  to  dis- 
cover what  there  is  in  it  which  has  produced  such  an  impression 
upon  men  and  done  so  much  for  the  moral  elevation  of  the  world. 

THE   TEXT. 

If  it  may  be  permitted  to  suggest  the  text  of  this  sermon  as  it 

lay  in  the  mind  of  the  great  and  influential  Speaker,  I  should  say 

that  it  is 

"  Character^'' 

With  the  suddenness  of  lightning  and  with  the  sharpness  of  a 
surgeon's  scalpel  he  penetrates  to  the  core  of  all  life  in  the  very  first 
sentence.  He  has  wo  exordiinn,  no  pompously  announced  plan, 
no  rhetorical  rests  and  starts  and  other  tricks.  Without  prefa- 
tory, introductory,  or  apologetic  remarks,  he  plunges  right  into 
his  subject.  His  first  announcements  tear  away  all  the  shams  of 
Pharisaism,  all  the  millinery  of  churchism,  and  all  the  pi-etensions 
of  perfunctory  and  transmitted  religion.     To  him  succession  is 

*  Thomson,  Land  and  Book,  vol.  i.  p.  17. 


246  SECOND    AXD   THIRD   PASSOVER    IN    THE    LITE    OF   JESUS. 

notliiiiir;  notliiii;;  to  be  of  Abraham's  seed  or  Aaron's  lineacje 
Each  man  stands  out  before  him,  the  subject  of  Jiis  study,  the 
object  of  his  description  ;  and  each  man  stands  in  the  loneness  of 
his  individual  responsibility,  with  no  claim  upon  attention  but  his 
character,  and  no  fountain  of  happiness  but  his  character.  Cir- 
cumstances count  for  nothing.  Riches,  rank,  and  honors  do  not 
make  the  supreme  distinction  among  men.  Being  in  the  church 
or  outside  does  not  discriminate  men  as  touching  their  chief  dif- 
ference. By  waters  of  baptism,  by  imposition  of  hands,  by  priestly 
garments,  by  bishop's  mitre,  by  higli-priest's  breastplate,  a  man 
does  not  attain  to  the  position  for  which  he  was  designed  and  fur 
which  he  longs.  Nor  do  even  outward  acts,  however  consonant 
with  prevailing  ideas  of  morality,  however  conservative  of  the 
commonwealth,  however  consistent  with  all  the  best  men's  views 
of  what  should  be  a  good  man's  life.  All  these  things  may  be- 
long to  a  man,  and  yet  he  may  not  be  what  he  should  be — Happy. 
Tlie  great  distinction  among  men  lies  in  this :  the  being  happy 
and  blessed,  or  otherwise.  Not  in  being  free  from  care,  bereave- 
ment, the  saddening  facts  of  human  history  which  fall  into  every 
man's  life  at  some  time,  but  in  having  such  a  character  tliat  the 
outward  shall  neitlier  weaken  nor  contaminate  the  inner,  so  tliat  the 
man  shall  not  depend  upon  fountains  outside,  but  be  secure  in  the 
possession  of  springs  inside.  A  man  is  like  a  walled  city.  If  the 
supply  of  its  water  be  from  lakes  or  rivers  outside,  that  are  brought 
down  by  aqueducts  into  reservoirs,  from  which,  by  leading-pipes,  it 
is  distril)uted  througli  the  city,  then  wlien  the  enemy  destroys  the 
aque(hu;ts  the  city  must  capitulate  or  the  inlial)itants  perish.  So 
with  a  man's  soul.  If  he  is  compelled  to  hring  in  joys  his  condi- 
tion is  most  precarious,  and  he  is  not  liappy  ;  it  is  most  undignified, 
aiul  lie  is  not  blessed.  But  if  he  sends  ont  joys  his  condition  is  in 
his  own  hands,  and  he  is  happy;  he  is  imparting  to  otliei-s  and 
he  is  l)lessed.  It  must  be  recollected  that  the  company  whoiii 
Jesus  was  addressing  was  surrounded  on  the  ecclesiastical  side  by 
churchism,  by  teachere  who  insisted  upon  everything  consisting 
in  being  Abraham's  (rhildren  ;  and  on  the  secular  side  l)y  the 
oppression  of  an  empire  that  had  no  sympathy  with  their  religion, 
and  no  care  for  their  temporal  prosj)erity,  beyond  the  ]>oint  at 
wliich  they  could  be  pluiidcred  to  enrich  their  heathen  con(iueroi-s. 
They  were  longing  for  a  Messiah,  a  messenger  from  Jehovah,  who 
should  be  their  Deliverer.    But  he  would  not  hasten  his  coming,  and 


THE    SEKMON   OX   THE   MOUNT.  247 

their  souls  were  faint  with  expectation.  Naturally  these  people 
needed  rest  and  happiness.  This  great  Teacher  taught  them  the 
lessons  men  need  in  all  ages,  a  religion  which, makes  the  man  the 
master  of  circumstances  by  breaking  the  tyranny  of  his  surround- 
ings and  setting  up  an  inward  kingdom,  making  the  Inner  the 
ruler  of  the  Outward. 

It  was  a  reversal  of  all  their  Habbis  had  taught  them,  and  all 
their  conquerors  had  impressed  upon  them.  The  former  had 
given  them  a  religion  which  consisted  wholly  in  forms  and  cere- 
monies and  rituals;  the  latter  had  flaunted  their  riches  and  paraded 
their  power  in  the  presence  of  those  who  had  been  the  world's  aris- 
tocracy, but  who  were  then  impoverished,  degraded,  and  disheart- 
ened. David's  glory  and  Solomon's  splendor  had  paled  before 
the  magnificence  of  a  heathen  imperialism.  Yery  far  away 
seemed  all  the  grand  history  of  the  march  of  their  ancestors 
through  the  desert,  when  Jehovah  cared  for  their  commissariat 
and  went  before  them  in  the  solemn  pillar  of  fire  and  cloud.  In 
ghostly  thinness  walked  before  their  fancies  the  forms  of  their 
Judges,  who  in  olden  time  were  men  of  such  might  of  brain  and 
brawn.  The  Urim  and  Thummim  were  oracular  no  longer,  and 
the  \oices  of  their  prophets  were  as  the  songs  of  childhood's  hope- 
fulness repeated  to  the  ears  of  paralyzed  and  depressed  and 
despairing  old  age. 

And  they  were  looking  for  a  temporal  Deliverer,  one  who  should 
break  the  Roman  yoke.  If  that  could  be  done,  if  Caesar's  power 
could  be  thrown  off,  if  a  king  should  sit  on  David's  throne  with 
whom  CiBsar  would  be  compelled  to  treat  as  with  a  superior,  if 
all  nations  should  acknowledge  the  Hebrew  supremacy,  then  the 
land  should  flow  with  milk  and  honey,  and  all  the  trees  of  the 
field  should  clap  their  hands,  and  under  every  vine  and  every  fig- 
tree  should  be  seated  a  contented  and  happy  Jew,  and  the  days 
of  the  right  hand  of  the  Most  High  should  visit  and  rejoice  his 
chosen.  Alas  !  poor  people,  they  could  not  rid  themselves  of  the 
common  hallucination  that  a  man  is  made  happy  by  his  surround- 
ings. They  could  not  see  that  the  Roman,  who  had  might  and 
gloi-y,  was  not  a  happy  man. 

Jesus  saw  this  great  increasing  multitude  of  people  hungry  for 
something.  He  knew  the  sad  mistake  of  their  souls,  lie  had 
shown  himself  in  all  his  life  a  person  of  exquisite  and  profound 
sympathy.     On  tliis  occasion  he  seemed  full  of  an  interest  which 


248         SECOND    AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   m   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

was  growing  in  liini,  and  wlieii  the  time  caine  and  they  were  look- 
ing that  he  6h<nild  declare  himself,  that  he  should  define  his  posi- 
tion, that  he  should  give  some  intimation  of  his  designs,  and  per- 
haps of  his  plans,  that  he  should  at  once  openly  unfurl  the  ban 
ner  of  the  Messianic  campaign,  and  make  a  distinct  demonstra- 
tion against  the  Roman  Empire,  tlien  "  he  opened  his  mouth  and 
taught  them."  That  was  all.  But  it  was  teaching  that  had  truth 
and  authority  of  manner  to  make  it  impressive,  and  has  been  mak- 
ing greatness  and  goodness  for  man  from  that  day  to'this. 


THE     BEATITUDES. 

Elements  qf  Lofty  Character. 

Ilis  fii-st  utterance  sounds  like  the  closing  rather  than  the  open- 
ing of  a  discourse.  It  sounds  as  if  much  had  gone  before — very 
many  questions  and  no  little  discussion — and  now 
spirit,  for  theirs  u  the  ^hc  coiiclusiou  of  tlic  wholc  matter  was  to  be 
kingdom  of  the  heav-  gtatcd.  IIc  struck  far  away  from  all  thev  were 
looking  at  in  the  very  first  words  he  spoke.  lie 
gazed  upon  tliem  and  cried  out,  "  Happy  the  poor  in  spirit,  for 
TiiKius  IS  the  KINGDOM  of  the  heavens  ! "  And  this  decision  of 
his  intellect,  coming  as  an  outburst  of  his  heart,  he  follows  up  by  a 
series  of  descriptive  characteristics  which  mark  the  man  who  is 
the  haj)py  or  blessed  man.  And  these  we  must  carefully  exam- 
ine that  we  may  find  the  philosophy  of  this  Teachei-,  and  learn  if 
possible  the  method  of  this  discoui-se.  It  will  be  seen  that  they 
all  describe  chtaracter^  and  that  there  is  noplace  for  rank  or  wealth 
or  any  of  the  outward  distinctions  of  human  life. 

"  The  poor  in  spirit"  is  the  first  characteristic.  As  this  is  a 
kind  of  key-note,  it  is  not  to  be  wondered  that  there  has  been  much 
diversity  of  opinion  as  to  the  meaning  of  Jesus.  Wlien  we  come 
to  see  how  spiritual  is  the  whole  tone  of  this  discourse,  wo  are 
forced  to  feel  that  mere  poverty,  lack  of  material  wealth,  which  is 
the  most  literal  bare  sense  of  the  word  "poor,"  cannot  have  been 
meant.  It  has  been  suncj'ested  *  that  the  words  are  to  be  collocated 
BO  as  to  read,  "  IIa])py  in  spirit  are  the  poor."  ]>ut  there  is  no 
authority  for  this  arrangement  of  the  words,  and  the  oldest  MS.*)- 

•  By  Buch  writers   an  Olearius,  Wet-  I      f  The  Siiutitio  Codex. 
etciu,  Micbaelis,  and  Puuluu.  I 


THE    SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  249 

extant  gives  the  order  Ma^dpcoc  oc  -rrrcoxoi  ro,  -^vevf.arc,  and  if  the 
arrangement  were  as  suggested  above,  it  would  break  the  svnune- 
trj  of  the  beatitudes,  and,  finally,  it  would  be  notoriously  false 
The  people  that  listened  to  Jesus  were  poor  enough  and  unhappy 
enough.     It  would  have  been  to  them  neither  instruction  nor  com- 
fort to  tell  them  in  rhetorical  flourisli  that  the  poor  are  happy. 
When  the  Emperor  Julian,  in  the  fourth  century,  said  that  his 
only  ol)ject  in  confiscating  the  property  of  Clii-ikians  was  that 
their  povei-ty  might  confer  on  them  a  title  to  the  kino-dom  of 
leaN-en,  instead  of  a  bitter  scofP  it  would  have  been  a  benevolent 
thmg  m  the  Apostate,  if  Jesus  meant  mere  literal  poverty      xVnd 
then  It  should  follow  that  if  one  would  benefit  one's  fellow  the 
very  best  method  is  to  take  his  property,  burn  his  houses,  strip 
Him,  and  turn  him  naked  and  empty  on  the  world.     There  can 
be  no  interpretation  put  upon  the  words  of  a  man  of  common 
sense  which  shocks  common  sense.     Moreover,  Jesus  was  a  man 
who  was  extraordinarily  spiritual,  and  as  far  as  possible  from  bein<^ 
gross  in  his  modes  of  thought.     He  was  surpassingly  sagaciou.^ 
and  as  far  as  possible  from  being  stupid,  and  therefore  could  have 
had  no  meaning  contradicted  by  the  whole  history  of  the  race 

I  he  phrase  has  been  translated  to  signify  voluntary  poverty 
poverty  from  a  spirit  of  being  poor,  "qui  propter  Spiritum  Sanc- 
tum voluntate  sunt  pauperes,"  as  Jerome  says.  But  that  agrees 
neither  with  the  genius  of  the  language  nor  with  the  analogy  of 
the  discourse.  Precisely  the  sau.c  grammatical  construction  re- 
cui^  in  verse  8,  and  the  reader  will  see  how  violent  a  similar  ren- 
dering would  be  in  that  passage. 

There  are  two  interpretations  Avhich  may  be  accepted  as  beino- 
more  natural  under  the  circumstances,  and  more  in  accordance 
with  the  whole  drift  of  the  discoui-se.  One  is  by  Clement  of 
Alexandria,  who  thinks  that  when  Jesus  pronounced  the  poor 
blessed,  he  meant  all  those  who,  whether  as  to  worldly  goods  rich 
or  p.)or,  do  inwardly  sit  loose  from  their  propertv,  and  conse- 
quently lu  that  way  are  poor,— a  view  similar  to  that  of  Paul  in 
1.  Cor.  vii.  29  :  "  they  that  have  as  though  they  have  not  "  That 
may  be  a  truth  included  in  what  Jesus  taught  on  this  occasion, 
but  IS  that  the  teaching  ?  Let  us  see  if  we  cannot  find  a  still  m,  .re 
natural  interpretation. 

Let  us  recollect  the  state  of  mind  of  those  whom  he  was  ad- 
^^''^t  specially  made  them  unhappy  was  their  sense  ol 


dressii.^. 


250         SECOND   AND    THIRD    PASSOVER   DJ   TUE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

tlieir  worldly  poverty  as  individuals  and  as  a  nation.  In  any  age 
of  the  world,  to  any  people,  that  is  most  galling.  The  enihanass- 
nients  and  degradation  of  such  a  condition  go  far  towards  break- 
ing the  spirit  C)f  a  man.  In  striving  to  reach  the  meaning  of 
Jesus,  all  a  critical  historian  can  do,  and  perhaps  all  tliat  any 
one  ought  to  do,  is  first  to  know,  if  practicable,  what  were  the 
precise  words  employed,  and  then  to  ascertain  how  those  identi- 
cal woi'ds  would  be  understood  generally  by  the  average  minds  of 
those  who  composed  the  very  audiences  he  addressed.  If  the 
S})eaker  be  not  a  fool  or  a  charhitan  he  will  strive  to  find  for  his 
ideas  just  those  words  which  when  uttered  to  the  ears  of  another 
will  put  in  the  mind  of  the  hearer  the  idea  that  is  in  the  mind  of 
the  speaker.  Jesus  had  lived  with  the  people  he  addressed.  Their 
vernacular  was  his  mother-tongue.  lie  knew  their  hopes  and 
fears,  their  opinions  and  prejudices,  their  modes  of  thought  and 
methods  of  speech.  He  was  of  the  people.  He  was  not  a  dema- 
gogue, in  the  sense  of  one  who  vilely  leads  the  people  astray  by 
playing  upon  their  weaknesses  for  his  own  advantage.  He  was  a 
Demagogus  in  the  lofty  sense  of  one  who  exerts  his  superior  abil- 
ity to  lead  the  thoughtless  and  passionate  multitude  into  sound 
thinking  and  right  acting.  He  will  speak  words  that  shall  be 
comprehensible  by  them  in  their  first  intent  and  present  mean- 
ing, even  if  he  include  therein  a  profound  meaning  which  shall 
develop  itself  M'itli  the  developing  ages.  "Wlien,  therefore,  wc 
come,  as  now  we  must  come,  to  consider  the  meaning  of  Jesus,  we 
must  endeavor  to  ascertain  what  his  words  would  mean  to  the 
average  mind  in  all  that  Galihiian  and  Judiean  and  Iduniivan 
crowd  that  stood  about  him  ;  men  and  women  who  were  living 
before  the  early  Christian  fathers,  and  the  decisions  of  councils, 
and  oj)inions  of  those  commentators  who  run  the  golden  words  of 
the  Teacher  into  the  moulds  of  their  own  theories  ;  men  and  wo- 
men who  lived  ages  before  Augustine,  aiul  Arminius,  and  Luther, 
and  Calvin,  and  AVesley,  and  Paul  us,  and  Tholuck,  and  Stiauss. 

To  such  a  crowd  these  words  most  probably  meant  that  they 
were  unhappy  m'Iio  suffered  themselves  to  be  afflicted  by  a  sense 
of  their  M'ant  of  material  prosperity,  but  they  were  hapi»y  who 
felt  the  want  in  their  spirits,  their  spiritual  necdiness  and  poverty  ; 
who  would  be  unhappy  if  sitting  on  Ca'sar's  throne  with  empty 
Bouls,  but  happy  amid  starvation  if  spiritually  rich.  In  general 
It  was  a  statement  of  the  superiority  of  the  spiritual  to  the  corpo- 


THE    SERMON    ON   TTIE   MOUNT. 


251 


real.  His  hearers  were  in  wi-etclied  restlessness  because  the  Mes- 
siah did  not  hasten  to  come  and  break  the  Roman  yoke.  Thej 
felt  their  poverty  as  to  the  fleshy  but  not  their  poverty  as  to  tht 
spirit.^  and  they  were  unhappy.  The  first  words  of  Jesus  in  this 
discourse  were  such  as  shocked  their  hopes  of  secular  deliverance. 
Et  is  as  if  he  had  said :  My  countrymen,  you  desire  me  to  lead  a 
revolt  ac^ainst  the  Koman  Empire.  You  have  confidence  in  my 
ability  to  achieve  success.  Your  feeling  of  poverty  intensifies  your 
desire  for  the  enterj)rise.  You  think  that  then  the  kingdoms  of 
this  world  would  be  open  to  you.  But  I  come  to  show  you 
another  way,  a  way  that  leads  out  to  a  larger  and  wealthier  place. 
Happy  are  they  who  feel  their  spiritual  necessities,  for  the  Idng- 
dom  of  the  universe*  is  open  to  them. 

Now  this  is  a  proposition,  a  consciousness  of  the  truth  of  which 
may  be  achieved  in  any  man's  experience,  in  some  measure,  in 
any  age  of  the  world.  The  man  who  feels  physical  want  will 
find  his  sources  of  happiness  in  the  physical  world;  the  man  who 
feels  his  intellectual  wants  will  find  his  sources  of  happiness  in 
the  intellectual  world ;  while  the  man  who  feels  his  spiritual  wants 
finds  his  sources  of  happiness  in  all  the  dominion  of  all  the  heavens, 
that  is,  in  the  whole  universe  ;  and  he  is  a  happy  man.  He  reigns 
where  Ccesar's  sceptre  cannot  reach;  and  when  all  the  Csesai-s 
shall-  have  passed  away,  and  the  present  scheme  of  things  be  dis- 
solved,  hehas  the  heavens  still,  the  constant  enduring  universe. 
Alas!  how  little  a  portion  of  the  wants  of  the  human  heart  can 
the  empires  of  Alexander,  of  the  Ctesars,  of  Charlemagne,  and  of 
Napoleon  fill !  J3ut  "  the  heavens," — which  phrase  means  the 
sphere  of  the  soul  as  distinguished  from  "  the  earth,"  which  is  the 
sphere  of  the  body, — the  heavens  come  ir^to  fill  the  spirit  that  is 
empty,  if  a  man  but  feel  the  horror  of  that  emptiness  and  seek 
the  kingdom  of  the  heavens. 

And  then  he  expands  this  idea  by  pronouncing  those  happy 
who  mourn,  and  those  who  are  meek.  These  are  paradoxes 
levelled  at  the  secular  and  worldly  longings  of  the  ^^^^^  ^^^^  ^^^ 
people.      These  men  who  listened  to  him  had  moiu-n,  for  they  shau 

„„  ,1         1         ,1  •  .  1  ,     be  comforted. 

seen  the  heathen   m  great  power  and  apparent 

happiness.     They  had  seen  the  magnificent  towns  and  villas  which 


*  Luke,  in  vi.  20,  calls  it  "  the  king- 
dom of  God."  The  most  natural  trans- 
lation  of  the    phrase   in   Matthew    is 


'"the  kingdom  of  the  universe;"  but 
both  mean  finally  the  same  thing,  as 
God  reigns  throughout  the  luiiverse. 


252         SKCOND    AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   EN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

had  been  erected  along  the  shores  of  their  hike  hy  their  political 
lords,  and  had  witnessed  all  the  pleasures  which  they  seemed  to 
enjoy  in  their  mansions,  with  goodly  furniture  and  manifold  ap- 
pliances of  luxury.  Those  happy  Romans  did  not  mourn.  They 
had  not  seen  trailing  in  the  dust  the  standards  which  their  an- 
cestore  had  made  glorious.  They  did  not  feel  royal  blood  tingling 
in  them  as  they  bowed  their  necks  to  a  foreign  yoke.  To  the 
conquered  Jew  they  were  at  once  objects  of  hate  and  of  envy. 
And  now  to  those  Jews  Jesus  says  that  they  who  mourn  are  hap 
py !  But  T\^e  must  read  his  words  in  the  light  afforded  by  the 
text  as  well  as  with  the  aids  furnished  by  the  circumstances.  He 
is  teaching  that  everything  depends  upon  character,  the  inner 
man.  He  is  drawing  them  away  from  externals  as  a  l)asis  of 
happiness.  The  man  who  bewails  not  his  temporal  and  physical 
wants,  but  his  spiritual  needs,  is  not  a  man  to  be  so  much  comjjas- 
sionated.  He  shall  be  comforted.  lie  who  whines  and  wails  over 
his  worldly  condition  may  go  on  whining  and  wailing.  He  has 
no  assurance  that  he  shall  have  his  condition  improved.  But  the 
man,  rich  or  poor,  king  or  peasant,  who  feels  that  to  be  poverty- 
stricken  in  his  soul  is  the  greatest  misfortune,  and  one  by  all 
means  to  be  remedied, — who,  when  he  detects  himself  lacking 
truth,  courage,  self-control,  mourns  over  that  more  than  over 
the  absence  of  meats  and  wines  and  couches,  and  whatever 
money  buys, — such  a  man  is  a  blessed  man ;  for  he  shall  be  com- 
forted. 

The  Jews  had  lost  Judaea.  A  conquered  peo|»le  who  remain  in 
the  land  are  greater  sufferers  than  those  who  are  banished  or  go 
Happy  the  meeic  for  voluntarily  into  exile.  The  Jews  remained  on 
they  shou  Inherit  the  suffcraiice.  Tlicy  werc  put  under  the  yoke,  sub- 
jugated, saw  others  rule  what  once  had  belonged 
to  them,  and  had  been  under  their  control  in  fee.  Having  been 
mastci-s,  they  were  now  slaves.  They  were  far  f n )m  l)eing  "  meek." 
They  were  very  far  from  submitting  to  the  inevitable,  but "  kicked 
against  the  pricks,"  and  rubbed  against  the  yoke,  and  aggravated 
their  sufferings  by  their  hatred  of  tlie  ccMiqueror,  and  by  foolish, 
vain,  unfounded  hopes.  Once  more  Jesus  turned  them  from  the 
outside  to  the  inner  man,  and  pointed  to  the  happiness  of  tliose 
who  were  gentle  in  spirit,  who  soothed  themselves  and  those  al)out 
them  by  the  quiet  self-possession  of  their  own  souls.  Again  he 
disappointed  their  political  hopes  by  giving  a  spiritual  interpreta- 


THE    SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT. 


253 


tion  to  a  phrase  with  which  they  were  familiar.*  Their  land  was 
holy  land,  because  promised  land,  given  by  Jehovah  to  Abraham 
and  his  seed  to  possess  it.  It  was  to  them  the  type  and  the  per- 
petual prophecy  of  that  better  land  beyond  death.  There  never 
has  existed  a  people  who  had  a  more  desperate  and  fanatical  at- 
tachment to  the  soil  upon  which  they  were  born  than  the  Jews. 
Their  patriotism  was  their  religion,  and  their  religion  their  pa- 
triotism. The  land  of  Abraham  was  heaven  on  earth.  To  be  in 
Abraham's  bosom  was  to  consummate  the  hopes  of  earth  by  what- 
ever bliss  might  be  in  heaven. 

The  Romans  held  the  land  of  Abraham.  The  Jews,  who  were 
plotting  revolts  and  stirring  up  insurrections,  were  losing  every- 
thing. They  were  missing  all  domestic  enjoyment ;  they  were 
failing  to  improve  their  lands  and  their  houses,  and  to  promote 
the  growth  of  true  religion  among  their  children  ;  so  that  while 
they  "  dwelt  in  the  land  "  it  was  as  prisoners.  All  they  loved 
was  going  to  decay  before  their  eyes.  They  were  afflicted  with  a 
mania  which  has  not  died  out  from  among  men,  but  every  now 
and  then  in  modern  times  breaks  forth,  a  feverish  feeling  that 
everything  depends  upon  the  political  condition  of  a  people. 
Proud,  violent  men  inflame  the  people  with  this  idea.  Proud, 
violent  men  believe  that  happiness  is  in  high  position  and  fame, 
in  being  in  a  condition  to  lord  it  over  their  fellows.  It  is  all  a 
mistake.  A  man  who  has  a  quiet  good  soul  can  be  just  as  good 
and  great,  can  live  as  happily  and  die  as  nobly  in  Pussia  as  in 
France,  in  France  as  in  England,  in  England  as  in  America. 
Emperor,  king,  president,  it  makes  so  little  difference  that  it  is 
not  worth  one  human  life  to  change  it.  An  ambitious,  selfish, 
ill-tempered,  weak  man  will  be  unhappy  anywhere.  A  meek 
man  is  not  a  weak  man,  but  one  who  has  the  strength  to  hold 
himself  in,  as  one  by  a  strong  bridle  holds  a  strong  and  fiery 
horse.  lie  will  He  happy  anywhere.  lie  will  inherit  the  earth. 
He  will  be  in  the  enjoyable  possession  of  the  earth,  for  that  is  the 
meaning  of  the  words.  This  is  a  general  truth.  Conquerors  over- 
run a  land,  but  they  do  not  enjoy  it.     The  king  is  often  overbur- 


*  Compare  Deut.  xix.  14 ;  Psalm  xxv. 
13  ;  xxxvii.  9,  for  variations  of  this 
phrase.  "The  land  "  is  spoken  of  re- 
peatedly through  Deuteronomy  as  be- 
longing to  the  Jewish  people.     All  are 


familiar  with  the  words  in  the  Fifth 
Commandment.  Jesus  in  this  passage 
uses  the  precise  phrase  which  occurs  in 
Ps.  xxxvii.  11. 


254         SECOND   AND   TIIIKD   PASSOVER   TX    THE   LIFE   OF   .FESUS. 

dened  with  the  load  of  stateship,  and  rides  in  magnificent  weari- 
ness over  immense  domains  from  which  he  can  draw  no  increase 
of  deliglit ;  wliile  down  those  valleys  and  on  those  liill-slopes, 
in  a  thousand  cottages,  arc  multitudes  of  men  and  women  and 
little  children  who  really  "  inherit,"  by  enjoying  all  tlie  earth 
can  yield  of  physical  delight,  and  in  those  cloisters  are  many 
students  who  "  iidierit "  by  enjoying  all  the  intellectual  delights 
which  a  study  of  the  earth  can  give. 

If  these  people  whom  Jesus  addresped  were  expecting  tliat  in 
the  reign  of  the  Messiali  they  should  have  material  riches,  worldly 
pleasures,  and  the  indulgence  of  the  pride  of  power,  and  if  they 
supposed  Jesus  to  be  the  Messiah,  they  were  to  be  disap]>ointed. 
lie  was  no  revolutionist.  lie  was  no  political  preacher.  He  had 
a  deeper,  loftier  mission.  He  had  not  come  to  "  fire  the  Jewisli 
heart,"  but  to  purify  the  spiritual  life  of  the  world.  So  through- 
out this  discourse  he  describes  all  excellence  as  consistintj  in 
character,  and  all  real  happiness  as  having  its  fountains  in  the 
soul.  There  is  not  a  single  beatitude  which  has  its  basis  in  exter- 
nal things.  Jesus  thus  plainly  instructs  them  in  the  beginning 
that  they  are  not  to  regard  him  as  being  about  to  add  himself  to 
the  number  of  those  conqueroi-s  who  divide  tlie  acquired  tei-ritory 
among  their  followers.  They  may  have  been  ex}>eeting  tliat  lie 
should  subdue  the  world  and  give  it  to  the  Jewish  peoj)le.  He 
had  no  such  intent.  Those  that  looked  for  such  things  need  not 
be  followers  of  Jesus.  There  was  no  happiness  in  all  this  worldly, 
exorbitant,  insatiable  heat.  The  kingdom  he  should  set  up  would 
be  in  the  hearts  of  men. 

And  so,  whenever  occasion  served,  Jesus  restored  to  their  sj'ii-i- 

tual  meaning  phrases  and  passages  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  which 

the  Jews  had  lowered  to  a  most  secular  significa- 

Happy  they  who  hun-       .  *       i        ,  ,  .  '  a     ^  i  -iV 

ger  aii.i  thirst  after  tiou.  Aud  tlicu  lic  lutcnsined  aufi  Still  uiorc 
t'^J.TT.T  ^"'''"^  liif^lily  siuritualized  those  passages.    Almost  every 

■hall  be  flUed.  ts      J      l  in  ^ 

phrase  he  uses  must  have  recalled  some  well- 
known  expression  in  the  Projdiets,  the  Psalms,  or  the  Law. 
Thus  he  describes  the  happy  man  as  one  who  "  hungers  and 
thirsts  after  righteousness."  In  the  East  thii-st  implied  the  most 
intense  desire,  and  was  the  most  vivid  representation  of  hmgitig 
to  a  peoi)lc  who  dwelt  in  lands  where  there  was  a  scarcity  of 
water.  This  unspeakable  desire  to  be  upright,  right  towai-ds  God 
and  man,  rlLdit  inwardlv,  whether  the  life  should  be  able  to  be 


THE   SEKMON    ON   THE   MOUNT.  255 

brouo-ht  to  the  high  standard  or  not,  this  marks  a  true  man. 
Hunger  seeks  to  eat,  and  thirst  to  drink.  It  must  be  an  inward 
satisfaction.  The  man  may  be  up  to  his  lips  in  water  and  in  food, 
and  all  things  outward  fail  to  satisfy  him.  The  words  of  Jesus 
must  have  reminded  his  hearers  of  David's  simile  of  the  hart 
panting  after  the  water-brooks  (Ps.  xlii.  1),  and  the  outcry  of  in- 
vitation in  Isaiah  (Iv.  1) :  "  IIo  !  every  one  that  thirsteth,  come  ye 
to  the  waters."  Perhaps  it  recalled  also  that  remarkable  passage 
in  the  Psalms,  "  I  shall  appear  in  righteousness  before  thy  face 
I  shall  be  satisfied  when  thy  glory  appears."  *  It  is  to  be  observed 
that  the  promise  made  is  of  the  inward  and  not  of  the  ontwai-d. 
Longings  for  righteousness  are  to  be  satisfied  by  righteousness. 
The  reward  of  loving  is  the  increased  power  to  love.  The  reward 
of  longing  to  be  righteous  is  the  increased  power  of  being  right- 
eous.    All  such  people  shall  be  filled. 

Having  given  these  blows  to  secular  hopes  by  stating  three  of 
the  characteristics  of  those  who  are  really  happy  and  blessed,  such 
as  he  should  desire  to  have  for  his  subjects  if  he  is  to  be  king  of 
men  in  any  sense,  he  immediately  states  three  other  characteristics ; 
and  it  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  first  three  are  such  as  a  man  will 
be  conscious  of  in  his  own  soul  while  they  may  be  wholly  unknown 
to  others,  while  at  least  two  of  the  next  three  open  into  the  visible 
life. 

The  hidden  growth  of  grace  now  begins  to  bring  forth  fruit. 
The  man  who  has  felt  and  mourned  his  poverty  of  spirit,  who  has 
become  self -continent  and  meek,  whose  heart  has  g^ppy  ^^^  mercihu, 
been  athirst  for  righteousness,  is  not  selfish,  but  for  they  Bhaii  obtain 
goes  out  in  love  and  pity  to  his  fellow-men.  The 
subjects  of  a  spiritual  kingdom,  which  is  to  consist  in  the  para- 
mount influence  of  love,  are  to  be  merciful.  Conquering  warri(jrs 
were  not  ordinarily  merciful,  but  had  what  the  heathen  thought  to 
be  the  sweets  of  hating.  The  conquered  were  not  merciful,  but 
had  the  sweets  of  revenge.  And  neither  were  happy.  The  happy 
man  is  he  who  seeks  to  make  others  happy,  whether  they  be  good 
and  grateful  or  bad  and  thankless. 

The  next  characteristic  of  the  happy  is  that  they  are  pure  in 
heart,  heartily  pure,  loving  purity,  and  seeking  to  have  it  inwardly. 


*  This  translation   I   give  from   the  I  Ps.  svi.   15.     In   our  common  English 
Septuagint  version,  where  it  occurs  in  I  version  it  is  xvii.  15. 


256         SECOND   AND    THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

The  lonrica!  connection  between  this  "  beatitude  "  and  that  wliieh 
Ha  the  iire  in  iii^medlatelj  prccedcs  and  follows  is  not  quite  so 
Heart,  for  they  8hau  see  apparent.  Indeed  it  is  to  be  doul)ted  whether  in 
^^'  the  mind  of  Jesus  there  was   anything   of   that 

strict  scholastic  arrangement  of  ideas  which  so  many  commeiitatore 
endeavor  to  construct  for  this  discourse.  Nevertheless  there  must 
have  been  in  the  mind  of  this  great  teacher  some  thread  of  dis- 
course, some  nexus  of  thought  or  feeling  which  prompted  the 
succession  of  ideas.  Perhaps  it  is  found  in  tlie  meaning  assigned 
by  Jesus,  which  may  not  have  been  the  modern  sense  of  purity. 
Perhaps  he  did  not  mean  those  who  are  free  from  violation  of 
the  seventh  commandment,  but  rather  those  who  from  the  heart 
observe  the  ninth ;  not  so  much  those  who  are  not  carnal  as  those 
who  are  not  cunning.  Happy  the  sharp,  cunning  man,  is  the 
general  verdict.  Such  men  are  supposed  to  be  able  to  secure  the 
riches,  the  honors,  the  glories  of  the  world.  They  are  the  grand 
speculators,  the  successful  diplomatists.  But  Jesus  declares  that 
the  innocent,  the  innocuous,  those  whose  souls  are  honest,  whose 
intents  are  guileless,  whose  spirits  are  surrounded  by  a  moral 
atmosphere  of  perfect  transparency, — that  these  are  the  blessed, 
happy  men. 

And  he  assiirns  this  remarkable  reason  for  such  blessedness — 
"  they  shall  see  God."  Now,  as  all  the  happiness  nuist  in  some 
sort  correspond  with  the  condition  of  character  stated,  "we  can 
be  assisted  by  an  understanding  of  one  to  the  comprehension 
of  the  other.  "What  is  this  vision  of  God,  and  when  shall  it  take 
place  ?  S<;me  have  held  that  visio  leatijica  was  real  bodily  sight, 
others  tliat  it  was  purely  mental,  others  that  it  was  both  physical 
and  spiritual;  some  that  it  is  now,  otliers  that  it  will  be  in  the 
state  of  existence  which  the  soul  shall  maintain  beyond  the 
grave,  others  that  it  is  botli  here  and  hereafter. 

That  Jesus  simply  used  these  words  in  a  spiritual  sense  I  have 
no  doubt,  nor  do  I  doubt  that  they  signify  a  blessedness  which 
is  not  contined  to  either  life, but  is  as  true  of  the  here  as  of  the  here- 
after. It  is  familiar  to  the  students  of  the  Bible  that  these  writ- 
ei-8  use  "see"  and  "knoAv"  almost  interchangeably.  The  Great 
Teacher  probably  intended  to  convey  the  idea  that  in  order  to 
know  God,  to  underetand  His  nature  and  His  ways,  simplo-lieart- 
edness,  clearness  of  the  atmosphere  about  the  mind  and  heart,  is 
necessary;  that  the  sharpness  wliich  wins  in  the  jjames  of  life, 


THE    SERMON    ON    THE    MOUNT.  257 

and  tlic  sagacity  which  ()l)taiiis  among  men  the  reputation  of  a 
knowledge  of  human  nature,  which  reputation  so  many  covet, 
come  to  nothing  in  the  studies  which  men  make  of  God. 

And  tliat  this  is  true  every  man  may  know  for  himself.  The 
best  and  noblest  thoughts  of  God,  the  most  sunny  and  cheering 
and  elevating,  are  not  such  as  we  have  through  commentators. 
Few  things  are  more  disheartening  than  the  reading  of  very  many 
expositions  of  the  Scriptui-e.  The  mole-like  delving,  the  petty 
distinctions,  the  insignificant  discriminations,  the  scholastic  sub- 
tleties of  "  the  Fathers,"  so  called,  the  cold,  worldly-wise  argu- 
mentations of  more  modern  writers,  are  all  so  many  obstructions 
to  the  pursuit  of  the  fresh  truth.  What  truths  they  have  are 
arranged  like  the  plants  in  the  most  artificial  of  Dutch  gardens, 
while  the  "Garden  of  God"  is  a  jungle  of  natural  beauties  and 
sweetnesses.  On  this  question  of  the  visio  Dei,  seeing  God,  read 
what  is  said  by  Tertullian,  Chrysostom,  Augustine,  Enthymius, 
Theodoret,  Vorstius,  Voetius,  and  a  score  of  others,  ancient  and 
modern,  that  lie  on  the  talkie  beside  the  present  writer,  and  at  the 
close  you  will  feel  as  if  you  must  rise  and  shake  the  skirts  of  the 
garments  of  your  soul,  and  plunge  into  some  deep  forest,  or  climb 
some  lofty  peak,  or  go  so  far  out  on  lake  or  sea  that  the  sounds  of 
men  do  not  reach  yon,  and  look  up  into  the  great  sky,  and  down 
into  the  greater  depths  of  your  spirit,  and  open  the  windows  of 
your  soul  that  the  air  of  the  breath  of  God  and  the  light  of  the 
smile  of  God  may  enter. 

"  The  world  by  wisdom  knew  not  God  "  (1  Corinthians  i.  21),  is  a 
general  truth.  In  the  original  the  preposition  used  {hia)  contains 
a  figure  of  speech,  which  being  incorporated  the  words  might  be 
translated,  "  The  world  does  not  find  God  at  the  other  end  of 
wisdom,"  by  which  is  meant  shrewdness,  skill  in  matters  of  com- 
mon life,  and  even  ability  in  the  department  of  dialectics.  Purity 
of  character  is  needed,  total  cleanness  of  the  soul,  and  such  as 
have  this  have  the  blessed  vision  of  God.  One  such  man,  who 
never  befools  himself  with  the  adoption  of  an  error  because  it  is 
pleasant,  and  never  takes  his  opinions  at  second-hand,  believing 
them  because  they  are  taught  by  one  who  has  a  great  name, — a 
man  wdiose  lusts  and  passions  are  not  allowed  to  make  such  a 
fume  about  his  soul  that  the  very  sun  of  truth  is  hidden, — a  man 
whose  moral  atmosphere  is  translucent,,  sees  God,  knows  God,  and 
shall  see  and  know  Him  forever.  The  glass  to  be  used  in  the 
17 


258         SECOND   A^T)   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

telescope  lifted  to  gaze  into  the  greatest  depths  which  vision  can 
penetrate  must  be  flawless  and  colorless,  otherwise  all  observations 
will  be  inaccurate  and  all  calculations  thereupon  be  false  and 
misleading.  The  lesson  of  the  Teacher  is  against  double-niinded- 
ness,  guile,  and  all  kinds  of  mental  as  well  as  moral  impurities, 
as  interfering  with  the  highest  privileges  and  pleasures  of  the 
soul. 

And  then  follows  the  last  of  the  characteristics  of  the  Happy. 

It  would  seem  most  natural  that  if  any  body  of  men  can  be  found 

„  who  are  distinguished  by  the  predominance  of 

Happy     the    peace-  _    "^  ./  x 

makers,  for  they  shau  tlic  characteristics  wc  havc  been  studying,  they 
becauedsonsofGcd.    ^j||  ^^  ^^^^^  ^,j^,^  g|j^||  ^^  engaged  iu  the  blessed 

work  of  pacification,  and  shall  be  making  peace  among  men  skil- 
fully and  on  a  proper  basis,  as  distinguished  from  those  who 
increase  difficulties  by  their  bungling  interference,  and  thereby 
compromising  the  right  in  making  settlements.  Touched  by  a 
sense  of  their  own  spiritual  wants,  mourning  over  their  own  frail- 
ties of  temper  and  character,  meek,  merciful,  and  guileless,  see- 
ing things  in  clear  light,  humane,  but  hating  all  wrongs,  thoy  will 
be  the  very  people  who  shall  bring  together  those  who  have  been 
separated. 

And  here  is  the  final  blow  to  the  sccularity  of  their  ]\ressianic 
hopes.  They  had  dreamed  of  going  forth  conquering  and  to 
conquer.  IIow  happy  should  they  be,  pouring  out  of  all  the 
gates  of  Jerusalem,  and  from  all  the  hamlets  of  Juda?a,  following 
their  divine  Leader  to  Home,  hurling  Ctesar  from  liis  throne, 
gathering  all  the  crowns  and  sceptres  of  the  world  into  their 
arms,  and  trampling  the  heathen  and  the  Gentile  under  their 
feet !  There  is  no  such  happiness  in  store  for  them.  The  climax 
of  the  description  which  Jesus  gives  of  his  followers,  of  the  peo- 
ple he  desires  to  collect  about  him,  is  that  they  are  to  be  peace- 
makers, exerting  the  gentle  but  powerful  influence  of  benign 
lives  on  the  turbulent  passions  of  men,  and  preventing  and  curing 
the  dissensions  of  the  world.  Such  men  are  sons  of  God,  and 
Jesus  teaches  that  their  relationship  and  likeness  to  the  Most  High 
God  shall  be  recognized.  They  shall  be  "  called,"  considered, 
^sons  of  God,"  not  little  children,  but  adult  sons  of  the  King  of 
Peace.  Every  man  of  the  disci})les  of  Jesus  will,  as  the  ground 
of  his  kinsliip  to  the  Holy  Father,  do  whatever  in  him  lies  to 
bring  an  end  to  all  violences  among  men,  so  that  while  that  great 


THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT.  259 

diversity  of  intellectual  difference  shall  continue,  wliicli  God 
intends  shall  be  in  men  forever,  their  passions  may  not  be  kindled 
thereby  into  outbreaks  that  destroy  society. 

Tlie  existence  of  wars  shows  how  far  men  are  yet  from  coming 
wholly  under  the  dominion  of  the  principles  of  Jesus.  But  let 
no  man  be  discouraged.  Earth  distributes  its  prizes,  and  heaven 
bestows  its  honors.  In  the  estimate  of  God,  a  man  who  is  en- 
gaged in  breaking  the  peace  of  the  universal  commonweal  is 
despicable,  and  the  peacemakers  are  the  highest  style  of  men. 
The  warriors  wrap  themselves  in  bloody  garments  to  lie  down, 
amid  the  insane  plaudits  of  a  vulgar  generation,  in  everlasting 
forgetfulness,  while  simple-hearted  pacificator  go  up  to  the  high 
places  in  the  loftiest  society  of  the  universe. 

Having  made  tliis  ideal  representation  of  the  disciplesliip  of 
that  Messiahship  which  he  chose  to  represent,  Jesus  glanced  at 
the  sufferers  in  the  past.     They  had  been  very 

,  Happy  they  who  have 

much  such  persons  as  he  had  described,  and  they  been  persecuted  on 
seemed  to  have  perished  out  of  the  world  miser-  "*=<=°""*  °*  nghteons- 

_  ■*■  ^  ness,  for  theirs  is  the 

ably.  They  might  have  been  cited  as  a  refuta-  kingdom  of  the  heav- 
tion  of  his  "statements,  for  their  sighs  and  groans  """  ^"^  f'"'''"  °^  '^' 

'  o  o  universe). 

were  a  strange  echo  to  his  repeated  "  Happy,  hap- 
py, happy  !  "  But  they  are  happy.  "  Happy  they  that  have 
been  persecuted  on  account  of  righteousness."  Persecution  is 
represented  in  the  original  text  by  a  word  taken  from  the  chase 
and  from  war,  the  stroiiger  frightening,  pursuing,  causing  to  run, 
those  who  are  the  weaker.  The  good  are  not  always  in  power, 
and  when  the  evil  have  rule  the  good  are  made  to  suffer.  But  if 
a  man  lias  come  into  that  affliction  because,  when  the  question  of 
right  and  wrong  was  thrust  upon  him,  he  stood  up  for  the  right,  he 
is  not  to  be  compassionated.  The  tyrant  is  to  be  pitied,  not  the 
victim.  Brief  pain  and  everlasting  glory  is  the  martyr's  reward, 
if  he  was  a  martyr  because  he  preferred  dying  to  sinning.  Brief 
triumph  and  everlasting  shame  belong  to  him  who  was  the  malig- 
nant destroyer.  Generations  of  even  bad  men  who  succeed  a 
tyrant  condemn  him,  while  they  praise  his  victim.  It  is  character^ 
not  circumstance^  tliat  makes  the  happiness. 

There  is  no  praise  to  pain.  A  man  is  not  happy  because  he  has 
Buffered,  but  because  he  has  suffered  for  the  sake  of  being  right. 
It  is  the  cause  and  not  the  pain  that  makes  a  martyr.  And  now, 
when  Jesus  looked  upon  the  noble  army  of  martyrs  who  had 


260         SECOND    AXD    THIRD    PASSC  VElt   IX   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

chosen  to  keep  an  unbroken  manhood  in  suffering  rather  than 
purchase  pleasure  by  surrender  of  their  souls,  he  exclaimed, 
*'  ITajipy  those  who  have  suffered  on  account  of  righteousness  :  the 
kingdom  of  the  heavens  is  theirs:  they  stood  awhile  in  the  nar- 
row place  of  torture,  dungeon,  or  rack ;  they  are  now  free  in  all 
the  width  of  the  dominion  of  the  universe.  If  they  had  surren- 
dered the  right  to  avoid  the  painful,  they  Avould  have  so  belittled 
their  spirits  as  to  have  been  miserable:  but  now  they  possess  what- 
ever delights  the  universe  can  pour  in  on  souls  that  are  truly 
great." 

It  was  natural  that  Jesus  should  then  turn  with  a  special  ten- 
derness towards  those  who  were  linking  their  fortunes  with  his, 
and  who,  by  becoming  his  disciples,  were  to  try 
Happy  ye,  when  they  the  experiment  of  being  such  persons  as  he  had 

shall  revile  you,    and  x  p      i 

persecute  you,  and  pay  dcscribed.  If  they  bccame  poor  in  spirit,  and 
every  bad  thing  against  ^^^^g].  ^^^  mcrciful  aud  pure-licartcd,  and  ])eace- 

you  falsely,  on  account  -^  '■ 

of  me.    Rejoice  and  makcrs,  tlic  world  would  hate  and  persecute  them. 

shout,  for  your  reward  rpj^^^  trOublc  WOuld  COmC  OU  aCCOUUt  of  JcSUS— 
IS  great  m  the  heavens  ; 

for  thus  they  persecu-  bccause  tlicy  wcrc  followcrs  of  liiiu.  In  the  col- 
ted  the  prophets  who  ^^.       ^  y^  ^^,^^^  ^    Tcvilcd  aud  persccutcd. 

were  before  j  ou.  1 

There  is  nothing  in  that  to  make  joy;  on  the  con- 
trary, if  any  trouble  has  arisen  from  a  man's  own  imprudence,  it 
is  a  cause  of  great  regret  and  pain.  But  when  every  kind  of  bad 
thing  has  been  spoken  falsely  of  a  man,  and  the  utterance  of  it 
has  been  prompted  by  the  bad  that  is  in  those  whf)  malign,  excited 
by  hatred  of  his  goodness,  let  him  rejoice,  yea,  let  him  even  exult. 
It  is  proof  of  the  positiveuess  and  vigor  of  his  character  and  good- 
ness. Every  man  that  has  flung  himself  on  his  generation  to  do 
them  good  has  had  this  kind  of  trouble.  Evil  is  positive.  Good 
must  be  positive.  They  will  collide.  So  much  the  loone  for  the 
einl.  Why  cannot  we  leani  that  ?  A  man  slandei-s  another,  cir- 
culates lies  that  are  injuric^is,  and  the  misrepresented  party  is 
recfarded  as  the  damaged.  Is  he  ?  Is  it  not  the  slanderer  who  is 
hurt  ?  At  the  close  of  the  day,  who  ought  to  shout  in  his  closet : 
the  slanderer,  who  has  succeeded  in  making  his  lies  temporarily 
believed,  and  thus  done  vast  injury  to  his  own  character;  or  the 
meek  man,  who  has  not  allowed  the  falsehood  of  his  persecutor  to 
diimage  his  character  by  arousing  unholy  resentments? 

The  heavens  are  very  wide.     There  is  ivKim  in  the  univeree. 
The  growth  of  the  character  will  be  the  good  man's  everlasting 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE  MOUNT.  261 

joy.  The  prophets  were  not  destroyed :  but  what  of  their  persecu- 
tors ?  Did  you  ever  hear  of  Magor-missabib  ?  No  ?  He  was  the 
same  as  Pashur.  "  And  who  was  Pashur  ? "  The  innocent  igno- 
rance implied  in  that  question  tells  the  whole  story  of  the  relation  of 
persecutors  and  the  persecuted.  Pashur,  named  Magor-missabib, 
was  a  great  man  in  his  day.  He  was  the  son  of  Immer  the 
priest,  "  who  was  also  chief  governor  in  the  house  of  Jehovah." 
There  was  an  earnest  brave  man  in  his  day  named  Jeremiah,  and 
this  man  spoke  words  of  great  truth  very  courageously,  but  they 
were  bitter  words  to  an  evil  people  and  priesthood.  And  so 
Pashur  threshed  him  and  put  him  in  the  stocks  in  a  most  public 
place  near  the  Temple,  and  left  him  there  all  night.  (Jeremiah 
XX.)  But  Pashur  was  carried  to  Babylon  a  slave,  and  died 
obscurely  there.  There  would  be  no  memory  of  his  name  on 
earth  at  this  day,  but  for  the  fact  that  Jeremiah  has  pilloried  him 
in  a  book  which  the  world  will  never  let  die,  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands of  which  are  printed  every  year,  although  twenty-four  cen- 
turies have  elapsed,  and  Jeremiah  is  among  the  immortals.  Of 
all  the  kings  of  David's  family  who  sat  on  David's  throne,  there 
was  no  one  who  reigned  so  long  as  Manaaseh,  the  twelfth  king  of 
Judah.  And  yet  of  no  one  is  so  little  known.  The  historians 
avoid  as  much  as  may  be  all  mention  of  his  reign.  If  the  tradi- 
tions of  his  people  are  to  be  relied  on,  he  caused  Isaiah  to  be  sawn 
asunder.  No  words  of  the  king  are  remembered.  No  actions  of 
his  are  regarded  as  memorial  and  exemplar^'.  But  Isaiah's  words 
have  inspired  the  preachers  and  prophets  of  all  succeeding  times, 
and  to-day  are  preserved  among  the  most  precious  treasures  of  all 
human  literature.  And  so  it  has  been,  is,  and  will  be,  until  right 
and  wrong  shall  cease  to  oppose  each  other.  Great  is  their  reward 
in  all  the  heavens  who  suffer,  being  in  the  right. 

VALUE    OF    A    LOFTY    CHAKACTER. 

AVliat  Jesus  says  of  the  position  of  his  disciples,  those  who  are 
distinguished  by  the  characteristics  he  has  mentioned,  is  so  plain 
as  to  need  little  exposition.  He  braces  them  against  the  storm 
which  is  to  beat  upon  them,  by  reminding  them  of  the  transcen- 
dent importance  and  dignity  of  the  functions  wliicli  they  are 
to  discharo-e  towards  the  world.  ThcA'  are  the  world's  conservators 
and  illuminators,  its  salt  and  its  light.  Without  them  the  world 
would  rot  iu  utter  dai'kuess.     That  is  to  be  true  in  all  a^-es.     Take 


262 


SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JE8D8. 


instantly  out  of  the  world  all  the  men  described  in  the  opening 

of  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  and  the  evil  that  is  in  it  would  run 

the  world  ra])idlv  to  a  state  of  total  putrefaction. 

Ye  are  the  salt  of  the    _,.  "  in-i  iii 

earth :  but  if  the  salt  Take  tlicm  awaj  and  all  hope  would  be  gone — 
become  uuUpid,  with  ^^  brifrhtuess,  bloom,  and  beauty. 

what  ehaU   it  be  sea-  -nr 

Bonedf  F;rnothingifl  Morc  than  among  the  moderns,  salt  was  held  in 
it  nsefni  any  longer,  ^       j^-  |^  admiration  amoug  the  ancients.     Their 

except  to  be  cast  out  ^        o  o 

and  trodden  down  by  pocts  gave  it  the  luost  noblc  and  beautiful  epi- 
rthe  ^M  *  aX  *^^^^'  ^°^  ^^^^^  philosophers  bestowed  great  praise 
8ct  on  a  hill  cannot  be  upon  it.  It  was  uscd  iu  rcligious  sernces,  syra- 
hid     Neither  do  they  ^^y^^^-^  ^f  ^^,j^^^  -^  ^^^ry  fiuc,  vcry  refining,  verv 

hght  a  lamp  and  put  It  ''  7  j  c>'  »< 

nndcr  n  corn-measure,  powerf ul,  and  Very  preservative.*     The  words  of 
ut  upon  a  lamp-stand:  jgg^jg^  jj^  which  ho  likens  liis  disciplcs  at  once  to 
salt   and  liofht. 


^  ^  are  remarkably  reproduced  by 
Pliny  {Hist.  JVat.,  xxxi.  9)  in  his  words,  "  Nil  sole 
et  sale  utilius,"  Nothing  is  inore  ns^'ful  t/iati  the 
sun  and  salt.     And  because  of  their  value  to  the 


and  it  gives  light  to  all 
in  the  houRC.  Thus  let 
your  light  shine  before 
men,  that  they  may  see 
your  gcxnJ  works,  and 
thus  have  more  glori- 
ous thuughts  of   your 

Father  who  is  in  the  world,  Jesus  urges  them  to  be  careful  to  preserve 
the   saltness,   and   avoid    what  would  cover  the 
light ;    in  other  words,  preserve  in   their  charactei-s   those  very 
elements  which  give  them  these  powers. 

Much  useless  labor  has  been  spent  on  the  salt  and  city  ques- 
tions. "Wliether  real  salt  can  lose  its  saltness,  is  not  a  pertinent 
question.  The  question  of  Jesus  is  hypothetical :  if  the  saline 
quality  be  lost  out  of  salt,  how  can  it  be  restored  ?  B}^  chemical 
action  we  know  that  salt  can  "  lose  its  savor."  But  because  the 
example  should  have  suggested  something  that  was  familiar,  and 
it  is  not  a  familiar  fact  that  salt  does  utterly  lose  its  saltness, 
many  have  perplexed  themselves  with  striving  to  find  what  the 
TO  uXa^  is,  if  it  be  not  salt.  A  Dutch  writer.  Von  der  Ilardt, 
suggested  that  it  was  asphaltus  from  the  Dead  Sea !  And  then 
"the  trodden  down  of  men"  has  given  the  commentators  great 
perplexity.  A  Gennan  author  brings  forward  authorities  from  the 
Babbins  to  prove  that  salt,  which  by  exposure  had  so  far  lost  its 
chlorine  that  it  could  not  preserve,  was  sometimes  scattered  upon 


*  Homer  calls  wUt  Bnov,  divine,  and 
Plato  i)fiiipi\fs  (Tu'^a,  <i  mihstance  dear  to 
tlie  gtnU.  There  wa«  a  Latin  proverb, 
Purior  Balillo,  purer  t/utn  mdt.  Both 
Greeks  and  Latins  used  it  as  a  trope  for 


wit,  on  account  of  its  pungency.  Hence 
wo  hear  of  Attic  suit.  In  inceiiKe  and  in 
rilifiious  sacrifices  salt  was  uhcd.  See 
Ovid,  FuMf  L  337. 


THE    SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  203 

slippery  places  to  prevent  falling,  as  by  the  priests  in  the  Temple 
when  sacrificing  animals.  But  his  citations  feebly  sustain  his  po- 
sition, and  if  they  did  they  would  not  disprove  the  words  of  Jesus, 
who  says  that  it  is  worthless,  and  this  being  "  trodden  down  of  men  " 
expresses  only  the  utter  contempt  men  have  for  its  woithlessness. 

So  of  the  city.  There  is  no  reason  to  suppose  that  some  special 
city  was  referred  to.  Any  city  on  a  hill-top  must  be  conspicuous, 
especially  when  lighted  at  night.  He  was  simply  charging  his  disci- 
ples not  to  hide  their  light  nor  to  lose  the  vigor  of  a  good  character. 

"  Let  your  light  shine."  If  you  have  light  it  will  do  its  own 
shining,  and  give  light  to  others,  if  you  do  not  cover  it.  Only  let  it 
shine.  You  need  not  go  flaunting  it  about  as  a  wild  boy  does  a 
flambeau  at  night ;  but  let  it  be  like  the  sun's  light,  naturally  il- 
luminating ;  but  do  not  obscure  it.  There  are  just  two  important 
tliino-s  to  care  for,  namelv,  that  a  man  have  in  him  the  illumi- 
nating  property,  and  then  that  he  see  to  it  that  that  light  be  not 
obscured. 

The  Law  :  and  Jesus  the  Comjpleter  thereof. 

Whenever  any  man  has  the  fortune  to  see  truth  in  a  new  light, 
and  the  commission  to  make  it  known  to  the  world,  there  are 
those  who  adroitly  endeavor  to  break  his  power  Think  not  that  i 
by  giving  out  that  he  is  a  revolutionist ;  that  he  is  ^'''^^  *°  relax  the  law 

"'<-'"  '  or    the    prophets:     I 

unstable ;  that  he  is  discontented  with  the  estab-  came  not  to  relax,  but 
lished  order  of  things.     Such  a  rumor  does  two  ^^-^^'^'--  F°-;f- 

o  ly  I  say  unto  you,  Un- 

wrono;s.  It  drives  from  him  those  who  hold  to  tii  the  heaven  and  the 
the  truth  that  has  been  already  gained,  and  sends  thrrthetmaSesuettet 
about  the  new  teacher  those  who  really  hope  that  "or  the  smallest  stroke 

it  11  ,•  •.  T.I,        iTii-  ,ofa  letter,   shall  pass 

the  allegation  is  true  and  that  old  things  are  to  ^^^^  ^i,^  ,^^  „„,i,  ^^ 
be   abrogated.     Their  approach   to  the   teacher  be  accompiii^hea.  who- 

r,  ,  .      , .    .    ,  -1  soever,  therefore,  shall 

contirms  the  prejudicial  riinior,  and  so  soon  as  relax  one  of  the  leasi 
they  discover  their  mistake  they  fall  away,  and  °^  *•»<=«!   commanas, 

-,   .      a  1         n  r  ^       •  i        *'"^  shaM  teach  men  so, 

this  niLX  and  reflux  oi  apparent  popularity  weak-  ^e  shau  be  caued  least 
ens  the  hold  of  the  teacher  on  the  public  confi-  in  the  kingdom  of  the 

rr  T    .         1  •  1  heavens  (the  dominion 

dence.  Jesus  suflered  in  that  way,  as  m  modern  of  the  universe);  but 
times  have  Luther  and  Wesley,  who  sustained  whosoever  shaii  do  and 

_•'  teach,  he  shall  lie  called 

towards  the  Roman  and  Anglican  churches,  res-  great  in  the  kingdom 
pectively,  a  position  similar  to  that  of  Jesus  to-  o^  t»»e  heavens. 
wards  the  Jewish  church. 
In  this  discourse  of  his  doctrine,  Jesus  is  at  pains  to  detine 


264:         SECOND    AXD   THIRD   PASSOVER   Di   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

his  relation  to  the  system  of  morals  taught  in  the  sacred  books 
of  the  Jews.  If,  as  he  taught,  his  followers  were  to  endure  i 
great  pereecution  "  for  righteousness'  sake,"  and  "  on  account 
of  Jesus,"  it  was  natural  to  infer  that  it  would  be  on  account  of 
the  kind  of  righteousness  which  they  should  learn  from  him  ;  and 
if  that  were  such  as  to  raise  persecution,  it  must  be  because  it  was 
opposed  to  the  righteousness  taught  in  their  law  and  in  thoii-  ])ro- 
phets.  Jesus  takes  occasion  to  correct  this  by  showing  ihat  he 
held  to  the  law ;  that  it  was  the  Pharisees  who  had  a  new  i-ight- 
eousness,  and  that  it  was  this  fact  (that  he  should  teach  a  i-ight- 
eousness  which,  while  it  o])posed  that  of  the  Pharisees,  accronled 
with  that  of  the  law,  and  really  accomplished  and  fulfilled  it  by 
giving  it  a  spirit,  and  by  vitalizing  it)  that  should  bring  him 
troulde  from  a  generation  that  had  gone  far  astray  from  ^Moses 
and  the  Prophets. 

"The  Law  "  and  "the  Prophets"  constituted  the  great  basis  of 
Jewish  morals  and  religious  institutions.  The  law,  as  Tholuck 
says,  kept  alive  in  the  people  a  sense  of  their  need  of  salvation  ; 
the  ])n»ph(»ts  perpetually  sustained  them  by  the  hope  that  Avant 
would  one  day  be  satisfied.  Jesus  must  have  meant  something 
moi-e  than  merely  presenting  in  the  facts  of  his  history  the  coun- 
tei'part  of  what  the  prophets  set  forth,  or  in  the  morality  of  his 
life  an  example  of  perfect  observance  of  the  moral  law.  lie 
meant  to  say  that  all  those  who  looked  upon  the  work  of  the  Mes- 
siah as  that  of  mere  abolition,  mere  loosing:,  mere  doinfj  awav, 
had  made  a  total  misapprehension.  His  work  was  not  negative 
but  positive.  So  far  from  doing  away  the  law,  he  came  to  show 
the  world  that  even  the  moral  law,  M'ritten  on  Sinai  stone  or  liv- 
ing human  hearts,  is  imjierfect,  in  the  sense  of  incomplete.  He 
came  to  supplement,  to  fill  up.  The  Law  was  one  thing,  the  Pro- 
phets another;  and  with  them  both,  without  something  else,  hu- 
manity was  ])oor  indeed,  lie  was  that  something  else,  that  j)h'- 
rom((y  that  Fulness;  so  that  hereafter,  for  all  purposes  of  living 
and  dying,  the  world  might  have  all  it  needed:  the  Ltiw,  the 
pKoiMiKTs,  the  JESUS.  Without  the  law  the  world  is  a  moral 
chaos.  With  the  Law,  and  without  the  I'rophets,  the  world  is  a 
conjpany  of  condenmed  malcfactoi-s.  With  the  Law  an«l  Pro- 
])hots  tlie  condemned  world  is  hoi)ing  with  a  hope  defeiTcd  that 
makes  the  heart  sick.  With  the  Law,  the  I'rophets,  and  Jesus, 
mankind  have  tlieii-  hopes  fulfilled,  and  such  an  element  of  power 


THE   SEKMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  265 

from  lo\e,  and  such  an  element  of  love  newly  developed  in  the 
Law,  that  life  becomes  the  sublime  occupation  of  preparing  the 
soul,  by  obedience,  for  still  greater  obedience  to  a  moral  rule 
which  keeps  the  universe  in  rhythm.  "  I  am  come,"  said  he, 
"  not  a  Relaxer  but  a  Completer."  This  great  Jesus  must  have 
been  conscious  of  vast  spiritual  resources,  a  fulness  of  sonl  that 
was  to  stream  out  into  the  nations  and  down  through  the  ages. 
lie  felt  that  he  had  enough  soul  for  himself  and  a  whole  race  of 
men.  It  is  not  necessary  to  go  into  the  minute  details  of  the 
theological  anatomists.  They  have  said  nothing  finer  than  Augus- 
tine, "Because  he  came  to  give  love,  and  love  is  the  fulfilling  of 
the  law,  he  has  rightly  said  that  he  had  not  come  to  dissolve,  but 
to  complete."  * 

The  moral  law  is  to  stand  while  earth  and  heaven  endure,  a 
proverbial  form  of  expression,  like,  as  Strong  says,  our  less  ele- 
gant one  of  "  While  grass  grows  or  water  runs."  While  there  is 
any  universe  of  moral  beings  there  will  be  moral  law.  Not  a 
particle  is  superfluous.  Not  a  particle,  therefore,  shall  ever  be 
swept  away ;  not  a  "^  (yode),  the  smallest  of  the  Hebrew  letters  ; 
not  a  Kepaia,  the  smallest  stroke  of  the  pen  used  to  distinguish 
letters.f  But  a  grace  that  is  in  neither  letters  nor  laws  shall  1)C 
given  the  world,  and  mankind  shall  see  how  beautiful  and  unsel- 
fish and  free  a  thing  a  life  of  obedience  may  be ;  of  obedience  to 
God's  laws, — not  man's  moral  police  enactments,  perhaps,  but 
God's  laws.  He  that  regards  reverently  the  slightest  indication  of 
what  the  \vill  and  purpose  of  God  is,  shall  be  recognized  great 
in  the  dominion  of  the  universe,  the  kingdom  and  rule  which  is 
BO  wide  as  to  embrace  not  merely  this  present  scheme  of  our 
world,  but  all  the  changes  of  all  worlds,  and  all  the  sweep  of  the 
universe, — not  merely  the  ages  which  mark  the  history  of  man, 
but  the  cycles  on  which  eternity  rests. 

Thus  Jesus  taught  that  he  did  not  come,  as  some  feared  and 

*  "Quia  venit  dare  charitatem,  et  !  slight  prolongation  to  the  right  of  the 
charitas  preficit  legem,  merito  dixit,  upper  part  of  the  letter.  In  writing 
non  venisse  solvere,  sed  implere."  Au-  ,  them  for  the  printer  I  hare  made  a 
gustine,  Serm.  12(5,  on  John  v.  '  raix/i  in  both  instances,  and  in  the  lat- 

f  That  this  may  be    understood,  let    ter  merely  added  a  little  stroke  in  tho 
the  reader  who  does  not  know  Hebrew    right  place,  a  stroke  much  smaller  than 
compare  with  his  eye  the  Hebrew  let-    the   Hebrew  letter  yod^  of   the   same 
ters  1,  raish,  and  t,  dauleth.     He  will  ,  type. 
Bee  in  print  that  the  oidy  difference  is  a  ■ 


266         SECOND    AND   THIKD   PASSOVER    IX    THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

others  hoped,  an  advei-sary  to  the  God-ordained  moral  govera- 
meiit  of  the  world.  lie  came  to  explain,  exemplify,  fulfil.  His 
life,  his  deeds,  his  words,  all  were  part  of  the  /coo-yLto?,  the  orderly 
universe.  He  wished  no  one  to  become  his  follower  under  the 
false  idea  that  he  can  thereby  indulge  a  dissolute  life  with  im- 
punity. He  has  no  higher  law  than  the  law  of  God,  but  he  sets 
that  in  the  highest  possible  light. 

REFUTATION   OF   PHARISAIC   ERRORS. 

Because  Jesus  had  not  kept  the  law  according  to  their  methods 

of  interpretation,  the  Pharisees  persecuted  him  as  a  dissolver  of 

For  I  say  unto  yon,  thc  law.     Hc  tums  upon  them.     He  denounces 

That  if  your  rigrhteoufl-  ^g  g^all  aiid  low  tlic  rightcousness  in  which  they 

ness  do  not  greatly  ex-  ...  . 

ceedthatof  the  Scribes  SO  mucli  cxultcd,  and  declared  to  his  disci})les,  in 
«^d  the  rharisees,  ye  y.Qj.^Q  which  he  introducBS  with  the  utmost  so- 

Bhnll  nut  CDt£r  into  the 

kingdom  of  the  heav-  lemiiity,  that  to  liavc  the  freedom  of  the  domin- 
^^  ion  of  the  univei-se  they  must  have  a  wider  and 

hiffher  righteousness,  a  righteousness  founded  not  on  a  micro- 
scopic  view  of  ritualism,  but  on  a  comprehension  of  the  spirit  of 
the  laws  which  spread  wide  as  all  worlds  and  endure  long  as 
eternity.  The  Pharisees  taught  that  their  righteousness  could,  and 
in  many  cases  did,  exceed  the  requirements  of  God's  moral  law ; 
but  Jesus  taught  that  that  law  was  so  wonderfully  deep,  and  broad, 
and  high,  that  it  is  not  in  the  compass  of  human  capacities  to  ex- 
ceed its  requirements. 

Of  Murder. 

Jesus  does  not  leave  so  important  a  matter  to  the  impression 
which  a  general  statement  might  make  upon  a  promiscuous  assem- 
bly. He  intends  to  make  his  feud  with  Pharisaism  deadly. 
He  will  now  cut  it  up  in  detail.  The  plain  people  slmll  know 
what  he  means.  He  tells  them  that  the  law  which  was  given 
anciently  to  their  ancestore  has  been  read  in  Temple  and  syna- 
gogue by  the  Pharisees,  who  held  the  position  of  official  ex- 
pounders, and  who  so  wove  their  glosses  into  the  original  text 
that  the  connnou  people  had  lost  all  discrimination,  so  that  the 
general  belief  was  that  Pharisaism  and  Mosaicism  was  thc  same. 
He  intends  to  tear  away  all  the  wretched  sophisms  and  dangerous 
as  well  as  foolish  "various  readings"  of  thc  Pharisees,  and  show 
them  what  the  moral  law  means.     He  does  noi  impugn  the  Mosaic 


THE   SERMON    ON   THE   MOUNT. 


267 


law :  he  simply  does  two  things,  namely,  1.  He  clears  away  the 
rubbish  that  has  been  piled  on  the  law ;  and,  2.  When  it  is  seen 
as  it  is,  he  explains  what  its  real  meaning  is,  a  Ye  have  heard  that  u 
meaning  not  to  be  confined  to  the  ancients,  but  wa«^i'ito  the  ancients, 

f  .        Thou  Bhalt  not  kill ;  for 

such  as  shall  be  good  for  any  part  of  the  domam  whosoever  Bhau  km 
of  the  universe.  ^'^f  be  uawe  to  the 

juagmeut.     But  I  say 

The  errors  into  which  the  ancients  fell,  and  unto  yon,  Any  one  an- 
which  were  hugely  exaggerated  m  the  Pharisees,  ZJtSl^'T^ 
grew  out  of  a  literal  interpretation,  which  natu-  judgment;  and  whoso 

n  .      1  -1    •     .       .  A     Tj.      shall  Bay  to  his  brother, 

raljy  came  to  be  erroneous  and  injurious.     A  lit-  ^^.^  ^^^^,  ^^  ^.^^^^ 

eralist,  an  advocate,  or  pettifogger,  takes  up  a  *«  "le  sanhedrim ;  and 

passage  in  a  statute  and  says,  "  What  do  these  ^hau  be  liabie  to  the 

words  mean  ?  "    Of  course  he  soon  comes  to  con-  geh^nna  of  nre.    if, 

.  ,  1      ,     ,1  A  i     •       •    i      therefore,    thou   bring 

sider  M'hat  they  may  mean.  A  great  jurist,  t^y  gift  to  the  aitar, 
especially  if  he  have  judicial  responsibility,  takes  and  there  remcmberest 

,  1  icfTTi      ,    T  1    ,7      7  ^^^^   ^^y  brother    has 

up  the  same  passage  and  says.  What  did  the  Leg-  eomething  against  thee, 
islatnre  mean  when  it  enacted  this  statute  and  leave  there  thy  gift  be- 

,  fore  the  altar,  and  first 

framed  this  special  passage  ?  The  former  needs  go,  become  reconcued 
only  to  have  the  very  words   before   him.     The  **'  ^^^  ^'■"*'''^'"'  ""•* 

•^  ''  ^         then  coming  offer  thy 

latter  must  know  the  character  and  general  in-  gift.  Agix-e  with  thy 
tentions  of  the  legislature,  the  occasion  of  the  pas-  '^T'T'^  T^'^f' 

O  '      _  ^  whilst   thou    art    with 

sage  of  the  statute,  the  objections  urged  by  the  him  on  the  road,  lest 
minority  and  how  answered  l)v  the  majority,  the  tJi^e-'Jversary deliver 

J  .  J  J  7  thee  to  the  judge,  and 

whole  animus  of  the  law-makers  as  touching  this  ti.e  judge  to  the  sheriff, 

and  thou  be  cast  into 
prison.  Verily  I  say  to 
thee.  Thou  shalt  not 
come  thence  until  thou 
hast  paid  the  last  far- 

that  we  l)ring  to  their  elucidation  and  interpre-  *^^°g- 
tation  the  same  spirit  and  method  of  criticism  which  he  applied  to 
the  decalogue.  We  must  know  what  Jesus  said,  and  find  the  mean- 
ing of  any  doubtful  or  perplexing  phrase  or  sentence  by  what  he 
plainly  teaches  elsewhere,  and  by  the  whole  temper  of  his  intellect 
and  soul.  Whoever  fails  to  do  this  becomes  towards  the  teachincrs 
of  Jesus  just  what  the  Pharisees  became  towards  the  moral  law. 
We  shall  almost  immediately  have  occasion  to  show  the  impor- 
tance of  this  principle. 


special  matter.  This  is  just  what  Jesus  did.  And 
it  is  important  now,  for  a  fair  understanding  of 
all  his  own  words,  in  this  sermon  and  elsewhere. 


*  In  the  common  version  the  phrase 
"  without  a  cause"  occurs,  but  it  is  gen- 
erally conceded  that  this  is  an  interpo- 
lation  which    has  crept  in  from  some 


marginal  note  •wi-itten  by  some  very  con- 
sei'\'ative  reader  or  editor.  It  is  not  in 
the  Sinaitic  Codex,  and  is  also  omitted 
by  other  ancient  MSS. 


208         SECOXD   AND   TIIIKD   PASSOVER    IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESC8. 

And  now  conies  the  lirst  example.  Moses  said :  *'  Kill  not." 
The  Pharisees  said  :  "  If  a  man  commit  actual  homicide  he  shall 
be  liable  to  go  before  the  Court  of  the  Seven,"  Jesus  said  :  ''  Anir^i 
with  one's  brother  is  a  violation  of  the  moral  law  in  this  particu- 
lar." It  will  be  seen  how  these  differ,  and  a  little  fulness  here 
may  save  space  hereafter.  The  Pluu'isees  taught  such  a  morality 
that  if  a  man  who  had  had  the  m(»st  inhuman  or  the  mctst  deadly 
feelings  towards  his  brother  had  so  managed  the  circumstances  of 
the  homicide,  or  so  suppressed  or  arranged  evidence,  as  to  be  able 
to  secure  a  verdict  of  acquittal  fi-om  the  Court  of  Seven,  he  felt 
himself  altogether  absolved.  But  Jesus  showed  that  the  law  was 
not  a  mere  police  regulation.  It  was  that,  but  vastly  more.  It 
touched  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  It  rendered  human  life 
sacred,  but  it  was  also  a  development,  out  into  the  sphere  of  hu- 
manity, of  that  measurelessly  profound  law  of  love  which  per- 
vades the  Dominion  of  the  Universe,  a  law  which  was  violated  if 
one  had  hatred  of  his  brother,  or  contem})t,  or  scorn.  I^ay,  one 
must  not  even  so  much  as  fail  of  loving.  It  is  not  sufficient  not 
to  hate.  Jesus  teaches  j'>c».?eViV'<?  regard  for  our  fellow-men.  He 
was  the  great  Ilunumitarian  on  the  broadest  and  deepest  founda- 
tion of  principle,  not  merely  by  the  impulse  of  sentiment. 

Jesus  taught  in  popular  style,  and  pi-escntcd  his  doctrine  so 
(concretely  that  his  words  would  stick  in  the  memory  of  his  hear- 
ei's.  In  illustration,  he  quotes  words  in  common  use  as  expres- 
sions of  a  malign  condition  of  the  heart,  not  that  they  "have  any 
damning  power  in  themselves,"  as  Alford  says,  "  but  to  repivsent 
states  of  anger  and  hostility."  If  one  should  call  his  brother 
Jid/ra,  he  should  be  regarded  by  God  as  one  is  i-egarded  by  men 
when  the  Sanhedrim  has  condemned  him.  If  one  should  call  his 
brother  3Ioreh,  he  should  be  in  the  sight  of  God  as,  in  the  sight 
of  men,  is  he  who  having  been  stoned  to  death  is  cast  into  the 
Valley  of  Ilinnom.*     Raica  is  a  Chaldee  word  expressive  (jf  the 


*  There  is  a  deep  ravine  to  the  Routh 
and  west  of  Jerusalem,  which  took  it« 
name,  as  Stanley  conjectures,  from 
some  ancient  hero  who  had  encamped 
there,  "  the  son  of  Ilinnom."  In  this 
ravine  heathenish  rites  were  observed 
in   the  worship  of  Moloch,    and   in   it« 


Josiah  caused  the  place  to  be  polluted 
by  strewing  it  with  human  bones  and 
other  thinjfs,  making  it  ceremonially 
unclean,  so  as  to  put  an  end  to  these 
abominations  See  2  Kings  xxiii.  10. 
13.  14;  2  Chron.  x.xxiv.  4.  .I.  There- 
after it  was  the  common  cesspool  of  the 


south-eastern    comer,  Tophet,    infants  i  city,   into  which  all   filth  was  cast,  and 
were  Bacrificod  to  the  fire  gods.      King  >  it  is  believed  that  the  bodies  of  crim- 


THE    SERMON    ON    THE    MOUNT. 


269 


greatest  coiitemptj  "  Worthless  fellow ! "  "  Empty  head  ! "  March 
is  a  harsher  expression,  and  signifies  a  hopeless  fool,  an  impious 
wretch,  a  rebel,  especially  a  rel)el  against  God,  and  hence  an 
atheist,  a  word  so  bitter  tliat  for  using  it  Moses  and  Aaron  were 
not  permitted  to  enter  the  promised  land.     (Numbers  xx.  10.) 

Now,  here  are  the  gradations:  First,  concealed  but  cherished 
anger,  then  sudden  ejaculation  of  wrath,  and  then  foul  and 
abusive  language.  And  all  these  Jesus  says  are  murder  in  several 
forms.  lie  holds  us  to  his  text  that  cJunrccter  is  everything.  Men 
consider  the  outward  act  as  the  horrible  thing  in  crime;  and  they 
can  do  no  better,  because  they  cannot  read  the  heart.  But  each 
man  knows  his  own  heart,  and  God  knows  all.  His  law  covers 
the  whole  man,  inside  as  well  as  outside ;  Jesus  gives  its  proper 
intensity  to  the  "Thou"  of  the  law,  penetrating  the  inmost  soul, 
and  its  proper  extension  covering  the  whole  life.  "  Thou,"  as 
Luther  well  puts  it,  in  his  vehement  and  popular  style,  is  not  ad- 
dressed to  a  man's  Jist  alone  but  to  his  whole  person.  Indeed,  if 
the  fist  were  addressed  it  would  be  an  address  to  the  whole  per- 
son, for  the  hand  could  not  deal  the  blow  unless  the  whole  person 
co-operated.  The  whole  act  comes  of  the  character,  and  it  is  not 
so  important  to  be  striving  to  make  our  actions  right  as  to  keep 
our  souls  pure.  The  words  and  the  deeds  of  a  man  are  impor- 
tant as  showing  the  character. 

We  may  not  interpret  Jesus  literally  in  this  and  his  other 
speeches.  It  is  not  the  use  of  RaJca  and  Moreh  that  is  con-  ■ 
demned,  for  they  were  sometimes  used  playfully,  there  being 
evidence  that  the  latter,  which  is  so  liarsh  in  its  real  meaning, 
was  employed  as  a  gentle  nickname  in  the  days  of  Jesus,* — but 
it  is  the  nnirderous  spirit  which  j)recedes  their  use.  Jesus  himself 
was  angry ,t  and  used  the  very  epithet  3foreh,X  which  is  here  so 
condemned ;  but  it  is  very  obvious  from  the  history  tliat  the 
emotions  he  had  and  the  words  he  uttered,  in  the  connection,  give 
no  indication  of  a  murderous  spirit.     Nor,  strictly,  could  he  have 


inals  who  had  been  stoned  to  death 
were  flung  into  this  place.  In  Joshua 
xviii.  IG,  the  Soptuagint  has  TaUwa. 
Afterwards  it  was  rendered  Ttevva,  Ge- 
henna. 

«  Tholuck,  vol.  i.,  p.  238.  Edin.  edit. 

f  As  Mark  expressly   asserts  (iii.  5), 


and  Matthew  (xxiii.  13)  and  John  (ii.  \T)) 
clearly  imply. 

X  In  Matthew  xxiii.  17,  10,  it  is  the 
identical  word,  and  in  Luke  xxiv.  2.j,  it 
is  the  equivalent,  in  the  original ;  and 
consequently  in  both  cnses  io  properly 
translated  "  fools  "  in  our  vei-sion. 


270 


SECOND   AXD   TniRD   PASSOVER  IN   TIIE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


meant  that  the  secular  government  would  decide  upon  these  cases, 
and  inflict  these  punishments ;  and  most  probably  by  alluding  to 
tlie  visible  tribunals  and  penalties  simply  gave  objectiveness  to  the 
spiritual  fact  of  responsibility  for  character,  so  far  as  voluntarily 
formed,  and  taught  gradations  of  punishment  proportioned  to  the 
Buifulness. 

And  now,  that  he  may  set  the  duty  of  loving  and  the  sin  of 
hating  in  the  strongest  possible  light,  he  insists  upon  the  necessity 
of  reconciling  differences,  and  this  he  does  in  language  which 
must  have  been  very  impressive  to  his  Jewish  hearei-s.  lie  taught 
that  if  a  man  had  gone  up  to  the  Temple  to  offer  sacrifice  for  his 
sins,  had  even  brought  the  victim  into  that  court  where  the  priest 
was  to  receive  it,  and  in  the  most  solemn  moment  of  approach  to 
Jehovah  the  worshipper  should  recollect  that  his  brother  had  aught 
an-ainst  him,  no  matter  how  he  felt  toward  that  brother,  he  should 
leave  his  gift  there  in  the  Temple,  and  postpone  homage  to  God 
until  he  had  made  love  with  man.  Perhaps  the  worshipper  would 
recollect  that  he  had  given  offence  to  his  brother  by  calling  him 
ugly  names,  as  Raka  and  Moreh,  '*  Empty  Head  "  and  "  Ecbcl." 
Ilis  brother  may  have  had  occasion  to  have  something  against 
him.  In  that  case  until  the  bad  feeling,  which  was  mother  to  the 
bad  words,  be  utterly  flung  from  his  heart,  his  worship  would  be 
an  abomination  to  God.  Ilecatombs  of  slaughtered  beasts  would 
not  please  the  eye  of  the  Holy  One  of  Israel  if  he  saw  malignity 
in  the  heart  of  the  offerer.  If  the  bad  feeling  has  been  cast  out, 
then  he  nnist  go  and  tell  his  brother ;  must  let  him  know  how 
changed  his  feelings  are.  But  if  he  has  never  knowingly  given 
offence,  and  finds  tliat  his  brother  is  embittered  against  him,  let 
him  go  and  do  all  that  love  should  prompt  to  have  that  bitterness 
removed,  to  effect  a  reconciliation. 

Let  us  always  guard  against  literalism,  and  see  what  the  spirit 
of  the  words  is.  That  he  should  literally  go  from  the  Tcmi>le  in 
Jerusalem,  the  journey  of  many  weary  days,  to  a  distant  })art  of 
Palestine,  tt)  make  up  a  quarrel,  cannot  be  meant,  any  more  than 
the  postponement  of  reconciliation  until  the  moment  when  the 
sacrifice  is  about  to  bo  laid  upon  the  altar.*     But  in  his  heart  the 


♦  InBtonccH  of  Pharisnio  literalness 
occur  to  UiiH  (lay  in  the  Christian  church. 
PcrhapB  there  arc  few  pastors  who  have 
not  known  communicants  begin  to  feel 


uneasy  about  their  animosities  as  the 
time  for  the  Lord's  Supper  approached, 
poBtponing  recouciliotion  to  the  very 
latest  moment  before  the  oacraracnt, — 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE  MOUNT. 


271 


Tk  ork  of  love  must  be  done.  A  man  must  not  do  that  wliicli  ex- 
poses him  to  the  judgment  of  the  local  court,  to  the  sentence  of 
the  Sanhedrim,  to  destruction  ;  nor  must  he  allow  his  brother  tc 
do  it,  if  in  his  power  to  prevent.  If  that  brother  has  anythino 
against  him,  it  may  lead  to  sin  on  the  brother's  part.  If  he  has 
been  called  "  Empty-head,"  he  may  retort  by  calling  his  brother 
"Kebel."  And  if  the  sacrifice  is  for  forgiveness  of  sin  ah-eadj 
committed,  let  there  be  no  new  sin  committed.  Jehovah  -will 
wait  for  the  sacrifice  if  he  know  that  the  offerer  has  gone  to  do 
the  holy  work  of  love.  Do  it  instantly  :  that  is  the  lesson. 
Nothing  is  so  important:  not  even  worship.  A  man  may  die 
while  offering  his  beasts  in  sacrifice,  and  woe  to  him  if  he  die  with 
hands  on  the  altar  and  hate  in  his  heart.  That  such  a  fate  mio-ht 
overtake  one,  and  should  be  avoided,  are  taught  in  the  impressive 
words  which  immediately  follow.  If  a  man  is  haled  to  the  judo-- 
ment-seats  of  civil  governments,  it  is  prudent  to  do  everything 
practicable  to  be  reconciled  to  his  adversary.  For  if  once  the 
adversary  shonld  lodge  complaint,  and  the  case  go  against  the 
accused,  he  may  be  cast  into  prison  ;  and  the  inexorable  judge, 
standing  by  his  own  decision,  will  not  allow  him  to  go  free  until 
he  has  paid  the  whole  debt,  or  met  the  whole  claim  in  dispute. 
What  is  so  important  as  regards  the  management  of  worldly  mat- 
ters is  infinitely  more  important  as  regards  character.  The  culti- 
vation of  love,  the  prompt  discharge  of  the  duties  of  love,  lest 
death  come  in  and  a  man  be  cut  off  therefrom,  and  there  be  sur- 
vivors who  shall  be  injured  in  their  character, — these  are  the 
lessons. 

Having  gone  so  fully  into  the  spirit  of  this  first  example,  it  will 
not  be  necessary  to  be  so  elaborate  upon  the  others. 

Of  Adultery. 

The  second  example  is  the  Law  of  Adultery.     It  must  be 
observed  that  in  his  statements  Jesus  keeps  constantly  in  view 


as  if  that  were  obedience  to  Jesus.  He 
taught  that  the  very  moment  you  recol- 
lect that  your  brother  has  aught  against 
you,  even  if  that  recollection  should 
flash  upon  you  at  the  Lord's  Table,  be 
reconciled,  be  sure  that  you  are  in  a 
right  mind  about  it,  no  matter  how  he 


feels.  It  does  not  suppose  that  one  wUl 
come  to  the  sacrament  knowing  that  he 
hates  his  brother,  or  that,  if  his  brother 
hate  him,  he  has  failed  to  strive  to  be 
reconciled.  Some  people's  Christianity 
is  so  unlike  that  of  Jesus. 


272         SECONT)   AlvD   THIRD   PASSOVER   IX   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

that  he  is  inculcating  the  culture  of  character,  outward  things  being 

important  only  as  they  spring  from  character.     The  mere  inJul- 

eence  of  a  natural  appetite  is  a  small  thintj :  but  the 

YehnvcheanUhatit    "    _  '^  .  ^: 

was  Hiirt,  TTiou  Kfiutt  bciug  SO  degraded,  so  lost  to  the  claims  of  our  fel- 
notcommtt  o<iuiury :  lo^y-mcn  and  of  socicty,  as  to  cherish  the  desire  to 

but  I  Bay  unto  you,  That  ^  ' 

every  one  who  looks  invadc  tlic  iTiost  sacrcd  rights,  that  is  horrible, 
nZor„7i™in!  that  is  the  thing  to  be  dreaded.   And  it  is  further 

purpose  of    mcreasing  o 

his  lonping,  has  already  to  bc  obscrvcd  that  hc  scts  tlic  law  iu  tlic  right 

committed        adultery    ■,.    ■,  ,  -r-»i         •       •  ^       n  ^        •  i. 

with  her  in  his  heart,  lig^it.      Pliarisaism  perpetually  regards   it   as  a 
And  if  thy  right  eye  burdensomc  restriction,  which  must  be  as  much 

cause  thee  to  sin,  tear  ,,  .,  ,  -r>iT  ^i  ^li 

it  out  and  flintr  it  from  evadcd  as  possiblc.     ±>ut  Jesus  teaches  that  our 
thee;  for  it  is  better  for  q^^j^  pei'sonal  intcrcst  lics   ill   keeping  the  law 

thee  that   one  of  thy  !:  //  t     ■      i  /»  7        i?  lc'^     •  n 

members  perish,  and  sacrcdly.     "  it  IS  bettcr/6»r  thee,,    or     it  IS  pront- 
not  thy  whole  iKxiy  i>e  able /br  ^A<26,"  is  E  plirasc  showiiig  that  the  iiidi- 

cast  into  Gehenna,  ,  f  i         i  • 

vidual  who  is  to  keep  the  law  is  to  have  the 
profit  of  the  keeping.  You  must  not  avoid  adultery  because 
it  is  going  to  be  injurious  to  youi-  neighbor,  but  because  even 
to  intend  any  such  \n'ong  is  so  damaging  to  yourself.  And 
this  is  the  pure  and  fine  strain  of  all  the  teaching  of  Jesus.  ^Vliat 
is  done  in  the  heart  hurts.  And  so  he  enjoins  such  self-denial  as 
shall  lead  to  the  renunciation  of  whatever  is  loveliest  in  our  eyes 
and  the  nearest  to  us;  the  most  beautiful  and  the  most  useful 
friends  we  have,  if,  holding  them  near  us,  they  lead  us  to  commit 
such  offence  against  ourselves.  Of  coui-se  the  words  of  Jesus  are 
not  to  be  taken  literally,  for  in  that  case  the  member  of  the  body 
would  be  considered  the  sinner,  and  not  the  soul  that  is  in  the 
body.  It  is  not  the  eye  nor  hand  that  sins,  but  the  inner  man. 
Moreover,  if  taken  literally,  the  whole  world  would  probably  be 
speedil}'  depopulated.  This  strong  hyperbolic  expression  of  Jesus 
seems  to  find  its  rational  interpretation  as  we  have  given  it. 

Of  Divorce. 

And  this  naturally  brings  up  the  third  example,  the  Loajo  of 
Divorce^  as  held  by  the  Pharisees. 

Here,  again,  the  Pliarisees  had  perverted  the  law.  According 
to  the  law,  so  sacred  was  the  tie  of  marriage  that  only  infidelity 
upon  the  ])art  of  the  wife  could  justify  a  man  in  putting  the  wife 
away.  Moses  had  made  this  exception  not  to  weaken  but  to 
strengthen  the  marriage  bond,  not  to  make  divorce  easy  but  diffi- 
cult.     But   the    Pharisees  had  made  it   quite  easy,  the  school 


TITE    SERMON    ON   THE   MOITN'T.  273 

of  Hillel  even  going  so  far  as  to  allow  a  man  to  put  away  his 
wife  when  he  found  any  one  whom  he  liked  better.  But  Jesus 
insisted  upon  the  sacredness  of  the  relation.     By 

1  •        .  T  •  T  1  .  -,.  lit  has  been  said,  If 

his  teachings  any  divorced  man  is  disgraced,  any  man  dirorce  his 
Either  he  had  committed  some  sin  or  his  wafe,  wife,  let  him  give  her  a 

,         .,  T  ,   .  *       1  1         .       writing  of  divorce.  But 

■who  thus  disgraces  him.  And  a  woman  who  is  i  gay  unto  you.  That 
divorced  from  her  husband,  except  for  his  sin,  is  ^^°^    divorces    wb 

wife.  BXCGpt  for  the  rG&- 

not  at  liberty  to  marry.  If  she  marry  while  he  son  of  uncieanneas, 
lives  she  is  an  adulteress,  and  the  man  who  mar-  *'""'^*  *"''"  *"  ''°'"""* 

.  1     r  1  1  adultery ;    and    whoso 

Pies  her  is  an  adulterer  ;  and  if  her  husband  marry  shau  marry  a  divorced 
he  is  an  adulterer.  This  is  quite  as  plain  as  Greek  ^°'"''''  ''"""'"'^  '''''^- 
and  English  can  make  it,  and  no  legislature  on 
earth  can  make  right  by  its  enactments  what  is  morally  wrong. 
When  a  man  and  a  woman  have  married,  and  neither  has  broken 
the  bond  by  infidelity,  neither  can  put  himself  or  herself  in  the  posi- 
tion of  being  parent  of  a  child  by  another  party  while  the  other  is 
living  in  purity.  The  offspring  would  be  illegitimate.  It  was 
this  laxity  of  divorce  that  had  so  corrupted  the  morals  of  Jewish 
society. 

Of  P&rjury. 

The  fourth  example  of  Pharisaic  perversion  is  in  the  Law  of 
Oaths.  Their  gloss  was,  that  if  the  name  of  Jehovah  was  omitted 
the  oath  was  not  binding.  And  so  they  swore  And  ye  have  heard 
by  their  heads,  by  Jerusalem,  by  the  Temple,  by  "'''^ "  ^^  '^^  ^^"^  ^° 

1  1     ,  ,  T  1  111*^^     ancients,      Thou 

heaven,  and  by  earth.  Jesus  taught  that  both  shait  not  swear  faiseiy, 
periury  and  blasphemy  were  to  be  avoided,  and  ^utshaitiiorform  thine 

,  :!  r  J  J  oaths  to  the  Lord :  but 

that  the  latter  could  not  be  evaded  by  the  em-  i  say  unto  you,  swcar 
ployment  of  petty  oaths,  and  the  former  was  not  "°*  "*  ^"'  "^'*'''^'  ^^ 

'■       ''^  .  heaven,   for  it   is  the 

avoided  by  making  false  statements  under  a  form  throne  of  God,  nor  by 
of   oath  from  which  the  name  of  Jehovah  was  "^TI^;  !°';* '' .1'"° 

stool  of  his  feet ;  neither 

omitted.  lie  plainly  teaches  his  disciples  to  avoid  by  Jerusalem,  for  it  is 
all  forms  of  oaths  in  conversation,  and  simply  to  ^ng^nor'shai^t  ^Tn 
make  a  distinct,  decided  affirmation,  based  upon  swear  by  thy  head,  for 

i  11  ii*r  i  !•  r  l^  •!       thou  canst  not    make 

knowledge  or  deliberate  conclusions  of  the  mmd,  one  hair  white  or  wack. 
saying  so  simply,  so  intelligently,  and  so  firmly,  But  let  yonr  word  be 
"Yes,"  or  "Xo,"lhat  it  will  satisfy  the  hearer  xJi^forwhatismo^ 
quite  as  much  as  any  oath  could.  than  these  is  from  evo. 

He  could  not  have  intended  to  forbid  the  use  of  civil  oaths,  as 
he  himself  paid  respect  to  them,  at  least  in  one  instance  (see 
18 


274         PKCOXD   A>T)   THIRD   PAPJ=OVER    12^   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

Matthew  xxvi.  G3),  as  we  sliall  find  ;  but  the  tenor  of  his  teaching 
certainly  is  advei-se  to  the  mnltiplication  of  civil  oaths  and  the 
frequency  of  their  employment.  A  man  of  truth  may  be  trusted 
\vhen  he  makes  a  deliberate  assertion :  a  liar,  not  even  when  he 
takes  a  solemn  oath.  Precision  and  firmness  and  simplicity, 
first  in  thought  and  then  in  language,  are  commended  by  these 
teachings  of  Jesus. 

Of  Revenge. 

The  fifth  example  of  the  Pharisaic  misteaching  is  in  regard  to 

the  Law  of  Retaliation.     Again  we  are  to  remind  oui-selves  that 

in  interpreting  the  teachings  of  Jesus  we  are  to 

Ye  have  heard  that  it  ,  -iii.  •  £.     ±.\ 

hns  been  said,  ^i'e /or  guard  oursclvcs  agamst  tliat  very  vice  ot  the 
eye  and  tooth  for  tooth;  p^arisees  wlucli  lie  was  eudeavoring  to  correct, 

but  I  say  xmta  you,  Not  -,        •  ^  t        -t.  ^      •     l  l'  I'l 

to  resist  the  evu  man;  namely,  a  slavishly  hteral  interpretation  which 
but  whosoever   shau  tQ^^lly  dcstroys  tlic  si)irit  and  the  meaning  of  tli€ 

smite  thee  on  the  right  •'  pit  n    ^  rri-L 

check,  turn  to  him  also  words,  whether  of  the  law  or  ot  the  great  ieacher. 
theother;andtohim       The  law  ccrtaiuly  is  a  tooth  for  a  tooth  and 

desiring    to    sue    thee  "  »'     _ 

and  to  take  thine  inner  an  exfc  fov  ail  ei/c^  as  we  find  in  Exodus  xxi. 
garment,  let  go  to  him  g^  .     Lg^.i(.;(,„s  ^xiv.  20,  and  in  Dcutcrouomy 

even  thine  outer  robe ;  '  '  '' 

and  whosoever  shau  xix.  21.  Aiid  Jcsus  spccifically  asscrts  that  he 
Z:l^Z.XZ:::.  did  not  come  to  destroy  that  ^law.  ^  It  stands. 
To  him  that  askcth  of  "Whatever  he  teaches  must  be  expository  of  the 
wiTw^wngto  boiow  law  or  an  exhibition  of  the  animus  of  the  divine 
of  thee,  turn  thou  not  lawgiver  iu  this  statute.  The  essential  ju-inciple 
of  the  law  pervades  the  universe,  so  far  as  we  can 
discern,  and  appears  nnder  multiform  phases.  AVith  what  meas- 
ure a  man  metes,  it  is  meted  to  him  again.  The  instruments  of 
sin  are  made  instruments  of  retribution.  In  the  administration 
^of  government  under  Moses,  the  Law  is  quite  distinctly  stated, 
and  was  obviously  meant  to  be  acted  upon,  whatever  men  may 
say  of  the  cruelty  of  the  procedure  or  of  the  difiiculty  of  apply- 
ing it  in  practice.  It  was  the  law.  In  the  hands  of  tliose  admin- 
iKtering  justice  it  was  one  thing :  in  the  hands  of  private  vengeance 
it  was  another.  This  latter  was  the  gloss  of  Pharisaism.  Their 
sin  lay  in  quoting  words,  wliich  the  people  believed  to  be  of  di- 
vine origin,  in  order  to  defend  vindictiveness  of  spirit.  To  what 
terrible  social  results  such  teacliiug  would  lead  among  a  con- 
quered people,  chafing  under  their  political  subjugation,  we  can 
readily  see.     The  law  was  intended  to  prevent  private  vengeance. 


THE    SERMON    ON   THE   MOUNT.  275 

It  was  a  merciful  law.  It  advised  the  offender,  in  advance,  of 
what  he  might  expect :  it  would  thus  deter  him.  It  kept  tlie 
offended  party  from  taking  vengeance  into  his  own  liands,  bji 
assuring  him  that  up  to  the  exact  line  of  retaliation  the  punish- 
ment of  the  offender  would  be  carried. 

Against  the  wicked  gloss  of  the  Pharisees  Jesus  places  his 
interpretation  of  the  spirit  of  the  law.  He  opposes  their  teaching, 
not  the  law.  And  he  does  so  adhering  to  his  text,  namely,  cliar- 
acter  is  everything. 

Now,  that  he  may  set  forth  graphically  what  he  means,  he  paints 
three  pictures  of  wrongs  done  to  one — a  personal,  a  legal,  and  a 
political  wrong — and  shows  the  difference  between  the  spirit  of 
his  teaching  and  that  of  the  Pharisees. 

In  the  first  place  there  is  the  instance  of  a  personal  assault  in  a 
form  exceedingly  aggravating,  a  rap  upon  the  right  cheek.  A 
Pharisee  standing  by  says  to  the  person  struck,  "  Hit  Jiim  on  his 
right  cheek."  "  No,"  says  Jesus,  "  do  not  hit  him  at  all,  and  rather 
than  indulge  a  vindictive  S]3irit,  let  him  strike  you  upon  the  other 
cheek.  Leave  correction  to  the  law,  and  vengeance  to  Jehovah." 
This  is  what  Jesus  meant,  and,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  nothing  more 
WQS>  meant.  To  take  his  dramatic  lano:uao;e  for  the  terms  of  a 
statute  is  absurd  as  criticism,  and  is  utterly  impracticable  in 
ordinary  life,  and  if  attempted  to  be  practised  literally  would 
break  up  society  as  effectually  as  the  private  vengeance  sought 
by  the  Pharisees.  It  would  invite  outrage  and  embolden  cow- 
ardly villainy.  Jesus  never  did  so  in  practice,  and  it  were  unjust 
to  all  the  fine  sense  of  right  which  elsewhere  appears  in  his  teach- 
ings to  suppose  that  he  uttered  in  theory  what  he  abandoned  in 
practice.  In  John  (xviii.  22,  23)  we  see  just  how  Jesus  behaved 
under  precisely  the  circumstances  stated  here,  and  that  behavior 
must  be  the  best  comment  on  this  text.  "WHien  an  oflicer  struck 
him  he  neither  took  vengeance  nor  literally  turned  about  inviting 
a  repetition  of  the  indignrty  ;  bat  solemnly  expostulated  with  him 
in  the  presence  of  the  High- Priest. 

This  teaches  us  how  to  intei-pret  the  next  case.  Is  a  man  by 
his  behavior  to  solicit  the  repetition  of  a  legal  wrong  as  well  as  of 
a  personal  attack  ?  Certainly  not ;  but  rather  than  have  a  wicked^ 
revsngeful  spirit,  if  a  man  sue  for  your  shirt,  give  him  your  coat 
In  the  mention  of  these  garments  comes  out  again,  as  it  so  fre- 
quently does,  that  characteristic  in  the  style  of  Jesus  which  made 


276 


SECOND    AND    THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF    JESCS. 


him  a  popular  wliile  he  was  a  profound  teacher,  namely,  calling 
things  hy  their  plain  names,  and  taking  all  his  illustrations  from 
things  so  open  and  familiar.  The  audience  listening  to  him  knew 
that,  according  to  the  Mosaic  law  (Exodus  xxii.  2G),  evcji  when 
the  legal  process  gave  the  plaintiff  the  outer  garment,  he  was  com 
pelled  to  restore  it  to  the  defendant  at  nightfall.  But  Jesus  seta 
himself  so  strongly  against  the  Pharisaic  teaching  of  private  ven- 
geance, and  against  the  modern  jr>o^'/?^  (Ilionneur^  the  code  of 
honor,  the  duel,  and  all  kinds  of  vindictiveness,  as  to  say  that  a 
man  who  stands  and  takes  the  second  blow,  or  when  one  takes 
his  inner  lets  his  outer  garment  go,  is  a  better,  a  wiser,  a  happier 
man  than  he  who  follows  up  an  insult  or  injury  by  retaliation. 

There  remains  little  difficulty  with  the  third  case  supposed, 
which  is  that  of  political  oppression.  The  verb  in  the  original 
Greek,  ayyapeixrei*  comes  from  a  Persian  word,  angaros,  sig- 
nifying a  mounted  courier,  such  as  were  kept  ready  at  regular 
stages  throughout  Pei'sia,  according  to  a  postal  arrangement  insti- 
tuted by  Cyrus  or  Xerxes. f  They  were  authorized  to  impress 
into  the  king's  service,  for  the  transmission  of  intelligence,  not  only 
the  hoi-ses  but  the  pereons  of  the  king's  subjects.  They  could 
compel  them  to  go.  Of  course  the  Jews  felt  the  utmost  reluc- 
tance to  yield  such  a  ser^-ice  to  the  Roman  government,  which 
they  hated.:}:  And  we  can  see  what  opportunities  a  vicious  oflicial 
would  enjoy  of  spitefully  oppressing  the  people.  Jesus  taught, 
by  this  specific  example,  the  general  lesson  that  no  man  must 
take  vengeance  on  his  political  oppressor;  that  when  he  felt  his 
anger  rising,  rather  than  take  vengeance,  rather  than  even  resist 
so  as  to  increase  the  existing  animosity,  he  should  so  jiromptly 
show  a  willingness  to  go  twice  the  required  distance  that  the  spite 
of  the  exactor  and  the  oppressor  should  be  disarmed.  Thus 
Jesus  taught  the  wisdom  and  blessedness  of  goodness,  the  rule  of 
conquering  by  surrendering.     lie  did  not  mean  to  describe  acts, 


*  In  the  Cod.  Sin.  the  word  is  4vyapfi<rr). 

f  Greek  historiaiiH  assign  tlie  origfin 
of  the  postal  system  to  both  these  kings. 
For  descriptions  of  the  system  see 
Ilerod.,  viii.  98,  and  Xcn.,  Cyrop.,  viii. 
n.  17. 

X  The  Jews  particularly  objected  to 
furnishing  posta  to  the  Roman  govern- 
ment ;  and  Demetrius,  when  he  wished 


to  conciliate  them,  published  a  long  list 
of  grievances  from  which  he  freed  them, 
in  which  it  is  stated  tliat  he  gave  orders 
that  the  beasts  of  bunlen  belonging  to 
the  Jews  should  not  be  prrxwl  into  his 
serrif^,  using  the  very  word  employed 
in  the  text  of  Matthew  which  we  are 
now  considering.  See  Joseph ub,  Ant.^ 
xxiii.  c.  2,  §  3. 


THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT.  277 

but  to  represent  character.  What  kind  of  character  ?  A  mean, 
unimpressible,  negative  character,  that  stands  and  takes  kicks 
like  a  bale  of  cotton  ?  By  no  means ;  but  a  character  so  filled 
with  all  goodness  and  active  love  that  it  would  pass  over  and  do 
more  even  than  the  law  of  man  demanded,  doing  so  much  for 
even  the  evil  and  unthankful  that  they  could  exact  no  more.  It 
is  not  the  doing  of  these partioulur  acts  which  he  enjoins,  but  the 
having  the  spirit  and  disposition  to  do  them.  And  we  must  be 
quite  careful  not  to  frame  a  statute  for  ourselves,  for  our  neigh- 
boi-s,  or  for  the  community  out  of  these  descriptive  phrases,  hold- 
ing that  he  is  no  Christian  who  does  not  perform  these  veiy  acts, 
but  rather  understand  that  for  ourselves  we  are  to  learn  wliat  is 
the  type  of  human  character  which  appeared  greatect  and  loveli- 
est in  the  eyes  of  Jesus. 

This  principle  applies  to  the  last  case  described,  the  annoyance 
of  beggars  and  borrowers.  To  interpret  the  precept  literally  were 
to  break  up  all  society :  it  would  bestow  alms  upon  impostors,  put 
dagger  and  poison  in  the  hands  of  the  insane,  yield  instruments 
of  destruction  to  children  who  had  no  discretion,  and  furnish 
weapons  to  the  murderer  for  the  accomplishment  of  his  dire  de- 
signs— and  all  this  simply  because  we  were  asked !  A  literal 
observance  of  the  words  might  bring  things  to  such  a  pass  in  a 
day  that  we  shall  not  be  able  to  serve  any  othei-s  for  a  year.  He 
neither  meant  that  we  should  wait  until  asked  to  bestow  benefac- 
tions, nor  give  in  the  very  form  of  the  request ;  but  that  we  should 
be  always  ready  to  do  good  in  every  possible  way  to  our  fellow- 
men.  This  teaching  of  Jesus  is  as  strictly  observed  by  him  who 
makes  a  discreet  refusal  of  what  it  were  injurious  to  bestow,  as  by 
him  who  yields  a  prompt  concession  to  a  request  that  is  pi-oper. 
It  is  the  disposition  to  do  all  good  promptly  and  cheerfully  to  all 
men,  without  being  moved  thereto  by  the  good  qualities  in  them, 
and  not  being  deterred  therefrom  by  what  is  repulsive.  And 
this  comes  out  in  the  general  precept  immediately  following. 

Of  Love  and  Hatred. 

Tlie  sixth  and  last  example  which  he  cites  of  the  perversions  by 
the  Pharisees  is  that  which  regards  the  Law  of  Love  and  Hatred. 
It  gives  him  occasion  to  state  his  own  philosophy  on  this  subject. 
The  law  is  laid  down  in  Leviticus  xix.  18 :  "  Thou  shalt  not 
avenge  nor  bear  any  grudge  against  the  children  of  thy  people, 


278         SECOND    ANT)   THIKD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

but  thon  slialt  love  thy  neighbor  as  thyself  :  I  am  the  Lord."  The 
intent  of  this  law  was  to  bind  the  Jewish  people  compactly  together 

Ye  have  heard  that  ^'^^'  ^^^^  S^^^^^  humane  purposcs  of  Almighty  God 

it  hath  been  said,  towards  all  people.    It  was  not,  as  was  not  anything 

aZ%uu""vou'r"'!Z1',Z  "^  the  ceremonial  law,  intended  to  make  the  Jewish 

But  I  say  to  you,  Love  people,  by  an  Ect  of  Almighty  partiality,  the  special 

your  enera  <•«  and  pray  ..,  p      -,.     .  /.  j^jj-  j 

for  thc.n  that per«=cut«  recipicnts  of  divHic  favore/o;-  fhetr  man  saA-ef 

you,  that  ye  may  be  the  a^ofie,  hut  that  tlicy  might  be  eminently  fitted  to 

the  heavens;  for  He  subscrve  iiot  Only  their  owTi  intercsts  but  the  higli- 

makes  his  sun  to  rise  ggj;  interests  of  all  the  people  of  all  the  world  and 

on  the  bad  and  good,        p      ^^      •  ^  i      .  ^  •        i 

and  rains  on  the  just  ot  all  tuuc.  it  was  tlicir  stupcudous  mistake  to 
and  the  unjust.  Forif  re^card  themsclves  as  the  end  of  all  divine  legisla- 

ye    love    your    lovers,  °  .  i?  •  i    i 

what  reward  have  ye?  tioU,  and  they  loSt  tllCir  poWCr  of  UUlverSal  be- 
Even  the  tax-gatherers  nefieence  in  a  larere  measure  by  this  narrow  view 

do  that  same.    And  if  .  . 

ye  salute  your  brethren  of  the  case.     The  Pharisces  had  carried  the  Jew- 

only.  what  surpassing  ^^^  |„VotrV  tO  itS  last  IcUgths  whcU  tllCV  added  the 
thniK  do  ye  ?     Do  not  r?        »  e>  ^ 

even  the  Gentiles  that  corollarv, "  Tliou  shalt  liatc  tluue  eiieniy."  The  law 
^"L'TZZ  Z  had  indeed  enjoined  on  the  Jew  love  for  the  "  chil- 
your  Father  in  the  heav-  drcn  of  liis  peo})le,"  but  that  was  au  educational 
ens  is  per  ec  preparation  for  loving  and  sernng  all  mankind. 

Jesus  set  forth  the  wide  charity  of  his  philosophy  in  the  distinct 
precept,  "  Love  yonr  enemies."  He  has  been  protesting  against 
all  vindictiveness;  he  now  blooms  out  into  richest  precepts  of  uni- 
versal fraternity  and  aflFection.  FTe  is  determined  not  to  be  mis- 
understood, lie  embraces  public  as  well  as  private,  national  as 
well  as  personal  enemies,  the  Samaritan  and  the  Roman,  the 
ecclesiastical  and  the  political  foe.  Not  simply  is  a  man  to  regard 
without  animosity  the  foreigner  and  the  alien,  he  is  even  to  have 
charity  for  the  enemy  who  stands  over  him  and  cui-ses  him  ;  for 
liatrod  he  is  to  return  good,  for  contempt  and  pei-secution  he  is  to 
return  benedictions.  If  the  Jews  had  only  nnderetood  and  acted 
u])on  this,  they  might  have  carried  their  rule  of  love  to  the  end 
of  the  world.  The  ]\[ossiah  /•'*  to  carry  his  rule  to  the  end  of  the 
world.  Jesus  makes  good  his  claim  by  insisting  upon  leading  his 
people  forth  to  this  conquest  of  love  ;  and  thus,  and  not  as  tlie 
secriilar  Jew  expected,  became  in  a  high  sense  tlie  Saviour  of  the 
world. 

This  broad  law  of  benevolence  is  enforced  by  an  appeal  to  the 
loftiest  example  in  the  uiiivoi-se.  God  is  our  Father.  His  chil- 
dren should  resemble  Him,     He  causes  his  sun  to  rise  on  men 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  279 

without  moral  distinctions,  and  so  lie  sends  his  rain.*  If  we 
would  be  his  children,  our  love  must  have  that  same  characteris- 
tic of  impartiality.  Perhaps  ])y  this  splendid  appeal  to  God's 
dealings  in  nature,  the  Great  Teacher  meant  to  imply  that  the 
same  principles  prevailed  in  the  moral  government,  and  that  as 
sunlight  and  rain  fell  on  the  "fields  of  all,  so  the  grace  of  God  was 
not  confined  to  the  Jew  but  sent  equally  to  the  Gentile.  It  cer- 
tainly does  help  one  to  come  to  a  rational  view  of  this  lofty 
teaching,  when  it  is  recollected  that  this  impartiality  in  nature  is 
not  the  loss  on  the  part  of  God  of  the  distinctions  of  right  and 
wrong,  nor  insensibility  to  charms  of  character.  It  is  the  law  of 
active  benevolence  which  is  set  forth,  the  desire  to  do  good  to 
another  whether  he  deserve  it  or  not.  The  love  I  bear  a  mean  and 
wicked  man,  who  is  calumniating  and  persecuting  me,  is  not  to  be 
the  love  I  bear  my  beautiful,  true,  and  good  friend,  on  whom  my 
soul  safely  rests ;  for  the  love  God  shows  men  who  rebel  against 
His  holy  law  is  not  the  same  which  He  feels  towards  the  devoted 
child  whose  life  is  spent  in  learning  and  doing  His  will. 

Attracting  his  hearers  by  the  great  example  of  the  heavenly 
Father,  he  endeavors  to  break  them  from  their  narrowness  and 
illiberality  by  the  example  of  those  whom  they  specially  hated 
and  despised.  The  Jew  who  allowed  himself  to  be  a  tax-gather- 
er was  an  unprincipled  and  mercenary  fellow.  The  Roman  gov- 
ernment of  the  Jewish  people  was  not  particularly  harsh.  It  was 
the  galling  of  their  pride  more  than  anything  else  that  was  offen- 
sive, and  that  came  out  specially  in  the  presence  of  the  Roman 
soldiery,  and  more  especially  in  the  oppressive  taxation.  "  Publi- 
can" thence  came  to  designate  the  most  disagreeable  kind  of  a 
"  sinner."  But,  Jesus  urges,  even  publicans  love  their  kith  and 
kin,  their  "  nearest,"  if  it  be  insisted  that  that  is  the  meaning  of 
"neighbor."  The  Gentiles,  whom  you  hate,  will  salute  their 
brethren.  Are  the  Jews  the  elect  of  the  Father  God?  And  do 
they  in  moral  character  rise  no  higher  than  the  plane  of  those 
nations  who  are  not  favored  l)y  God  and  are  hated  by  Jews  ?  If 
the  Jews  have  surpassingly  helping  priWleges,  should  they  not 
have  surpassingly  elevated  characters  ? 

*  Meyer  quotes  the  following  sen-  I  maria."  "  If  thou  wilt  imitate  the 
bence  from  Seneca,  which  is  remarkably  gods,  bestow  benefits  on  even  the  un- 
like these  words  of  Jesus :  "Si  deos  grateful :  for  on  even  criminals  the  sun 
imitaris,  da  et  ingi-atis  beneficia:  nam  rises,  to  even  pirates  the  seas  lie  open." 
et  sceleratis  sol  oritur,  et  piratis  patent  j 


2S0         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

Thus  having  exliibited  the  wrong  that  is  in  the  Pharisaic  nar 
rowness  and  selfishness,  showing  that  in  practice  it  was  a  mera 
copy  of  the  example  of  the  worst  men,  while  in  theory  it  was  an 
injurious  perversion  of  the  law,  he  turned  to  his  disciples  and 
saidj  "  You  are  not  to  be  so.  You  are  to  have  perfect  principles. 
The  principles  which  govern  your  Father  who  is  in  the  heavens, 
are  those  wliich  are  to  govern  you." 

Reaching  this  transition  point  in  the  Discourse,  I  think  it  may 
be  Avell  to  notice  that  the  simple,  plain  intellects  of  his  congre- 
gation, understanding  the  words  of  Jesus  in  their  simplest,  plain- 
est meaning,  did  not  see  in  them  the  difficulties  wliich  all  the 
glosses  and  comments  have  made  for  us  moderns.  It  is  really 
some  task  to  our  intellects  to  throw  out  the  influence  of  the  per- 
verting interpretations  to  which  we  have  been  accustomed  in 
order  to  place  ourselves  where  the  audience  of  Jesus  stood.  How 
far  I  am  doing  so  as  I  write,  I  know  not ;  but  I  am  striving  ear- 
nestly to  find  just  what  Jesus  meant  his  hearers  to  understand; 
And  an  examination  so  conducted  shows  that  he  was  not  laying 
down  maxims  of  cotiduct  but  tests  of  character.  The  great 
trouble  many  good  people,  and  even  many  scholarly  men,  have 
found  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  has  come  from  not  observing 
this  distinction.  For  example,  take  the  last  precept  above,  "  Ye 
are  to  be  perfect,  even  as  your  Father  in  the  heavens  is  perfect." 
The  physical  and  mental  limitations  of  humanity  make  that  ut- 
terly impracticable  as  a  rule  of  action,  but  quite  practicable  as 
an  attainment  of  principle.  It  is  by  considering  his  statements, 
without  their  limitations,  as  a  directory  of  conduct,  and  seeing 
how  utterly  men  fail  to  reach  that  standard,  that  the  teachings  of 
Jesus  come  to  be  regarded  as  merely  a  refining  ideal,  not  to  be 
realized  totally  in  this  life. 

DIRECTIONS   FOE   THE   DISCHARGE   OF   DUTY. 

"We  have  now  reached  another  division  of  this  discourse,  in 
which  Jesus  shows  the  corrupting  influence  of  Pharisaism  upon 
even  the  practice  of  the  virtues,  and  teaches  his  disciples  to  purge 
the  very  spring  of  their  actions. 

Here  is  the  key  to  this  part  of  the  discourse.  A  man's  right- 
eousness works  itself  out  into  liis  public  life,  and  he  must  often 
do  g<x>d  in  the  presence  of  his  fellow-men,  and  there  are  some 
duties  wliich  cannot  be  discharged  in  total  privacy.     "  Pighteous- 


THE   SEEMON   ON   THE  MOUNT.  2S1 

ness  "  is  exemplified  in  this  discourse  by  alms-giving,  by  prayer, 
and  by  fasting,  or  more  generally  by  our  duties  to  our  brethren, 
to  our  heavenly  Father,  and  to  ourselves.  These  But  take  heea  not  to 
duties  are  to  be  discharged  with  reference  to  God,  *"'''  ^"'^  righteous- 

,  -tm  •    1  ■  1        ness*  before  men,   to 

and  not  man.  VV hen  om- righteousness  is  wi'ought  be  seen  of  them;  if 
in  the  presence  of  our  fellow-beino-s,  we  are  to  oti»erw-ise,  you  have 

,  r    I     T  .       .  p  no  reward  from  jour 

be  very  carerul  that  it  is  not  for  the  purpose  of  Father  who  is  in  the 
being  seen  by  them,  to  elicit  their  applause.  '^^''^»«- 
The  verb  in  the  original  is  very  striking,  ^eaOrjvai,  from  which 
comes  our  word  "  theatre."  We  are  not  to  theatricize,  play  a 
part,  think  the  thing  well  done  if  they  applaud,  and  ill  if  they 
give  signs  of  dissatisfaction. 

It  is,  moreover,  to  be  observed  that  Jesus  does  not  inculcate 
duties :  he  merely  tells  his  disciples  how  they  are  to  be  performed. 
Pie  does  not  say  that  they  shall  give  alms,  and  pray,  and  fast.  Lib- 
erality towards  our  fellows,  piety  towards  our  God,  and  self-con- 
trol, are  among  the  well-known  duties  of  religion  everywhere,  in 
every  form.  But  the  methods  of  doino-  these  right  things  mav  be 
injuriously  wrong,  and,  among  the  Pharisees,  ob^^ously  were  ;  so 
Jesus  sets  himself  to  showing  his  disciples  how  they  ought  to  do 
what  they  already  felt  it  their  duty  to  do.    The  First  Examjple  is 

Alms-giving. 

The  word  hypocrite  is  in  analogy  with  the  theatricizing  just 
spoken  of  in  general  terms.  A  hypocrite  strictly  Therefore  when  tuou 
is  one  who  maintains  a  part  in  a  dramatic  perfor-  ""'^^^  ^'™''  tmmpet 

•■  ^    ^  not  before  thee,  as  the 

mauce,  speaking  his  words  usually  from  behind  a  hypocrites  do  in  the 
mask,  and  hence  readily  transferred  to  one  who  is  «y°^eo^'°«  »";J  i°  the 

'  ^  streets,  that  they  may 

not  really  what  he  seems.  The  blowing  of  the  have  giory  of  men. 
trumpet  may  be  derived  from  what  is  affirmed  to  ^T'^'  ^T^^  \  ""! 

■••  "  unto  you.  They  exhaust 

have  been  the  custom  of  ostentatious  alms-givers,  their  reward.  But  when 

who  summoned  the  poor  by  a  trumpet,  and  thus  JJ^itS^'hl^d 'low 

made  known  their  gifts.     But  it  is  better  to  take  it  what  thy  right  hand 

figuratively,  as  signifying  unnecessary  display.  A 

man's  goodness  to  a  fellow-man  may  be  known 

and  bring  him  praise,  but  he  is  never  to  do  it  for 

the  purpose  of  having  that  praise.     If  he  do,  he  will  not  fail,  he 

*  Not  "  alms,"  as  in  the  common  ver-  j  The  Vatican  and  BezaMSS.,  and,  what 
Bion.     The  authentic  text  is  undoubted- 
ly  5iKain(Tvvr]v^    righteousness,    and  not 
iKcn^ioavi'iiv,  alms,   the  latter   being  a 
^ell-intentioned    but    mistaken    gloss. 


doeth,  that  thine  alms 
may  be  in  secret,  and 


is  still  more  important,  the  Codex  Sinai- 
ticus  give  the  former.  This  restored 
reading  aids  the  symmetry  of  the  dis- 
course. 


282 


SECOND   AND   TIEERD   PASSOVER   IN   TUE   LITE   OF   JESUS. 


will  be  praised.  He  "svill  have  his  reward,  and  his  whole  reward, 
ill  that  praise.  He  will  thus  exhaust  his  reward.  But  when  Iig 
gives  alms  because  it  is  right,  and  for  the  good  the  alms  may  do 
another,  and  does  it  so  secretly  that,  to  use  a  proverbial  phrase, 
his  left  hand  does  not  know  what  his  right  hand  does,  such  a 
man  has  reward  from  the  Father,  who  does  Ilis  greatest  works  in 
secret.  Let  the  deed  be  done  as  to  Him  and  not  to  man. 
The  Second  Example  is 

Prayer. 
Let  it  be  remembered  that  it  is  hypocrisy  which  Jesus  attacks,  not 
any  special  outward  modes  or  acts.  lie  does  not  condemn  using 
And  when  thou  pray-  sy  iiagogues  and  streets  as  prayer  places ;  he  does  not 
est,  be  not  as  the  hypo-  coudciun  Standing  as  a  posture.'*  A  man  may  pray 
^TBtenCS^'the  anywhere,  and  should  pray  everywhere.  But  no 
synaRoguca  and  in  the  matter  whcrc  hc  prays,  nor  how,  nor  when, — if  hia 

comers  of  the  broad-  i  ■,      .  -,         ,  ,,  .,-i 

ways,  that  they  may  be  praycrs  be  made  m  order  to  attract  the  attention 

Keen  of  men.  Verily,  I  aiid  clicit  tlic  applausc  of  mcu,  hc  IS  a  livpocrite. 

Taur'^ther  Reward!  ^^^  prcteiids  to  bc  Speaking  to  God,  when,  in  real- 

But  thou,  wiien  thou  ity,  he  is  Speaking  to  men.   A  modern  clergyman, 

praycst,  enter  into  thy    -,  t-.ii  i  ii«  re     -y 

closet,  and  having  lock-  kiicehng  ui  the  church,  may  be  playing  off  rheton- 
ed  thy  door,  pray  to  cal  fircworksfor  tlic  entertainment of  hisaudience,t 

thy  Father  who  is  in  ,  ,.  .,  .  .,.  ,. 

secret;  and  thy  Father  rather  than  DC  assisting  them  m  their  Bupplica- 

who  seeth  in  secret  will 
reward  thee.  But  when 
ye  pray  use  not  sense- 
lesH  repetitions,  as  do 
the  he.-ithen  ;  for  they 

are  of  opinion  that  talking ;  if  uot  repetitions,  but  vatn.,  empty  repe- 
theyshau  be  heard  for  ^jtions.    Jcsus  passcd  wholc  nlglits  iu  prayer,  and 

their  much   Bi)eaking.  '■  o  i        »/        ' 

Do  not,  then,  resemble  lU  the  agony  of  Gctlisemane  he  made  repetition 
them;  for  God  your  ^f  j^|g  ^j.j^g  ^^  ^j^^,  heaveuly  Father.     It  was  the 

Father    knows     what  '' 

thinire  ye  need  before  heatheulsli   custom,§    whicli   had   also    crept   in 
yoaakhim.  aiiioug  tlic  Jcws,  of  soiiietimes  unthinkingly  re- 


tlons  for  the  mercy  of  the  Almighty  Father.     lie 
is  warned  by  this  incisive  speech  of  Jesus. 

Jesus  does  not  prohibit  much  praying,  but  much 


*  Indeed,  where  the  general  ciwtom 
is  to  Btand,  as  it  was  among  the  Jews,  it 
would  be  ostentatious  to  kneel ;  and  if 
Jeeus  had  intended  to  make  a  special 
hit  at  the  posture,  he  would  have  said 
kneeling.  No  posture  must  be  taken 
which  so  attracts  attention  as  to  nourish 
one's  vanity. 

f  As  would  scom  to  have  been  the 
case  with  that  clergyman  of  whom  a 


modem  newspaper  said,  "He  delivered 
the  finest  prayer  ever  addressed  to  a 
Boston  audience." 

X  This  distinction  is  made  by  Augus- 
tine: "  Absit  ab  oratione  nvdtn  htcutio; 
scd  non  dcait  miilta  jrrecfituK  si  fervem 
perse vcrat  intentio."     Ep.  K^O,  10. 

§  A  specimen  of  heatlienish  vain  re 
petitions  is  given  in  the  Old  Testament 
in  1  Kings  xviii.  2G. 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE  MOUNT.  283 

peating  sound,  good  words,  and  at  other  times  filling  np  the  sea- 
son of  prayer  with  the  unmeaning  repetition  of  irrelevant  and 
senseless  things.  Wlien  a  clergyman  in  church,  or  a  layman  in  a 
meeting  for  prayer,  sets  before  Almighty  God  a  tabular  statement 
of  statistics,  or  a  running  commentary  on  the  shortcomings  of  the 
neighborhood,  or  a  resume  of  the  political  movements  of  the 
times,  telling  the  Great  Kuler  how  wickedly  such  a  senator  is 
going  to  vote  if  God  do  not  kill  him,  he  is  acting  heathenishly, 
and  Jesus  rebukes  him  in  these  precepts. 

Again,  we  guard  ourselves  against  the  temptation  to  the  Phari- 
saic vice  of  literalism  in  interpreting  Jesus.  He  did  not  proscribe 
public  worsliip  in  his  precepts,  and  he  was  strictly  observant  of  it 
in  his  conduct.  But  he  does  teach  that  culture  of  character  is 
much  more  important  than  that  of  the  outward  behavior.  AVhile 
all  display  should  be  avoided  in  public  service,  there  is  a  still 
surer  mode  of  spiritual  culture,  namely,  communion  with  God 
the  Father  in  the  profoundest  secret,  in  that  place  which  no  one 
but  God  knows  to  be  used  as  an  oratory,  at  that  time  when  no 
one  but  God  knows  that  the  suppliant  is  praying.  Such  praying 
recognizes  the  indi^adual  personal  responsibility  of  the  suppliant, 
for  therein  he  must  use  the  singular  personal  pronoun  when  refer- 
ring to  himself.  He  is  away  from  the  crowd.  He  cannot  mingle 
his  deeds  and  life  with  theirs,  and  thus  di\'ide,  even  in  idea,  the 
responsibility  of  his  actions.  He  is  alone  with  God.  He  acknow- 
ledges the  spirituality  of  true  religion.  There  is  no  ceremonial, 
even  the  very  simplest,  to  help  him.  It  is  the  spirit  of  the  man 
seeking  strength  from  the  spirit  of  the  God.  He  acknowledges 
the  spirituality  and  omnipresence  of  God.  jSTo  distance  separates 
and  no  darkness  hides  from  the  Almighty.  While  one  is  praying 
here  in  this  closet,  another  is  in  that  closet,  thousands  of  milea 
away  ;  and  both  are  heard. 

It  seems  to  me  difficult  to  overestimate  the  importance  of  this 
urgent  teaching  by  Jesus  of  the  internalism  of  true  religion  as 
antagonizing  all  the  externalism  of  cultivated  Paganism  and 
ecclesiasticized  Judaism.  It  is  what  a  man  is,  not  what  he  docs, 
that  distinguishes  him  in  God's  eyes.  Being  right  will  produce 
doing  right.  Internal  piety  will  certainly  produce  proper  external 
worship,  but  proper  external  woi-ship  does  very  little  towards  pro- 
ducing true  internal  piety.  The  external  is  easily  assumed.  The 
internal  is  produced  with  difficulty.    Therefore  a  ceremonial  reli- 


284         SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

gion  is  easily  popularized.  Men  are  attracted  by  the  sliowiness, 
and  gratified  by  the  pomp.  It  requires  no  painstaking  of  soul 
culture.  But  it  does  not  endure.  It  cainiot  be  carried  beyond 
the  moment  of  death.  What  is  not  inwrought  falls  off.  Charac- 
ter is  everything. 

It  is  surprising  that  the  modern  church  has  gone  so  far  from 
the  teaching  of  Jesus  as  to  lay  almost  the  whole  stress  upon  forms 
and  ceremom'es;  that  a  "denomination"  maybe  erected  on  a  mere 
fonn,  and  a  whole  church  be  convulsed  with  a  controvei-sy  about 
mere  ceremonials ;  that  one  branch  of  the  church,  as  is  tlie  case 
with  the  Lutherans  in  Germany,  should  have  woi-ship  disturbed, 
and  discord  and  separations  occasioned,  on  the  question  whether 
the  Lord's  Prayer,  as  it  is  called,  which  we  shall  next  consider, 
should  be  begun  Vater  unser  or  Uiiser  Vater,  "  Our  Father  "  or 
"  Father,  Ours !  "  *  If  externalism  could  be  banished  from  all 
religion,  nine-tenths  of  all  prejudices,  animosities,  and  persecu- 
tions would  cease. 


THE    LORDS    PRAYER." 

And  then  Jesus  furnished  a  form  of  prayer,  which  should  be  a 

model,  and  show  what  the  spirit  and  general  method  of  praying 

^^    ,^    ,  should  be.    To  a  critical  student  of  the  mind  and 

Thus  therefore  pray 

ve:  Our  Father,  the  soul  of  Jcsus  thcrc  cau  bc  no  passagcs  in  his  life 

One    in    the  heavens,     ^^^^^.^    iu^p^^j-tant    tliaU    thoSC    which    SCt    forth    llis 
hallowed  bo  Thy  Name,  ^ 

Thy  kingdom  come,  praycrs.     A  maii's  prayers  are  the  main  and  most 
Thy  wiu  be  done,  a.  in  ^.^y^.^^^^^  j^^i^^s  of  his  rcal  character.   The  pasture 

heaven    so    on    earth,  I 

Bread  necessary  for  he  deliberately  assuuics  before  his  God   is   the 

our  suKtcnance  give  us  ^  i      .  jii  j.  ri  -y  ^       .        -i  • 

to-day.  And  forgive  Hoblcst  aud  tuB  iDost  gracetul  possible  to  hira. 
our  debt*,  like  as  wo  JYis  uttcrcd  praycrs  reveal  him  more  than  his 
debtor*.  And  lead  us  didactic  deliverauccs.  The  prayers  he  sets  forth 
not  into  trial,  but  rca-  to  bc  used  by  othcTS  are  his  own  highest  represen- 
tation of  himself.  They  show  what  he  believes 
God  to  be,  what  he  believes  man  to  be,  and  what  lie  believes  to  be 


*  This  i«  Btntod  by  my  learned  friend 
Dr.  Schaff  in  a  note  to  Lange.  In  Greek 
it  is  rioTtp  iinuiv,  Pater  baymono ;  and  in 
the  Latin,  Pater  noster.  The  German 
Lutherans  follow  that  form  in  Vater 
vnner,  but  the  German  Reformed  insist 
npon   Vnser  Vafcr.     People  who  write 


quarrelsome  books  and  articles  on  that 
distinction  have  no  need  for  either  form. 
It  docs  not  much  matter  at  all  how  they 
pray.  It  would  not  scom  that  they 
shouM  care  anything  for  the  teaching  of 
.Jesus  who  are  so  utterly  unlike  hira  La 
spirit. 


THE  SERMON  ON  THE  MOUNT.  285 

the  relation  between  them.  The  theological  system  of  Jesiis  must 
therefore  l)e  found  chiefly  in  his  prayers.  The  theology  lie  wished 
to  popularize  must  be  what  he  embodied  in  the  prayer  which  ho 
set  forth  for  all  his  followers,  in  all  ages  of  the  world.  Tlie  "  ye  " 
is  emphati(!,  as  the  form  in  the  Greek  shows  and  implies  that 
between  the  praying  of  the  heathen,  the  "  ethnic  battology,"  as  he 
calls  it,  and  the  praying  of  those  who  belonged  to  his  spiritual 
family,  there  was  to  be  a  marked  diiference. 

Brief  as  this  prayer  is,  it  is  so  pregnant  that  one  scarcely  sees 
how  in  a  few  paragraphs  to  set  forth  its  wonderful  teachings. 

First  of  all,  in  every  sense,  is  the  presentation  of  God  the 
Almight}',  not  as  the  Creator  of  the  World  nor  the  King  of  the 
Universe,  but  as  standing  to  human  suppliants  in  the  relation  of 
Father.  We  are  not  to  ask  God  for  anything  because  he  made 
us,  or  because  he  rules  us,  but  because  we  are  his  children  and  he 
is  our  Father.  So  many  myriads  of  tongues  have  addressed  him 
in  this  way  since  the  days  of  Jesus,  that  we  fail  to  realize  what  a 
revelation  this  was.  God  is  never  addressed  as  "  Father  "  in  the 
Old  Testament.*  The  relation  is  alluded  to  as  the  ground  of  re- 
proach for  the  bad  behavior  of  the  people,  as  in  the  first  chapter 
of  Isaiah  and  the  first  chapter  of  Malachi,  where  God  is  repre- 
sented, in  the  first  passage,  as  sajang  that  He  had  nourished  children 
who  were  rebels,  and  in  the  other  demanding  the  service  due  from 
child  to  father ;  or,  as  Alford  says,  "  as  the  last  resource  of  an 
orphan  and  desolate  creature,"  as  in  tlie  passage  in  the  sixty-third 
chapter  of  Isaiah,  where,  nevertheless,  no  address  is  made  or  peti- 
tion presented  on  the  ground  of  the  fatherhood  of  God.  But  now 
Jesus  lays  it  at  the  foundation  of  all  religion,  because  the  basis  of 
all  prayer.  It  is  the  starting-point  of  both  his  theology  and  his 
philanthropy.  The  appeal  is  to  be  made  to  the  father-heart  in 
God.  And  this  shows  what  all  praying  really  must  be.  It  is  not 
the  appeal  of  a  slave  at  the  feet  of  his  master,  nor  a  subject  at 
the  feet  of  his  king.  It  is  not  to  be  an  attempt  to  Avring  from 
reluctant  power  a  favor  which  he  who  prays  earnestly  desires.  It 
is  to  be  such  communion  with  God  as  sons  do  have  with  fathers. 
This  abolishes  at  once  that  fearful  element  of  most  forms  of  reli- 
gion, in  which  it  is  assumed  that  the  interests  of  God  are  one 
thing,   and   those   of  the   suppliant   another,  and   the   struggle 

*  The  learned  Bengal  well  remarks  I  adduced  are  either  dissimilar  or  mod* 
that  the  (•xauiples  which  Lightfoot  has  I  em. 


2S6         SECOND   AND   Tlimo   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

between  man  and  liis  Maker  is  as  to  the  obtainiiiir  and  the  with- 
holdijig.  Every  cliikl's  interest  is  identical  with  that  of  tlie  fatlier, 
as  the  father's  is  with  that  of  the  son.  So  now,  wlien  a  man  who 
receives  the  teaching  of  Jesns  goes  to  his  prajei-s,  lie  begins  by 
feeling  that  he  ought  to  desire  simply  what  God  wills,  and  that 
God  wills  exactly  the  thing  which  is  best  for  his  child.  That 
makes  tlie  communion  at  once  tender  and  confidential. 

The  brief  doxological  addition  to  the  sublimely  simple  title, 
"  Our  Father,"  is  "  The  One  in  the  heavens."  The  employment 
of  tliis  phrase  does  two  things:  it  prevents  undue  familiarity  with 
even  the  Father,  who  is  represented  as  infinite  and  glorious,  resi- 
dent in  all  the  heavens  that  are,  being  wherever  anything  heavenly 
is,  and  perhaps  intimating  that  his  presence  makes  what  is  heav- 
enly ;  and  it  declares  his  personality,  thus  separating  Jesus  from 
all  the  teachers  of  pantheism.  Prayer  is  not  to  be  a  vague  address 
to  any  indefinite  phantasy,  but  to  a  "  him,"  to  a  "  one,"  to  a  person 
haAang  place  and  personality,  the  infinite  Progenitor  of  a  countless 
num1)er  of  sons  and  daughters,  each  of  wliom  so  derives  his  or  her 
pei-sonality  from  the  Great  Father,  that  if  he  were  not  a  Pereonal 
Being  neither  could  they  be. 

There  is  anotlier  thought  suggested  by  this  form  of  address  to 
God.  It  is  to  be  a  perj)etual  assertion  and  reassertion  of  the 
brotherhood  of  man.  It  is  "  our,"  not  "  my."  I  am  to  acknowl- 
edge that  He  is  as  much  tlie  Father  of  every  other  human  being 
who  utters  this  prayer  as  He  is  my  Father.  I  am  to  offer  a  prayer 
for  every  other  human  being  when  I  pray  for  myself,  and  if  I  em- 
ploy this  prayer  which  Jesns  sets  before  me  I  shall  do  tliat  very 
thing.  Selfishness  in  prayer  is  proscribed  forever.  A  man  may 
not  ask  after  blessings  on  his  l)ody  and  on  his  soul  for  his  own  per- 
sonal comfort  and  own  personal  salvation  alone.  "When  he  com 
munes  with  the  Father  it  must  be  for  the  good  of  the  wliole  fam- 
ily. It  lifts  the  lowly  and  humbles  the  proud.  An  unspotted 
queen  on  her  tlirone  feels  that  while  her  royal  lips  say  "  Our 
Father,"  the  hunger-parched  mouth  of  tlie  frail  and  abandoned 
woman,  who  crouches  beside  the  dooi-steps  in  the  dark  night,  is 
Baying  the  same  words  to  the  same  Being,  with  the  same  trutli  and 
meaning  in  them  ;  and  the  two  women,  if  they  are  really  praying,' 
arc  praying  each  for  tlie  other.  This  is  the  basis  and  method  of 
philanthropy  set  forth  by  Jesus. 

After  the  address  the  prayer  has  six  petitions,  which,  it  is  to  be 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT. 


287 


observed,  are  not  doxologies,  but  real  prayers,  and  as  such  are  to 
signify  what  are  the  things  which  above  all  others  we  feel  that  we 
need,  and  having  which  we  shall  be  satisfied  that  other  things  may 
come  and  go  as  they  will.  It  should  interest  any  student  of 
human  history  to  know  what  are  the  six  things  which  such  a  per- 
son as  Jesus  believed  ought  to  be  paramount  in  the  desires  of  all 
mankind.  It  will  be  noticed  that  three  of  them  relate  to  God  and 
three  to  man. 

The  prayers  in  the  first  part  are,  that  the  IS'ame  of  the  heav- 
enly Father  should  be  hallowed,  that  his  kingdom  should  come, 
and  that  his  will  should  be  done.  There  is  this  phrase  added  to 
the  last  of  these  petitions,  "as  in  heaven  so  on  earth."  The  hear- 
ers of  Jesus  must  have  understood  by  the  word  "  lieaven "  the 
special  abode  of  Jehovah,  of  all  holy  intelligent  spirits  that  have 
not  fallen,  and  of  all  the  human  spirits  that  have  been  purified 
and  saved.  From  his  making  this  a  model  of  prayer  they  must 
have  gathered  that  the  state  of  affairs  in  that  world  is  the  normal^ 
and  the  state  of  affairs  in  this  world  is  the  dfjnormal  condition 
of  the  universe,  and  that  to  have  this  world  brought  to  the  condi- 
tion of  that  world  should  be  the  highest  desire  and  the  most  irre- 
pressible longing  of  every  true  heart.  It  is  the  first  outburst  of 
the  soul.  The  phi-ase  "as  in  heaven  so  on  earth"  is  not  therefore 
to  be  confined  to  the  last  of  these  three  petitions,  but  is  to  cover 
them  all.*  "As  in  Iieaven  so  on  earth  be  thy  name  hallowed;" 
"  as  in  lieaven  so  in  earth  thy  kingdom  come  ;  "  "  as  in  heaven  so 
on  earth  thy  will  be  done." 

The  foundation  of  all  true  religion  in  the  heart  of  man  must 
be  found  in  its  pm-e  ideas  of  God.  Men  cannot  add  to  Ilis  holi- 
ness, but  their  OAvn  conceptions  of  Ilis  character  may  become  very 
exalted.  Errors  in  religion  arise  from  false  ideas  of  God,  in  re- 
garding Him  as  vengeful,  or  weakly  lenient,  or  indifferent,  or  in 
some  way  other  than  what  He  really  is.  In  heaven  the  souls  of 
the  holy  have  only  holy,  that  is,  true  thoughts  and  conceptions  of 
Him.     Each  soul  is  like  a  perfect  mirror.     The  souls  of  men  are 


*  This  is  the  view  of  the  Council  of 
Trent,  as  set  forth  in  the  Catechism.  I 
am  aware  that  the  Codices  which  omit 
the  petition,  "  Thy  will  be  done,"  ia  the 
corresponding  passage  in  Luke  xi.  2, 
omit  also  these  words,  "  as  in  heaven  so 


in  earth;"  nevertheless  the  spirit  of  the 
prayer,  and  its  peculiar  construction,  by 
which  80  much  condensation  is  obtained, 
seem  to  me  to  justify  the  interpretation 
given  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Catechism. 


288         SECOND    AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

full  of  flaws.  God's  name  means  God's  character,  that  by  which 
lie  should  be  called  or  described.  As  in  heaven  the  purest,  truest 
thouj^hts  of  God  are  held,  so  ought  it  to  be  desired  that  upon  earth 
all  men  shall  "sanctify  the  Lord  their  God  in  their  hearts." 

And  the  acknowledgment  of  his  kingdom  by  all  men,  and  their 
total  submission  to  his  beneficent  reign,  so  that  there  slK)uld  be 
no  rebellion  against  the  benign  sovereignty  of  the  Father-King,  is 
to  be  the  aspiration  and  desire  of  all  who  pray.  There  is  a  sense 
in  which  that  kingdom  does  always  as  much  prevail  on  earth  as  in 
heaven,  namely,  in  the  actual  rule  of  God  over  all  things ;  but  in 
heaven  all  intelligences  comprehend  this,  accept  it,  and  rejoice  in 
it ;  on  earth  men  do  not  submit,  do  not  willingly  and  gladly  ac- 
cept it,  but  are  striving  to  reach  their  happiness  in  their  own  ways, 
and  not  by  being  willing  subjects  of  their  Father,  who  is  their 
Lord.  Each  man  that  prays  should  desire  that  that  kingdom  be 
set  up  wholly  in  his  own  soul,  and  that  he  should  always  be  free 
from  all  other  paramount  rulei-s.* 

The  third  petition  prays  that  on  earth  the  will  of  God  may  be 
done  as  it  is  in  heaven.  It  is  to  be  observed  how  the  personality 
of  God  is  preserved  throughout,  and  humanity  as  distinct  from 
God.  So  that  prayer  is  not  the  mere  human  addressing  itself  or 
voiding  its  deepest  feelings  on  the  unfeeling  universe.  Man  is  as 
autocratic  in  his  sphere  as  God  is  in  his.  God  may  do  the  M'ill 
of  man,  or  man  may  do  the  will  of  God,  or  their  Avills  may  bo 
made  to  clash.  If  the  last  do  not  take  place  one  of  the  former 
must.  Wliicli  does  the  good  governance  of  the  universe  in  gen- 
eral, and  the  good  of  both  parties  in  particular,  demand  ?  Shall 
the  Infinite  be  obedient  to  the  finite,  the  power  of  the  Omnipo- 
tent Immaculate  be  made  subservient  to  the  caprices  of  the  will 
of  sinful  Feebleness?  If  the  latter  were  the  case,  then,  for  a 
moment,  we  might  have  peace.  But  the  submission  of  Omnipo- 
tence to  a  mind  that  may  at  any  moment  make  a  mistake,  and  to 
passions  that  every  moment  are  rushing  on  blindly,  would  be  a 
ruinous  anomaly.  There  is  no  way  in  which  peace  and  progress 
and  ha])pines8  can  be  secured  but  by  the  direct  bending  of  all  the 
energies  of  man  to  the  will  of  God.  And  thus  is  man  to  be 
ennobled.  He  loses  no  freedom  of  his  will,  he  is  not  absorbed  in 
God,  he  is  not  doing  compulsory  work,  but  he  is  freely  choosing 

•    So  Augustine  enys:    "  Ut  in  nobis  I  optamus."    S«rm.  66. 
reniat,  optaiuuB ;  ut  in  illo  iuvcniamor,  I 


THE    SERMON    ON    THE   MOUNT.  289 

to  direct  all  his  great  energies  to  the  accomplishment  of  the  good 
designs  of  the  tenderest  and  lovingest  Father  in  all  the  nni verse. 
In  the  case  of  man  it  would  be  many  fitful  wills  atteni[)tiiig  to 
rule ;  in  the  case  of  God,  it  is  One  will,  the  will  of  the  infinitely 
wise  and  good  Father. 

And  thus,  by  a  natural  and  logical  transition,  from  petitions 
touching  the  estate  of  God  the  suppliant  is  taught  to  pass  to  peti- 
tions touching  his  own  estate. 

The  first  prayer  is  for  subsistence :  "bread  proper  for  our  suste- 
nance give  us  to-day."  The  epithet  which  precedes  "  bread " 
occui*s  in  the  New  Testament  only  in  this  passage  and  in  Luke  xi. 
3.  It  is  one  of  the  most  disputed  words  in  all  these  writings.  In 
Greek  it  is  iinovalav.  In  the  common  English  version  it  is  trans- 
lated "  daily."  The  Yulgate  has  "  panem  nostrum  superstantia- 
lem,"  which  is  followed  by  the  Rhenish  version,  "  our  superstan- 
tial  bread."  In  the  Arabic  and  Ethiopian  versions  it  is  "  to- 
morrow's bread," ""  which  does  not  accord  with  the  desire  that  it 
may  be  given  to-day.  I  have  endeavored  in  the  translation  given 
above  to  render  what  seemed  to  me  to  embrace  all  the  possible 
and  practicable  meanings  of  the  word  as  used  by  Jesus.f  The 
prayer  is  for  the  preservation  of  the  whole  man.  "What  is  need- 
ful for  his  body  is  bread,  and  therefore  aprov  is  used.  And  that 
symbolizes  what  is  necessary  for  his  intellect  and  for  his  soul. 
"Wliat  is  now  necessary  to  sustain  us  as  men  is  to  be  prayed  for, 
and  nothing  more.  No  anxious  care  for"  the  morrow  is  allowed, 
for  if  our  prayer  be  answered  to-day  the  same  prayer  will  be  an- 
swered to-morrow.  No  luxuries  are  to  be  craved.  Life,  in  which 
to  do  the  Father's  will,  this  is  all  the  child  is  to  seek.  "Uliat  I 
may  use  7ioio  for  physical,  mental,  and  spiritual  sustenance  and 
sti'ength,  I  may  ask  of  God.  But  bread,  real  bread  for  the  body, 
is  tlie  thing  set  forth  in  this  petition  explicitly,  and  all  other  needed 
things  implicitly. 

The  second  thing  to  be  asked  {%  forgiveness.  Sin  is  represented 
under  the  figure  of  debt.  To  be  in  debt  oppresses  a  sensiti\e 
mind  as  with  a  load  of  guilt.  There  can  be  no  security,  no 
peace,  no  happy  action  of  the  powers  while  a  man  lives  in  the 


*  And  in  the  ' '  Gospel  according  to  the 
Hebrews,"  Jerome  says  that  he  found 
for  eTTjoi/o-jaj' the  word  VT3>  that  is,  "to- 
morrows. 

19 


f  Those  who  desire  to  see  all  the  mean- 
ings assigned  may  consult  Alford's  Greek 
Testament^  Lange's  Comment.,  and  Ben- 
gel's  Chwmon,  in  loco. 


290         SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

consciousness  of  having  committed  sins  which  are  not  forgiven 
him.  Every  true  man  longs  for  that.  "Whatever  pleasure  he  may 
have  found  in  sinning,  the  moment  the  heat  of  lust  or  passion 
subsides  the  sense  of  the  offence  against  his  lieavenly  Father 
overpowers  him.  He  can  do  no  more,  he  can  enjoy  uo  more, 
until  the  sin  he  forgiven.  It  has  become  the  extreme  necessity  of 
his  life.     The  pain  of  guilt  is  the  one  intolerable  agony. 

And  hci'e  the  communion  element  of  the  Prayer  is  made  to  ap- 
pear again  distinctly.  The  petitioner  prays  that  all  sins,  his  owi? 
and  those  of  others,  may  be  forgiven.  And  that  there  may  be  a 
general  anmesty,  he  fii*st  forgives  all  who  have  siimed  against  liim, 
all  who  have  gotten  in  debt  to  him  by  their  failure  to  do  for  him 
what  they  were  bound  as  human  brothers  to  do.  Then  lie  goes 
to  the  heavenly  Father  and  prays  that  the  same  may  be  done  for 
him.  "  Forgive  us  our  debts  like  as  we  also  have  forgiven  our 
debtoi-s."  It  does  not  place  the  ])lea  of  forgiveness  on  the  ground 
that  we  have  forgiven  our  debtoi-s,  those  who  have  sinned  against 
us ;  nor  does  it  make  the  forgiveness  we  grant  to  others  the  meas- 
ure of  the  Father's  forgiveness  of  us :  "  Forgive  us  as  much  as  we 
have  forgiven  othei"s  ;"  but  rather  means  that  what  we  have  done 
towards  them  lie  should  do  towards  us,  referring  to  the  natui-e  of 
the  act  of  forgiveness  rather  than  to  the  degrees  of  its  exercise. 

The  last  prayer  is  for  redemj)tion.  Trials  of  faith,  tests  of 
character,  discipline  that  strengthens,  these  are  what  no  man  has 
need  of  dreading.  But  that  the  luovidenecs  of  the  heavenly 
Father  may  not  lead  us  into  such  positions  as  shall  make  the 
Solicitation  to  evil  on  the  part  of  others  s])ecially  influential  over 
(»ur  li\{'s  and  conduct,  we  may  rerpicst.  Being  forgiven,  we  have 
a  Imn-or  of  the  same  circumstances  as  those  in  which  we  fell. 
This  j»cfition  seeks  to  put  the  sui>])liant  under  the  special  provi- 
dence of  the  Father  in  all  coming  life.  And  then,  as  a  climax, 
it  exliil)it8  the  consummation  of  the  Christian  life.  "  Rescue  us 
from  evil!"  "When  that  prayer  is  answered,  there  is  nothing 
more  to  ]>ray  for:  it  is  the  completeness  of  redemj>tion  from  all 
]iliysic;il,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  evil, — from  disease,  fi-om 
ei-ror,  and  from  sin.  It  indulges  the  vision  of  perfection,  and 
ardently  longs  that  in  the  sujipliant  it  may  have  complete  i-ealiza- 
tion.  And  what  he  asks  for  himself  he  solicits  for  all  othci"8  who 
pray.     It  is  a  |»rayer  for  the  destruction  of  all  evil. 

Every  fresh  analysis  of  this  Puavkr  lets  us  more  and  more  into 


THE    SER^rON    ON   THE   MOUNT.  291 

the  mind  (»f  Jesiis.  It  is  to  l)e  noticed  that  each  petitioner  is  in- 
stnicted  by  his  very  prayer  to  regard  the  glory  of  God  as  the  first 
thing,  and  the  supply  of  his  own  wants  as  quite  secondaiy.  A 
man  who  rushes  to  his  heavenly  Father  with  requests  for  his  own 
deliverance  and  enlargement,  not  feeling  more  concerned  that 
God  may  be  adored  than  that  he  may  be  helped,  is  a  selfish  and 
undevout  worshipper.  The  rule  is  :  Worship  first  and  help  after- 
ward. Again,  there  seems  to  be  this  connection  implied,  that  the 
petitioner  desires  sustenance,  forgiveness,  and  deliverance  from 
evil,  that  he  may  be  able  to  contribute  towards  rendering  the 
name  of  the  Father  holy  in  the  hearts  of  all  men,  and  briiiirins 
all  men  to  submit  to  his  kingship  and  devote  themselves  to  carry- 
ing out  his  will.  Nor  must  the  practical  effect  of  the  sincere 
offering  of  this  prayer  upon  the  character  of  the  petitioner 
escape  our  attention.  A  man  should  pray  only  for  what  he 
really,  truly,  and  earnestly  desires.  If  he  do  not  desire  what  he 
aslvs,  he  adds  to  deceit  a  dreadful  mockery  of  the  omnipotent 
and  lo\ii)g  Father,  This  prayer  indicates  whal  he  should  desire, 
the  proper  adoration  of  God,  the  complete  acknowledgment  as 
well  as  continuance  of  his  rule  in  the  universe,  and  the  beautiful 
harmony  and  beneficent  progress  which  shall  follow  the  adjust- 
ment of  man's  moral  energies  to  the  decisions  of  the  will  of  God : 
and  in  order  that  these  things  may  be  accomplished,  for  himself 
the  petitioner  desires  only  sustenance,  foi'giveness,  and  safety. 
What  then  must  life  be  ?  Simply  the  devotion  of  man's  powers 
to  gain  these  things.  A  life  so  ordered  would  necessarily  become 
not  only  satisfactory  but  sublime.  The  petitioner  would  no  longer 
be  seeking  the  things  that  were  degrading  or  even  unnecessary, 
lie  would  never  idle.  lie  would  strive  to  obtain  proper  food  for 
his  body,  proper  culture  of  his  intellect,  proper  growth  of  his 
soul,  that  he  might  be  able  to  do  more  to  carry  forward  God's 
great  design  of  making  the  univei'se  the  domain  of  a  rule  which 
should  develop  it  into  a  boundless  estate  of  inconceivable  glory. 
Petty  cares  would  lose  their  hold  upon  such  a  man;  but  nothing 
would  be  neglected.  In  the  most  tri\  ial  matters  he  would  be 
just  and  faithful.  For  every  possible  emergency  he  would  be 
ready.  The  poets  have  not  dreamed  of  a  man  surpassing  him 
who  should  labor  to  have  this  prayer  fulfilled  in  all  equipoise  of 
passions  and  intellect,  in  all  completeness  of  self-government  and 
energy  of  action.     lie  would  come  into  a  grandeur  and  a  beauty 


202  PKCOND    AND   TIITKD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

which  would  justify  humanity  in  its  claim  of  being  offspring  of 
Deity.  Can  the  parallel  of  this  Prayer  be  found  elsewhere  in 
literature  ? 

FORGIVENESS. 

The  Teacher  steps  back  a  moment  to  enforce  the  duty  of  for- 
giveness as  a  necessary  precedent  of  prayer.   The  word  is  changed 
For  if  ye  forgive  men  from  that  Mliicli  signifies  a  debt  to  that  which 
their  binndcrs,    your  gjcrnifies  a  slIp,  a  fall,  a  defeat,  a  blunder.    In  the 

heavenly    Father    will        °  ^'  '  ' 

ai8f>  forgive  you;  but  if  translation  I  have  chosen  the  last,  as  perhaps  com- 
ye  forgive  not  men,  pj.jpjnor  jji  gome  seiise  all  the  othci-s.     The  lesson 

neither  will    your  Fa-  .  . 

ther  forgive  your  biun-  plainly  is,  that  wliatcver  other  preparation  a  man 
^'^^  may  have  for  prayer,  if    he  have  not  forgiven 

others  his  petitions  will  be  ineflicicnt.  It  is  utterly  useless  to  go  to 
God  for  forgiveness  if  I  have  not  forgiven  all  others,  considering 
their  sins  against  me  as  defeats  in  a  conflict  which  I  must  charita- 
bly suppose  they  Avaged  with  the  temptations  to  do  wrong ;  for 
that  is  the  view  which  God  chai-itably  takes  of  my  wrong  actions. 
I  owe  him  ser\'ice.  It  is  a  debt.  I  fail  to  pay.  Praying  for  for- 
giveness shows  that  I  acknowledge  the  debt  and  have  tried  to  pay, 
but  failed,  and  was  defeated.  This  blundering  life  lie  forgives, 
but  not  until  I  have  forgiven  those  who  thus  stand  related  to  me. 
The  English  vereion  of  Matthew  has  a  doxology  at  the  close  of 
the  petitions,  a  very  simple  and  very  noble  doxology.  Put  as  in 
a  histor}'  of  Jesus  we  can  consider  only  his  well-asceitaincd  words, 
this  addition  must  be  rejected.  Its  absence  from  the  Sinaitic,  the 
Vatican,  and  the  Peza  Codices  ought  to  settle  the  question  that, 
however  excellent  it  may  be,  it  was  not  a  part  of  the  prayer  which 
Jesus  delivered  to  his  disciples  for  their  use,  and  to  be  the  model 
of  all  prayer  used  by  his  followers  in  all  times.  To  the  absence 
from  the  oldest  Greek  manuscript  versions  must  be  added  the 
fact  that  the  earliest  Christian  authore  failed  to  comment  on  it. 
If  wo  found  ill  dissertations  ujum  what  is  called  Oratio  Dominica, 
"  The  I^)rd'8  Prayer,"  the  doxology  expounded  a.s  part  of  the 
prayer,  that  fact  would  create  a  violent  assumption  that  it  existed 
in  manuscripts  older  than  any  which  have  survived,  f>ldcr  than 
the  Codex  Sitmiticiis,  which  dates  back  to  the  fourth  century. 
Or,  if  we  had  relied  upon  the  Codex  Vaticann/t,  which  up  to  the 
discovery  of  the  Codex  Sinniticui*  was  our  oldest,  and  tluni  upon  the 
discovery  of  this  latter  had  found  tliat  it  contaiiicd  the  doX(jlogy, 


THE   SEItMON   ON   THE   MOUNT. 


293 


it  would  have  strengthened  the  conviction  that  it  existed  in  the 
very  first  records  made  of  the  words  of  Jesus.  But  when  none 
of  these  versions  have  it,  and  all  the  Latin  Fathers  fail  to  make 
mention  of  it,  when  expressly  explaining  the  prayer,  sound  criti- 
cism compels  us  to  reject  it. 

The  question  naturally  occurs  to  a  thoughtful  reader,  How,  then, 
did  it  appear  in  the  text  of  Matthew  1  It  is  manifestly  liturgical. 
\Vlien  liturgies  sprang  up  in  the  Church  it  was  added,*  and  then, 
when  copies  of  the  Gospels  were  made,  it  was  easily  transferred 
from  the  liturgy  by  the  memory  and  habit  of  the  copyist  into  the 
margin  or  directly  into  the  text.  Ambrose,!  who  was  born  in  the 
middle  of  the  fourth  century,  implies  that  the  doxology  was  re- 
cited by  the  priest  alone,  after  the  people  had  recited  "  The 
Lord's  Prayer."  It  is  quite  easy  to  see  how  this  Epiphonema,  as 
Ambrose  calls  it,  should  have  come  into  the  text.  But  the  proof 
thus  far  is  all  against  its  being  part  of  the  original  jirayer. 

The  Third  Example  is 


FASTING. 

The  teaching  here  is  quite  plain.  H^^^ocrites — men  playing  a 
part  for  -the  purpose  of  securing  the  applause  oi  men — make  all 
of  the  part  they  can,  look  sad  and  worn,  that  men  ^^  ^.^^„  ^^  ^^^^^  ^ 
may  praise  their  saintliness.  And  men  do.  They  come  not  as  the  hyp- 
have  their  reward,  and  they  exhaust  it.  They  ^^^  ^^^^  j^^ken  the^ 
have  none  of  that  inner  culture  which  comes  of  ^«-e.s  that  they  may  be 

..  „  ,  ,  seen  of  men  to  be  fast- 

real  self -denial,  or  abstnience  from  the  usual  en-  i^g    ^^^  Y^iiy  i  say 

ioyments  of  life  because  the  soul  is  afflicted  with  «nto  you,  They  exhaust 

•'    ''  r  r^     J       Tji         their  reward.     But 

a  pain  by  reason  of  its  departures  rroni  (rod.    it  a  thou,  fasting,  anoint 
man  choose  such  a  culture  and  its  great  reward,  he  ^^^  ^''"'^  ''"^  ""^^  *^y 

•-^  ,  face,  that  thou  be  not 

must  not  put  on  the  appearance  of  saintliness.  seen  by  men  to  be  fast- 
Let  him  fast,  if  he  lind  spiritual  profit  therein,  in^,  but  to  thy  Father 

'  r  X  '    ■^yiio   IS  m  secret,  ana 

but  let  him  fast  inwardly,  making  his  usual  toilet,  thy  rather  who  is  in 

....  T  ,  -il-j  secret  will  reward  thee. 

penmtting  no  neghgence  to  creep  into  Ins  dress, 
giving  no  sign  to  the  world  of  that  inward  spiritual  discipline 
which  he   is  enduring.      The  modern  Christian  who  makes  all 
about  him  aware  that  it  is  Friday  by  his  gluinness  or  sanctimony 
is  a  Pharisee.      The  cultivation  of  character,  not  the  flaunting  of 


*  It  appears  in  its  first  form  in  Gon»t. 
Apos.,  vii.  24,  &ti  trov  iartv  jj  $a(Tt\(ta  fls 
ai&vas'    A/ifiv.     "  For  thine  is  the  king- 


dom through  the  aeons.     Amen." 
f  De  Sacrament.,  vi.  5. 


294         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

tlie  insignia  of  religious  ceremonial,  is  the  great  work  Jesus  set 
hefure  his  disciples. 

WARNINGS    AGAINST   COVETOUSNESS. 

AVLenever  the  connection  in  this  discourse  seems  to  be  broken, 

the  clue  is  easily  found  by  recollecting  that  the  text  is  Character. 

The  Teacher  is  insisting  upon  a  man's  being  right 

Treasure  not  up  for  ,?,.,.  ,        ,  , 

yourselves  treasures  up-  and  stroug  and  beautiiul  m  his  soul :  that  a  man  a 
on  earth,  where  moth  n-reatuess  does  uot  cousist  iu  his  circumstauces 

and  rust  disfigure,  and    '-' 

where  thieves  break  but  iu  liis  internal  character :  that  a  man  may 
through  and  steal.  But  j^^^^    ^^      ^^^^    impcrishablc    and    inalienable 

treasure  up  for   your-  •'  •>■ 

selves  treasure  in  hea-  treasurc,  iiamcly,  himsclf — his  character.     Other 
ven  where  neither    j^.  Tliis  stavs.    Other  thlugs  are  earthly ; 

moth  nor  rust  disligure,  O     o  J  O  J  ' 

and  where  thieves  do    tllis  is  heaVCuly. 

reir  For  wSl  thy       Moreovcr,  a  connection  appears  in  this,  that  Je- 
treasure  there  is  also  sus  WES  Setting  a  transparent  character  in  con- 
^  trast  with  hypocrisy.  The  Pharisees  were  worldly- 

minded  to  the  core,  Avliile  all  their  extei-nal  appearance  was  reli- 
gious. They  were  blowing  trumpets  before  their  alms,  in  the 
graphic  description  of  Jesus,  were  making  long  prayers  in  market- 
places while  devouring  the  substance  of  widows,  and  fasting  osten- 
tatiously while  heaping  up  treasures  on  earth.  Having  set  forth 
the  manner  in  which  the  prominent  duties  of  religion  ought  to 
be  discharired,  the  Teacher  inculcates  the  entire  conseci-ation  of 
the  life,  in  the  heai-t  and  soul  of  a  man.  It  is  to  be  marked  how 
he  adheres  to  one  theme.  It  is  not  because  all  earthly  jiossessions 
are  liable  to  destruction  from  the  wear  and  tear  of  time,  or  the 
force  or  fraud  of  men,  nor  for  the  safety  of  the 2)ossesdons,  tliat 
Jesus  insists  that  all  things  shall  be  contrived  into  an  investment 
in  spiritual  and  eternal  things,  but  for  the  effect  upon  the  charac- 
ter, for  the  heart's  sake  ;  for  "  where  is  thy  treasure  there  is  also 
thy  heart;"  and  for  everlasting  dignity  and  happiness  the  imper- 
ishable affections  must  be  fi.xed  on  imperishable  things. 

AGAINST   DOUBLE-MINDEDNESS. 

That  his  disciples  miglit  learn  the  importance  of  preserving 
tlear-sightedness  in  spiritual  things,  he  brings  an  illustration  from 
a  bodily  member,  and  this  he  does  not  scientifically,  but,  as 
always  in  such  cases,  p()i)ularly,  as  the  people  undei-stood  it. 
•Sight   is  simple.     A  healthy  eye  is  needed.     An  eye  that  sees 


THE    SEKMON    ON   THE   MOUNT.  295 

double  is  an  evil  e3'e,  and  utterly  confusing.  So,  when  the  soul's 
eye  begins  to  flicker,  becoming  uncontrollable,  seeing  double, 
connningling  and  confusing  objects,  it  is  a  bad  The  lamp  of  the  body 
time  for  the  man  who  depends  upon  it.     His  light  '^  *^^''  ^^'^ •  '^  ^^^^  ^y« 

be    clear,     thy    whole 

is  darkness — tlie  greatest  darkness — worse  than  body  shaii  be  bright : 
total  blhidness,  to  which  a  man  may  adapt  him-  but  if  thine  eye  be  bad, 

.  .  \  '■^  thy  whole  body  shall  be 

sell.  It  IS  uncertani,  unreliable,  yet  inducing  the  dark,  if  then  the 
man  to  rely  upon  it  because  it  seems  to  be  right.  ^^^^  ^^""^  '!  ^"  ^^''^ 

''J-  "be  darkness,  how  great 

If  the  light  be  darlviiess,  liow  great  the  darkness  !   the  darkness! 

Jesus  continues  to  dissuade  his  disciples  from  the  double-mind- 
edness  of  the  Pharisees  by  a  second  illustration,  taken  from  social 
life.     The  word  employed  in  Greek  can  be  trans- 

.  ,  -,       ^         ,,     I  .,  Ill  No  man  can  be  slave 

iated  only  by  slave,  one  who  belongs  to  an-  to  two  masters;  for 
other.      A  hired  servant  may  in  some  sense  serve  "*^'^''  ^°  ^""  ^''^  °^° 

"  ,  ■  and  love  the  other,  or 

two  men  equally  well,  but  a  slave  is  a  member  of  he  win  cung  to  the 
a  family.    As  a  son  cannot  be  son  of  two  parents  *°'™<=''*  '"^^  despise 

■^  ■•■  _       the  latter.     Ye  cannot 

at  once,  so  a  servant  that  belongs  to  a  master  is  be  slaves  to  God  and 
devoted  to  his  master  utterly.  His  only  comfort  ^'^™™°°' 
is  in  undivided  aifection  and  service.  So  as  to  the  claims  of  God 
and  Mammon.  You  cannot  serve  both  at  the  same  time.  The 
Pharisees  have  tried  it  and  failed.  They  are  kept  from  the  full 
enjoyment  of  their  gains  by  their  religious  pretences ;  they  lose 
the  pleasure  of  undivided  religious  service  by  their  base  worldli- 
ness.  A  man  must  be  single-hearted  to  be  good,  and  great, 
and  happy.  Mammon  seems  merely  to  be  a  Chaldee  word  for 
"  riches."  There  is  no  evidence  that  the  Syrians,  as  has  been  as- 
serted, ever  worshipped  a  god  of  that  name. 

AGAINST   EXCESSIVE    ANXIETY. 

In  this  passage  the  Teacher  enlarges  the  idea  of  single-mind- 
edness  in  a  direction  which  excludes  distracting  care.  lie  has 
been  speaking  of  clear-sightedness :  he  now  speaks  of  directness 
of  living.     A  man's  full  powers  are  needed  for  each  day's  living. 


*  In  the   common  version  it  stands, 
either  he  will  hate  the  one  and  love 


spise  B,"  which  is  certainly  the  sense, 
and    such    I   have   given   it  by  using 


the  other,  or  else  he  will  hold  to  the  one  |  ' '  former  ' '    and    ' '  latter ' '    so  that  in 


and  despise  the  other,"  the  latter  clause 
being  merely  a  repetition  of  the  former. 
But  this  certainly  is  not  the  meaning. 
Meyer  expresses  it ;  "  He  will  either 
hate  A  and  love  B,  or  cling  to  A  and  de- 


both  members  of  the  sense  the  6  eis 
.shall  refer  to  one  person,  and  6  krepos 
shall  refer  to  another.  Dean  Alford 
sanctions  this  translation. 


296 


SECOND    AND  THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


He  cannot  afford  to  have  his  forces  scattered.     Double-minded 

ness  does  this.     Loving  God  and  hating  Mammon,  hating  God 

On  this  account  I  say  and  loving  Mammon,  in  perpetual  alternation,  is 

unto  you,  Be  not  exces-     .  i  •  p       i  .  o       i  i 

Eiveiy  anxious  for  your  ^^^  i'"i"  ot  charactcr.     So  he  procceds  very  ear- 
inner  man,*  what  ye  ncstlj  and  eloquently  to  strip  his  disciples  of  the 

are  to  cat,  nor  for  your  ,  r-ii  in  i  i 

outer  man,  what  ye  are  eucumbraiice  ot  all  worldly  carcs,  that  they  may 
to  wear.   Is  not  the  give  tliemsclves  to  tlic  lofticst  self-culturc. 

soul    more    than    food  t-»      •.  ■•  ■  .  r    -r  11 

ond  the   body  than       Jrcrhaps  ahnost  uo  teaching  or  Jesus  has  been 
clothing?  Look  upon  qq  variously  undei-stood  and  so  wretchedlv  misiu- 

the    birds  of  the  air,  t  1   •  •       i  t    " 

for  they  sow  not,  nor  torpreted  as  tliis  particular  passage.     It  is  quite 
reap,  nor  gather  into  ngcossary  that  WO  do  it  the  iustice  to  api)ly  a  lit- 

Btorehousos,   and   your  ^  ,        ,  •'  . 

tie  common  sense  to  its  interpretation. 


It  certainly  does  not  teach  idleness,  sloth,  list- 


heavenly  Fath(?r  feed- 
eth  them.  Do  yon  not 
differ  from  them,  and 

is  not  the  difference  lessiicss,  iicglect  of  Ordinary  affair.  Or  any  voluii- 

much  in  your  favor ?t  ^       impoverishment.    It  does  not  teach  starvation 

But  who  of  you  by  be-  ''  ^ 

ing  excessively  anxious  aiid  iiakediicss.     It  docs  iiot  ciicourage  the  f  aiiati- 

has  the  power  to  add  j   ^^      f    ^j      j^        ^^^^,^^  ^^^^  u  l^^^-  ^^^^    L^j.J    ^.^^^ 

to  his  life  one  single  O  o 

cubit  ?  *    And  about  care  of  "  a  man.     It  teaches  precisely  the  opposite 

!!!'!"".,!!;  ?,!'f  ^  rf  of  all  these  thini^.     It  teaches  that  a  man  is  to 

over-anxiou8?    Consid-  O 

er  the  luics  of  the  field  euiploy  all  liis  facultics  and  time  in  doing  what 

neither ^toirLr  spin:  his  placc  iu  the  kiugdom  of  God  plainly  demands 

and  I  say  unto  you  That  ^f  i^j,ji  ^iid  Satisfying  wliatovcr  rif!;hteous  claim 

not  even  Solomon  in  all  ,   .  ..  .        .  "",  .,  •. 

his  giorj-  was  unayed  aiiy  ouo  has  upou  lum.     Uii  principle,  and  as  tlie 

like   one    of    these.  pniiei])al   thiiiir,  the  kinordom  of  God  is  to  be 

Wherefore,  if  God  thus  ^  ^  i  r      i         1  n    r^     j     • 

clothe  the  grass  of  the  soiiglit,  tlic  rule  of  tlic  law  ot  God  111  the  lite, 


*  The  word  may  be  translated  "  life  " 
or  "soul."  The  soul's  continuance  in 
the  body  does  depend  upon  food,  and 
yet  it  seems  somewhat  harsh  to  translate 
the  word  by  "  soul  "  in  this  case,  and 
bring  it  so'  abruptly  close  to  food.  As 
the  outer  man  is  in  the  connection 
named  (retina,  so  the  inner  man  is  named 

f  This  is  a  circumlocution,  and  jet  I 
have  not  Inanicd  how  to  convey  the 
Bense  of  the  orit,'inal  in  closer  English. 
The  Greek  is  ovx  vfitti  uaWov  Sia'pffifrt 
avruv.  The  common  version,  "  Are  ye 
not  much  better  than  they  ?  "  conveys 
only  part  of  the  meanuig.  In  the  ver- 
sion  above  I  think  I  have  given  the 
whole  meaning. 


X  A  cubit  is  two  spans.  In  the  com- 
mon version  the  tran.slation  is  "stat- 
ure." The  word  signifies  either  "  age  " 
or  "  height."  The  objection  to  the  lat- 
ter is  that  Jesus  is  showing  that  they 
cannot  do  the  least  thing,  and  therefore 
it  is  useless  to  be  anxious  about  the 
greate.st ;  but  to  add  eighteen  inches  to 
any  man's  height  were  a  very  great 
thing,  hence  it  is  inappropriate  here. 
Moreover,  Jesus  is  talking  of  the  life, 
and  hence  "  age  "  is  appropriate.  The 
objection  to  this  rendering  is  that  span 
is  a  measure  of  space  and  not  of  time. 
In  reply,  life  is  often  represented  as  a 
journey,  and  we  have  tlie  common 
phrase,  "  if/i^tA  of  life. "    Sue  Ps.  xxxix 


THE   SERMON   ON   TUE   MOUNT.  297 

the  knowledoje  of  that  Law,  and  perfect  and  joyful  ^^''''  ^^'^''^  ^"'^y  '"^ 

°  '  *■  •!       •  ^'^'^  to-moiTo\v  is  cast 

submission  to  it.     That  surely  and  necessarily  m-  into  tue  oven,  wiu  he 
eludes  tlie  discharge  of  all  duties  towards  God,  not  much  more  you,  yc 

o  '    of  httle  faith  ? 

towards  our  fellows,  and  towards  ourselves.     No     Therefore  do  not  ua 
grander  life  than  that  has  yet  been  conceived.  ZT^'^'^T'   7?""' 

o  'J  What  shall  we  eat  ?  oi 

But  the  drawback  of  most  men  is  that  they  are  whatshaiiwe  drink? 

double,  that  they  use  their   vision  wanderingly,  ^^ZZLTZZ 

looking  upon  spiritual  things  and  temporal  things  the  Pagans  seek.   For 

as  different  and  conilicting,  and  both  desirable,  ^^^^IZyThZelZa 

seeing  much  good  in  God  and  much   good   in  of  aii  these  things. 

-mjT  1  .•  I'll  1        But    seek     chiefly  his 

Jviammon  ;  and  so  remaining  undecided,  or  mak-  kingdom  and   right- 
ing slight  efforts.     Jesus  teaches  a  concentration  eonsness,  ana  aii  these 

,.      77^,7  ,7  '_i         jy  _ii  J.    things  shall    be  added 

oj  ail  the  ^owe7's  on  trie  jpursutts  of  the  most  ^^to  you.   Therefore, 
precious  thing,  leaving  the  results  to  the  heavenly  donotbe  anxious  about 

"£_,     -  .  7/n  7  •  to-morrow,  for  to-mor- 

Tather,  and  J')/«/J7^;^(/  the  effectual  co-operation  ^ow  wiu  have  its  own 
of  the  heavenlu  Father  to  secure  success.  o.ivxiety.  sufficient  for 

,—  ._.  .  .-  ,,       the  day  is  its  own  trou- 

The  teaching  of  Jesus  was  intended  to  enable  we. 
men  to  attend  better  to  their  rightful  business 
by  relieving  them  of  all  carking  and  weakening  cares.  lie  con- 
trasts the  man  with  his  circmnstances,  his  soul  and  body  witli 
liis  food  and  clothing.  Did  God  make  men  and  women  merely 
that  they  might  eat  and  dress  ?  If  so,  then  you  cannot  be  too 
careful  for  these  things,  and  they  should  be  chiefly  sought.  The 
body  and  soul  were  made  for  the  garments  and  meats,  in  such  a 
case.  But  if  the  food  and  raiment  are  merely  to  keep  the  body 
and  soul  together  for  the  purpose  of  having  a  character  wrought 
out,  then,  while  that  important  process  is  being  faithfully  carried 
foi-ward,  the  Almighty  Father  knows  what  his  child  needs  and 
will  not  fail  to  furnish  the  supplies. 

The  force  and  beauty  of  the  two  illustrations  are  worth  some 
study.  In  them  is  contained  an  argument  a  fortiori :  if  God 
will  do  all  this  for  birds  and  flowers,  what  may  He  not  rationally 
be  expected  to  do  for  His  iMtional,  sensitive  children?  Look  first 
at  the  birds.  They  are  merely  birds;  they  have  no  residence,  they 
are  "  of  the  air,"  apparently  thriftless  but  cheerful  little  vaga- 
bonds, holding  no  real  estate,  engaging  in  no  agricultural  or  com- 
mercial pursuits,  simply  following  their  instincts,  doing  what  God 
put  them  into  the  world  to  do.  Inconsiderable  as  they  seem,  if 
God  chose  to  create  them  He  feels  Himself  charged  to  maintain 
them,  and  He  does  feed  them.     He  is  not  their  Father,  He  is 


298 


SKCOND    AND    THIRD    PASSOVER   IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


merely  their  Creator.  But  lie  is  "  yoicr  Father,"  Are  you  not 
more  worth  preserving  tliaii  they  ?  Does  not  your  Father  diserim 
inate  between  His  creatures  and  Ilis  children  ? 

I>ut  what  good  comes  of  over-care?  Has  it  ever  increased 
your  sagacity  or  your  ability?  Has  it  ever  added  to  your  life  so 
nmch  as  two  spans?  Did  any  profit  ever  come  to  any  man  from 
excessive  anxiety  ?  And  as  for  clothing,  its  want  of  loftiest  value 
is  seen  in  the  fact  that  God  bestows  it  not  on  men,  not  on  women, 
not  on  kings  and  queens,  but  on  the  unconscious  flowei-s.  They 
have  no.intelligoiuj;e  and  no  address,  and  so  G<jd  gives  them  dress 
as  a  special  attractiveness;  but  witliholds  it  from  men  and  women, 
who  have  eyes  and  mouths  for  luminous  and  vocal  expression, 
and  so  having  this  great  capability  of  address  they  do  not  need  that 
which  is  such  pomp  and  glory  to  the  flowers.  If  they  desire  it 
they  cannot  have  it.  Solomon,  when  gold  and  silver  and  pi-ecious 
stones,  and  ivory  and  all  wealth  poured  in  upon  him,  and  when  he 
exerted  his  ingenuity  and  employed  his  extensive  commercial 
connections  to  render  his  pereon  and  his  throne  glorious,  wt)uld 
in  his  summer  walks,  see  himself  out-splendored  by  the  "  ci-own- 
imperial "  that  grew  upon  his  pathway,  or  all  his  magnificence 
eclipsed  by  the  golden  liliaceous  flowers  with  which  the  "amaryl- 
lis"  em-iched  the  autumnal  fields  about  his  royal  city;*  and  he 
knew  that  he  could  never  sit  under  canopy  made  by  art  which 
should  equal  the  velvety  softness  of  that  gorgeous  "lily  of  the 
valleys  "  which,  with  the  rose  of  Sharon,  he  has  innnortalized  in 
his  "  Song  of  Songs."  f  Man's  is  a  nol)ler  glory  than  the  glory 
of  irarments.  lie  diffei-s  from  biids  and  lilies,  wliile  he  i^athers 
lessons  from  them.  He  need  not  take  these  as  exemplai-s:  he  is 
not  onlv  somcthin<r  different  but  somethin<x  nmch  better.  And 
will  not  his  heavenly  Father  care  for  him?  The  birds  are  of  the 
air,  the  lilies  are  of  the  field,  not  cared  for  by  man,  are  commou 
]>r<>pcrty.  Man  is  of  the  heavens.  Field  and  air,  lily  and  bird, 
will  all  pass  away.  Man  and  heaven  will  remain.  Pagans  find 
their  greatest  delight  and  glory  in  caring  for  their  bodies.  The 
followers  of  Jesus  are  to  make  their  greatest  work  the  culture  of 
their  souls.     And  then,  so  far  from  being  sure  to  starve,  and  finding 


*  The  "  crown-imperial "  (fritillaria 
imperialis)  grows  wild  iu  Palestine,  and 
tlie  aniaryllis  lutca,  acconling  to  Sir  J. 
E.  Smith,  covers  the  fields  in  the  Levant. 


f  See  Song  ii.  t,  2,  16.  This  waa 
undoubtedly  the  HiMeh  lily,  which  Mr. 
Thomson  so  enthusiastically  praises  in 
The  Ijiiid  and  the  Book,  vol.  L  p.  'Sdi. 


THE   SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  299 

the  service  of  the  king  a  failure  and  an  impoverishment,  Jesus 
pledges  the  heavenly  Fatlier  to  sup})ly  everything  needful.  A  man 
may  seek  "  all  these  things  "  and  fail  to  find  them;  hut  he  that  seeks, 
on  principle,  as  the  principal  thing,  the  estahlishmentof  God's  king- 
dom and  the  reign  of  the  right,  shall  always  have  shelter  and  nour- 
ishment. These  are  the  shell  in  which  the  kernel  of  character  ig 
to  grow. 

AGAINST   UARSII   JUDGMENTS. 

By  a  natural  transition  of  discourse,  Jesus  passed  from  the 
judgments  we  should  pronounce  upon  ourselves  to  those  we  pj-o- 
nounce  upon  others. 

These  words  certainly  cannot  be  reasonably  taken  to  mean  that 
we  are  to  suspend  the  exercise  of  that  admirable  faculty  with 
which  God  has  endowed  us,  by  which  we  com-  ^^^^,^,^^,  i^^rsh- 
pare  conduct  and  character  with  his  own  great  ly,  that  you  bo  not 
standard  of  morality.  There  are  few  more  im-  wuTwhartudgmenl 
proving  exercises  than  this,  for  the  quickening  of  ye  j"'^ge,  ye  shau  be 

,  M'T.  1,1  •  1  r    judged,  and  with  what 

our  own  moral  sensibihty  and  the  guidance  or  measure  ye  measure,  ye 
our  own  lives.     The  Great  Teacher  condennis  the  shaii  be  measured.  And 

,,.,.,,.,  ,    .      why  dost  thou  observe 

nnloveiy  spirit  with  whicli  many  are  wont  to  criti-  thespUnter  that  is  m 
cise  the  conduct  of  their  fellows,  to  make  the  ^^y  brother's  eye,  and 

.  /•mi-  •  "^"^  ^°^  perceive   the 

most  uniavorable  judgments  or  all  their  actions,  beam  that  is  in  twne 
and  to  assio-n  to  bad  motives  actions  that  mav  iust  """^  ^^^^    °'"   ^"^'^ 

o  „  ^    .  dost  thou  say  to  thy 

as  well  be  supposed  to  have  sprung  from  motives  brother,  "Brother,  let 
that  are   pure    and    noble.     To   "judge"    here  ""  p"^"  ^pJ^"*" 

r  J        o  ^  from  thme  eye,     and 

means  neither  the  passing  of  just  or  of  unjust  behow  a  beam  is  in 
judgment,  but  the  sjdnt  with  which  this  is  done,  t'^*"^"-"^^^?  Hnx>- 

J        D  y  J.  cnte,     first     cast    the 

Men  ought  to  be  careful  not  to  form  judgments  beam  from  tuine  own 

.-,  IT  1        i'1  iTTi  eye,  and  then  Shalt  thou 

unnecessarily,  nor  carelessly,  nor  hastily.     AVhen  ^  cieariy  to  cast  the 
duty  and  observance  of  the  re(piiremenfs  of  jus-  splinter  from  thy  broth- 
tice  demand,  then  we  may  pass  judgment.     But 
even  then  not  hastily  and  not  harshly.     The  reason  assigned  is  that 
we  shall  be  judged  with  the  judgment  which  we  api)ly  to  others. 

God  is  judge.  To  judge  one's  fellow-men  is  to  assume  his 
prerogative.  Our  judgments  will  be  reviewed  hy  the  Searcher  of 
all  hearts.  The  Great  Teacher  does  not  mean  that  if  we  are 
lenient  to  the  faults  of  others  God  will  tlierefore  be  lenient  to  us 
— that  if  we  lose  the  distinction  of  right  and  wrong  towai-ds  our 
fellow-men,  God  will  therefore  obliterate  that  grand  distinction 
in  His  own  mind.     But  he  does  mean  that  our  judgments  of 


300         SKCONU    AND   TIIIUD    PAS80VEK   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

others  are  to  be  the  materials  upon  which  man  may,  and  God  will 
make  up  judgment  in  our  own  cases  ;  not  that  the  only  test  of  our 
chai-actcjs  will  be  the  judgment  we  have  of  the  character  of  othei-s, 
but  that  it  will  be  one  of  the  surest  of  such  tests.  Our  decisions 
are  not  final.  They  do  not  touch  our  fellow-men  as  that  from 
which  there  is  no  appeal;  but  if  they  have  been  unjust  and  unne- 
cessarily severe  they  come  back  in  condemnation  on  our  own  souls. 

And  still  there  is  this  other  reason :  Severity  of  judgment  has 
a  tendency  to  malce  such  judges  hypocrites. 

A  man  will  pretend  to  have  kind  motives,  whereas  no  man  who 
uttei-8  an  unnecessarily  severe  judgment  of  his  fellow-man  can 
feel  kindly  towards  him.  The  must  ruinous  things  are  said  in 
society  in  the  softest  tones  and  surrounded  by  phrases  of  great  com- 
passion. But  it  is  all  a  pretence.  "  Poor  fellow  !  "  "I  am  sorry 
it  is  so ! "  But  you  do  not  pity  him,  and  do  not  know  that  it  is  so. 
Jesus  presents  a  satirical  picture  of  such  a  man.  He  describes 
liim  as  going  to  a  brother  who  has  a  8}»linter  in  his  eye,  and  say- 
iiif  tenderly,  "Let  me:  I'll  pull  out  tlie  uKjte  out  of  thine  eye." 
But  he  is  a  hypocrite.  There  is  a  rafter  in  his  own  eye.  He  is 
foolish.  How  can  he  with  a  log  of  wcjod  in  his  own  eye  see  how 
t(^  perform  the  surgical  operation  of  extracting  the  splinter  from  his 
brother's  eye  ?  And  this  shows  the  uselessness  of  all  such  j  udgments. 
If  charity  begins  at  home,  so  should  judgment.  AVash  your  own 
hands  bcfcjre  you  p(jint  out  the  soiled  hands  of  your  fellows. 

The  Teacher  guards  against  the  opposite  extreme  of  laxity. 

While  we  ai-e  to  be  careful  not  to  pronounce  any  harsh  judgment 

upon  any  man,  we  are  to  discriminate  among  men, 

Do  not  (?ive  the  holy        ^  ini  iii         ^       •  -jt 

thing  to  cioB«,  nor  .»«t  or  else  w^e  shall  always  be  blundering  in  dealing 
your    pearls    before  ^^j(.j^  theiii.     There  are  distinctions  in  character. 

swine,  lest  they  tram-  i .  i         i  p        r  • 

pie  them  In  their  feet,  Soiue  meu  are  like  dogs  for  ferocious  oppugnance 
and tjiming  might t*ar  t,,  ^Ijq  truth,  otlici-s  like  swiue  for  their  iiupurity. 
To  give  them  sacred  and  precious  things  were  a  sad 
mistake.  In  the  Ejist,  the  dog  and  the  hog  are  the  most  despised 
of  animals.  Jesus,  by  this  strong  language,  taught  that  absolute 
abandonnicMit  of  moral  distinction  is  a  mental  vice  which  stands 
over  against  uncharitable  judgments. 


*  Dickinson's  tranRliition  is,  "  Give 
not  that  which  is  con.secratcd  to  the 
(logs,  lest  they  turn  and  tear  you  ;  nor 
cast  your  pearls  Iw-'fure  swine,  lest  they 


trample  them  under  their  feet."  which 
probiilily  is  the  sense,  but  the  transla- 
tion },'ivcn  above  follows  the  order  of  th« 
ori^riuol  text. 


THE    SERMON   ON   THE   MOUNT.  30] 

AGAINST  DOUBTING    GOD. 

The  connection  seems  to  be  this  :  lie  had  urged  freedom  from 
sxcessive  carefuhiess  as  necessary  to  dignity  and  strength  of  char- 
acter.    That  men  may  be  free  from  carking  care 
he  directs  them  to  go  to  their  heavenly  Father  in    /"'^  ""'' ''  '^"  ""' 

0  ''  given  you ;    Beek,  and 

prayer,  and  gives  the  assurance  that  every  truly  yo  shaii  tind;  knock, 
persevering  soul  shall  have  success.  He  lays  Tyl'^ZtZT. 
down  as  a  universal  proposition,  that  every  true  who  asks  receives,  and 

1  iTTi  .        who  seeks  finds,  and  to 

prayer  is  answered.  When  any  man  comes  to  ^in.  that  knocks  it 
God  and  sincerely  prays  that  his   sins  may  be  s'"'"  ^^  opened,    or 

n  .  ,  1        T     ,    1  i    •  1     what  man   is  there  ol 

forgiven,  he  may  go  away  absolutely  certain  and  you,  whom  his  son  ask- 
sure  that  his  prayer  has  been  answered,  and  that  ^'^  f"""  i'"*'^  ?  ^<'  ^"U 

,  .        .  r  '  *       1  1      1  1  '*''*  ^■'■•^  ^™  *  stone  I 

his  sms  are  forgiven.  And  so  whatever  the  pe-  or  even  asks  for  a  fish? 
titioner  needs  God  gives  in  answer  to  his  prayer,  he  win  not  ?ive  him  a 

^      , ,  .  «  T  1  •       1  1  .     .  serpent !    If  yon,  being 

God  s  gifts  are  good,  and  suited  to  the  recipient,  evii,  know  to  give  good 
If  a  human  father  adapts  his  gifts  to  his  child,  ^"^ '°  y""""  ^^"'^^™' 

,  1  ,         T  ,  i^y    ^°^    much     mora 

not  offering  a  stone  when  he  should  present  bread,  shau  your  Father  in  the 
much  more  the  good  Father  in  the  heavens,  lifted  ^"'''''^'^^    ^^'^    ^^ 

"     ^  _    _  _  ^  ^  ,       things    to    them    that 

above  all  human  infirmities,  will  give  to  all  Ilis  askhimi  au  things, 
children,  if  not  what  they  ask,  certainly  what  they  ^'^e'-efore,   that    yon 

'  _  •/  '  ^      >/  </     wish  men  to  do  to  you, 

need.     His  gifts  would  not  be  good  if  not  adapted  the  same  aiso  do  ye  to 

i.„  1  •«      1  '1  1  them.     For  this  is  the 

to  his  children.  ,        , ,.         .  , 

law  and  the  prophets. 

There  seems  also  this  connection  with  what  im- 
mediately precedes.  You  know  what  you  would  have  your  heav- 
enly Father  do  to  your  fellow-men.  Do  so  to  them,  not  judging 
harshly,  not  giving  inappropriately.  What  yon  would  have  God 
do  to  you,  that  do  to  your  neighbor ;  for  manifestly  that  is  what 
you  desire  your  neighbor  to  do  to  you.  Our  petitions  to  God  are 
the  expressions  of  our  highest  and  best  self-love. 

Thus  this  Teacher  has  shown  that  he  taught  nothing  which  was 
to  invalidate  the  law  and  the  prophets,  but  much  that  was  to  ful- 
fil them,  and  that  the  demands  of  the  moral  law  are  not  met  by  a 
rigorous  observance  of  the  outward  letter,  but  by  the  building  up 
of  a  character  in  accordance  with  the  spirit  of  the  law. 

AGAINST   THE   BEOAD   WAT. 

As  compared  with  an  earnest  culture  of  the  character,  the  mere 
Pharisaic  observance  of  outward  Pharisaic  rites  is  quite  an  easy 
thino:.     It  is  the  broad  road.     The  other  is  the  narrow.     It  is  not 


302 


SECOND    ANT)   TIITHD   PASSOVER    IN    THE    LIFE    OF   .TEPUS. 


of  itpelf  SO  difficult  a  thing  that  men  niaj  aliaiKlon  the  attempt  to 

enter  it.     The  fewness  of  those  who  do  enter  is  not  due  so  much 

Enter  through  the  to  its  difficulty,  wliich  is  admitted,  as  to  the  fact 

narrow  pnte:  for  broad  |.|jj^^  g^  manv  are  drawii  away  into  the  broader 

and    Hpacions    is    the  t-*  i  i  111 

road  ica.\.ng  away  into  road.     But  that  the  uarrow  Way  ratlicr  than  the 
destruction,  and  many  gpaeious  road  sliould  1)6  souffht,  is  urgcd,  and  a 

are     those      entering       '■  o       7  o       •> 

thmuj-'h  it,  because  nar-  powerf ul  rcasou  suggested  by  tlie  very  verb  that 
row  iB  the  pate  and  re-  j^  ^^^^.   „  ^^^^^  awav''  ouc  to  destructiou  aud  the 

stncted  *  the  road  that  '  •' ' 

icadi!  away  into  ufe,  otlicr  to  life,  intimating  that  both  roads  are  very 
and  f^ew  are  they  who  j^^^^^^^  ^^^^^  ^^^^^^  ^j^^  travellers  thercon  into  scenes 

fai-  removed  from  this  present  state  of  affaii*s,  and 
therefoi-e  the  choice  of  roads  should  be  made  with  great  care. 

The  difficulties  of  cultivating  character  are  enhanced  by  teach- 
ers of  falsehood,  who  assume  such  manners  of  sanctity  that  they 
,,,  may  deceive.     "  From  within  "  such  men  are  ra- 

Be ware  of  false  pro-  J 

phots  who  come  to  pacious,  aud  usc  cven  the  office  of  teaching  morals 

r::tr:;:hrth5  for  base  purposes.     Jesus  showshow  constantly 

arc  raveninp  wolves.  \^q  l^ecps  liis  great  thcme  ill  view  by  his  very 

^lmlTkm!^I'th™!'  Do  mode  of  describing  false  teachers,  not  by  sapng 

person''  pather  prnpes  ^-j^f^f  j]ipy  ^q  ]^^^^  \^y  dcscribiug  wliat  tliev  arc. 

from    thoma,    or     Aks  ^  ^  .         '  '    1   •    1 

from  thistles?    Thus  Tlicir  actious  spriug  from  an  inmost  nature  winch 
every  pood  tree  pro-  j^  ^^olfisli  and  sclfish.     And  the  Same  thing  is  set 

duces  beautiful  fruits,  ^ 

and  every  rotten  tr.>e  forth  iu   liis  illustratiou   di'awu  fi'om  trccs  aud 

produces  evil  fruits. 
It  U  not  possible  that 
a  pfHKl  tree  should  pro- 
duce evil  fruits,  nor 
that  a  rotten  tree 
should  produce  beauti- 
ful fruits.  Every  tree 
that  dix»«  not  prmlucc 


their  fruit.  The  man  who  is  not  really  good  is 
like  a  tree  wliich  may  be  laden  Avith  artificial 
fruit,  M-hile  it  is  absolutely  unproductive  or  is  ca- 
pable of  producing  only  evil  fruits.  A  man  need 
have  little  care  for  the  fruitage  of  his  life,  but 
bonuHfui  fruit  u  hewn  must  bc  iiiost  carcf  ul  for  the  sap  of  his  soul.     The 

down  and  caxt  into  the  ,,  .,  ,        <.•.  mii  •    ■x  j.         l 

iirv.    80  then,  from  sap  being  right  the  fruit  will  be  right.     Jesus 
their  fruits  ye  shall  teaclics  that  tlic  laws  of  the  intellectual  and  spi- 

know  them.  ,,,  -iii  11 

ritual  world  are  as  settled  and  as  regularly  oper- 
ative as  those  of  the  ])liysical  world.  ^Y]\ere  there  is  a  really 
good  and  beautiful  life  there  must  be  a  really  good  and  beauti- 
ful soul  ;  and  where  a  iiian's  charattter  is  really  bad,  no  repressive 
carefuhiess  can  keej)  back  the  bitter  fruits  of  bad  act.^.  In  eitlier 
rcasc,  for  a  season,  intervening  circumstances  may  prevent  the  ob- 


•  The  original  is  not  f.iirly  met  by 
our  l'n(,'liKh  word  "  narrow,"  the  Greek 
word  being  a  paasive  participle,  strictly 


meaning  ' '  squeezed,"  as  Dr.  J.  A.  Alex 
ander  notices. 


THE   SEKMON   ON   THE   MOUNT. 


303 


server  from  seeing  the  connection,  but  it  will  somehow  finally 
assert  itself.  Hence  the  necessity  of  being  more  careful  to  culti 
vate  the  character  than  to  protect  the  reputation. 

•*         AGAINST   HYPOCRISY. 

And  now  he  turns  to  those  who  were  gatliering  about  him,  and 
instructs  them  that  mere  profession  of  attachment  to  his  pei-sou, 
that  even  zeal  for  the  ffreat  work  which  he  iiad     .^ . « 

t>  v^  v-i        jj^j^  ^  every  one  who 

undertaken,  that  even  the  possession  of  power  to  says  to  me,  "Lord, 

r  iiiij^  •  1  -^^  ,     1         Lord,"  shall  enter  into 

perform  deeds  that  are  miraculous,  will  not  be  the  kingdom  of  the  hea- 
suflicient  to  insure  them  a  place  in  the  kingdom  ^^'^ns:  but  he  that  docs 

1   .    1      nn         n     ,1         1  .1  ,  1  1     the  things  willed  by  my 

winch  nils  all  the  heavens, — the  great  moral  and  Father  in  the  heavens, 
spiritual  kingdom  which  he  is  now  preaching, — but  ^''"y  shaii  fay  to  me 

,.,,,,  1  T   1  in  that  dav,    "Lord, 

that  it  IS  absolutely  necessary  to  establish  a  pro-  Lo^d,  have"we  not  in 

found  and  lofty  moral  character,  and  that  this  can  ^^y  "'^'"^  preached, 

be  done  only  by  an  inward  conrormity  to  the  will  peued  many  demons, 

of  his  heavenly  Father.  "^"^  '"  '^>'  '"''^'  ''''■ 

''  _  ^  formed  many  works  of 

That  not  only  are  professions  comparatively  power?''  And  then 
valueless,  but  that  even  the  possession  of  singular  ^u i  pro^s  t to  thom, 

'  -i  o  II I  never  knew  you." 

gifts,  such  as  excite  the  admiration  of  the  world,  separate  yourseu-ea 
will  avail  nothing  in  the  absence  of  a  true  and  ^o^'j^^^glwIe^nesT" 
hiirh  character,  he  teaches  in  a  brief  dramatic 


passage  of  almost  fearful  power.  It  is  as  if  he  had  said :  All 
time  is  not  now.  Days  are  coming  after  this  day.  To  all  hypo- 
crites and  self -deceivers  some  day  of  exposure  will  come.  •  They 
may  plead  against  it.  They  may  appeal  to  the  eloquent  sermons 
they  have  delivered  in  explanation  or  defence  or  enforcement  of 
my  doctrines;  they  may  appeal  to  the  force  that  lay  in  them,  which 
was  sufficient  to  cast  out  the  demons  who  had  taken  possession  of 
men ;  they  may  appeal  to  apparent  miracles  which  they  have  per- 
formed in  my  name,  and  these  appeals  may  be  founded  on  facts 
which  I  will  not  deny.  But  this  I  will  do,  I  will  make  such  ex- 
posure of  them  as  shall  be  the  same  as  if  in  speech.  I  will  tell  them 
that  I  had  never  known  them  as  being  of  my  people  and  subjects 


*  The  Greek  oh  wa?  6  x^ymv  .  .  .  (lat- 
AeuTETai  does  not  signify  that  every  one 
who  calls  Jesus  "  Lord  "  shall  be  excluded 
from  the  kingdom  which  he  was  preach- 
ing ;  but  that  calling  him  so  docs  not  of 
itself  secure  such  admission. 


f  The  word  in  the  Greek  is  striking. 
It  means,  as  Alford  points  out,  a  state- 
ment of  the  simple  truth  of  facts  as  op- 
posed to  the  false  coloring  and  self-de- 
ceit of  the  hypocrites. 


304         SECOND    AND   TIIIKD   PASSOVER   IN    THE   LITE   OF   JESUS. 

of  the  heavenly  kingdom  ;  tliat  I  always  knew  that  they  were  not 
doing  my  Father's  will. 

Then,  after  that  startling  announcement,  which  was  all  the 
more  terrible  because  the  day  was  not  designated,  Jesus  turned 
upon  the  crowd  about  him,  and  in  substance-said:  "  Seeing  that 
this  is  the  case,  I  charge  every  man  whose  life  is  a  series  of  works 
done  lawlessly,  without  regard  to  the  law  of  the  right,  which  is 
the  will  of  my  heavenly  Father,  to  separate  himself  from  me  and 
my  community.  Wliatever  power  to  perform  miracles  he  may 
Reem  to  possess,  I  acknowledge  no  gifts  and  no  professions.  Char- 
acter is  everji;hing.  Law  is  eternal.  God  is  the  law-maker. 
Those  who  obey  Him  follow  me ;  let  othera  separate  themselves." 

It  must  not  he  unnoticed  that  Jesus  asserts  that  it  is  possible  for 
one  who  does  not  conform  to  God's  moral  law  to  cast  out  demons 
and  perform  works  of  power  and  wonder,  that  is  to  say,  miracles, 
or  seem  to  do  so.  The  performance  of  miracles,  therefore,  accord- 
ing to  this  teaching  of  Jesus,  is  no  proof  that  the  teacher  who 
does  them  is  true,  or  that  his  teachings  are  in  accordance  with 
truth.  It  follows  that  he  did  not  lay  his  claim  to  the  attention  of 
the  world  upon  the  miracles  which  he  performed.  lie  claimed, 
as  we  shall  see,  through  all  his  course,  to  be  something  higher  than 
a  miracle- worker,  namely,  to  be  a  teacher  of  truth,  and  to  be  king 
over  all  other  teachers  and  over  all  other  men  in  that  he  taught 
the  truth  authoritatively.  lie  claimed  to  have  the  right  to  say 
what  the  truth  is,  and  declare  it,  not  as  a  discovery  made  by  his 
intellect,  not  as  an  inspiration  from  some  spiritual  force  outside  of 
himself,  but  as  originally  knowing  it  and  authoritatively  declar- 
ing it.  He  certainly  conformed  his  subsequent  teachings  to  these 
announcements  in  the  Mount  Sermon,  in  which  we  learn  that  a 
truth  is  greater  than  a  miracle,  and  to  obey  God  is  better  than  to 
do  marvellous  works. 

conclusion:    TTTE   safe   foundation   of   CnARACTER. 

Tliis  wonderful  discourse  terminates  with  a  striking  parable. 
As  Jesus  had  begun  with  an  enumeration  of  characteristics,  ho 
closes  with  a  description  of  the  trials  of  character,  in  which  ho 
contrasts  the  stability  of  one  with  the  downfall  of  another.  All 
goodness  and  safety  lie  in  placing  the  life  upon  the  truth  and 
renuiining  there.  Knowledge  of  truth  is  in  no  way  heljiful  to  a 
man  if  he  do  not  obey  tlie  truth ;  it  rather  makes  his  destruction 


niE    SERMON    ON    THE    MOUNT.  305 

iTiore  appalling.  The  same  kind  of  trial  conies  to  those  who  are 
mere  hearers  oi  truth  and  to  those  whose  lives  are  conformed 
to  it.     To  all  outward  appearance  the  characters 

■'■■'•  Every  one,  then,  who 

of  tlie  two  men  were  the  same,  except  as  to  foun-  hears  these  words  of 
dation.  Both  built.  Both  built  residences,  not  l^u  ^"Ve^cVTa 
mere  sheds.     The  houses  were  the  same.     If  both  wise  man,  who  bniit  his 

house  upon  the  rock: 

had  been  built  upon  the  rock,  both  would  have  and  down  came  the  * 
stood.  It  was  not  the  materials  or  the  architec-  Errand"  the' It 
ture  that  was  at  fault.    It  was  the  foundation.    If  ^lew,  and  feu  on  that 

.  .  Tij<i  111  house,  and  it  fell  not ; 

the  Winds,  tiie  rams,  and  the  freshets  could  have  for  it  had  been  founded 
swept  away  the  foundation  of  the  first,  his  house  ZZVJ^Xe^iT^ 
would  have  fallen   and  its  downfall  have  been  words  of  mine,  and  does 

T-p,  1      r  1      •  p    ^  1  them  not,  shaU  be  liken- 

great.  it  the  sandy  foundation  or  the  second  man  ed  to  a  foolish  man, 
had  been  able  to  resist  the  winds,  the  rains,  and  '^"^°  ^""^  ^'^  ^°°^ 

'  upon    the    sand :    and 

the  freshets,  his  house  was  good  and  strong  enough  down  came  the  shower, 
to  have  stood.     But  the  stronger  the  timbers,  and  """^  *^^  ^""'^^  '='""*'' 

'-'  '  and  the    winds   blew. 

the  more  thoroughly  knitted  and  nailed  together,  and  smote  that  house, 
the  more  prodigious  the  wreck  and  ruin  when  the  *°'^"^«"'  *°^  ^^  ^'^ 

•t  o  was  great. 

foundation  subsided  and  the  lofty  and  strong 
edifice  collapsed.  Men  who  pay  no  attention  to  the  upbuilding 
of  their  characters  may  fall  and  attract  little  attention.  Men  whc 
are  most  careful  to  build  up  their  characters,  and  yet  secure  no 
foundation,  have  "no  security,  whatever  be  the  materials  or  the 
painstaking.  This  is  the  important  and  generally  neglected  thought 
to  which  Jesus  calls  attention.  It  is  the  collapse  of  character 
which  is  the  most  appalling  catastrophe  possible  in  the  univei-se. 

This  Discourse  has  been  dwelt  upon  at  length,  because  as  Jesus 
came  a  Teacher  of  Truth  his  woi-ds  are  most  important,  and  this 
is  the  lonc-est  report  of  his  speeches  made  in  any 

^  ,      ,  .  -_  The  manner  of  Jesus. 

biographical  memoir  extant.  It  must  be  supposed 
to  embrace  the  essence  and  spirit  of  the  gospel  he  came  to  pro- 
mulgate. We  have  the  recorded  statements,  the  propositions  ver- 
bally rendered,  but  there  was  something  in  the  manner  of  Jesus 
that  was  extraordinary.  There  was  a  tone  which  made  his  hear- 
ers feel  that  this  was  a  man  altogether  superior  to  any  other 

*  The  articles  as  used  in  the  original '  ers  into  freshets,  and  the  fierce  winds, 
show  that  all  those  things  were  familiar    The  word  translated  floods  means  rivers, 
to  the  hearer ;  that  from  personal  obser-    but  in  this  case  it  obviously  means  riven 
vations  they  knew  the  rock,  the  sand,  j  swollen  into  floods, 
the  shower,  the  sudden  swelling  of  riv-  I 

20 


306         SECOND   Airo   THIRD   PASSOVEE   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

"  greatest  man,"  because  the  latter  was  compelled  to  enforce  liia 
teaching  either  by  an  argument  or  by  authority,  by  showing  that 
what  he  said  was  true  or  by  invoking  the  authority  of  tlie  ancients. 
Jesus  did  no  such  thing.  lie  announced  the  truth  as  a  monarch 
announces  an  imperial  edict :  "  I  say  unto  you."  The  people  were 
struck  with  astonishment.  They  had  heard  learned  men.  They 
had  heard  enthusiasts.  They  had  heard  the  Scribes  and  John  the 
Baptist.  In  the  case  of  Jesus  it  was  not  learning.  It  was  not 
eloquence.  It  was  authority.  lie  mude  them  feel  his  royal  pre- 
rogative. No  other  man  had  ever  done  so  before.  No  man  in 
modern  times  is  known  to  have  made  anything  like  a  respectable 
imitation  of  this  marvellous  impression.  We  can  see  how  dicta- 
torially  the  discourse  is  constructed.  "We  must  fancy  the  manner 
of  him  who  spoke  under  the  connction  that  he  had  the  right  to 
declare  what  the  truth  is,  and  that  of  the  finality  of  his  announce- 
ments there  was  to  be  no  discussion,  and  from  his  supreme  deci- 
sions there  could  be  no  appeal. 


CHAPTEK   V. 


m   CAPEENAUM   AND    NAIN. 


Matt.  viii.  5-13 ; 
Luke  viL  1-10.  Jesua 
healg  the  centurion's 
slave. 


Upon  his  returu  to  Capernaum  an  incident  occurred  in  the 
history  of  Jesus  of  very  great  importance.  A  Horaan  company 
of  soldiery  held  the  .post  in  the  town.  The  cen- 
turion in  command  was  a  person  remarkable  for 
his  faith,  his  humility,  and  his  large  charity. 
Having  had  Roman  and  perhaps  Greek  culture, 
he  had  so  much  respect  for  the  Jewish  religion  that  he  had  actu- 
ally erected  a  synagogue  for  the  use  of  the  Jewish  residents. 
Such  considerate  liberality  had  won  the  regard  of  even  the  Jew- 
ish elders,  who  became  interested  in  whatever  concerned  this 
centurion.  His  case  presented  a  violent  contrast  with  the  relation 
usually  existing  between  the  hating,  subjugated  Jew  and  the 
scornful,  ruling  Roman.  This  officer  had  a  slave  between  whom 
and  himself  existed  a  strong  attachment,  as  is  not  unusual  in 
countries  where  slavery  has  existed ;  *  a  sentiment  of  tenderness 
which  is  wholly  incomprehensible  to  those  whose  servants  have 
always  been  hirelings.  He  loved  his  servant,  and  his  servant  was 
ill  of  some  paralytic  disease  which  gave  him  excruciating  torture. 
The  centurion  had  probably  studied  the  character  of  Jesus,  and 
the  history  of  the  great  works  he  had  already  performed,  and  had 
the  utmost  confidence  in  his  healing  power.  The  Jewish  elders, 
whatever  may  have  been  their  prejudices  against  Jesus,  entertained 
so  high  a  regard  for  the  centurion  that  they  waited  on  Jesus  and 


*  In  the  original  Greek  the  word  is 
iraTr,  hoy.  The  ancient  Hebrew  had, 
and  the  modem  French  has,  the  same 
idiom.  In  the  Southern  States  of  North 
America,  before  the  abolition  of  slavery, 
the  servant  was  often  called  "boy," 
although  an  adult  and  perhaps  advanced 
in  years.  It  waa  a  euphemism,  a  soft- 
ening term.     If  the  slave  were  a  mar- 


ried man,  he  waa  usually  called  "  un- 
cle." Domestic  servants  were  generally 
tenderly  treated,  and  the  whole  family 
thrown  into  mourning  when  they  died. 
Even  under  the  rougher  form  of  Roman 
slavery,  Cicero  expresses  the  great  grief 
he  suffered  on  the  occasion  of  a  death 
of  a  favorite  servant. 


308         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

ui'ged  the  exercise  of  his  marvellous  therapeutic  faculty  in  behalf 
of  the  Roman  slave. 

Jesus  readily  consented  to  accompany  them.     When  the  cen- 
turion learned  that  he  was  approaching  the  official  residence,  he 
sent  his  friends  to  Jesus  with  a  message  most 

The  oentuiion's  hu-    -rt  ^         •^•J.  j  i.  i.j:ii£ 

^^j  Koman,  most  mihtary,  and  yet  most  lull  or   a 

beautiful  humility  and  faith,  containing  the  lof- 
tiest and  the  widest  view  of  the  chai-acter  and  power  of  Jesus 
which  had  as  yet  ever  been  uttered.  He  sent  an  expression  of  wor- 
shipful regard,  and  most  humbly  told  Jesus  that  he  did  not  feel 
himself  worthy  to  have  so  illustrious  a  personage  come  mider  his 
roof,  even  as  he  had  not  felt  himself  worthy  to  approach  the  great 
Teacher,  and  had  therefore  accepted  the  kind  mediation  of  the 
Jewish  ecclesiastics.  IMoreover,  he  had  such  full  faith  in  tlie 
transcendent  power  of  Jesus  that  there  could  be  no  need  tliat  the 
great  Healer  should  touch  or  even  see  his  servant :  he  had  but  to 
speak  the  word.  And  he  illustrated  his  idea  by  a  military  fact: 
he  was  a  suljalteni,  under  authority,  with  tribunes  over  him,  and 
yet  he  was  not  compelled  to  be  present  at  every  place  in  person. 
And  while  he,  as  a  soldier,  was  bound  to  obey  his  sujierior  in 
office,  he  nevertlieless  commanded  his  slave,  and  that  slave  obeyed 
him  as  if  he  were  the  autocrat  of  the  world.  Now  Jesus,  in  the 
spiritual  realm,  in  command  over  the  forces  at  work  in  the  world, 
was  more  tlian  centurion  or  tribune :  he  was  Ccesar,  emperor, 
supreme  commander.  He  had  but  to  speak,  and  the  hosts  would 
obey  him. 

The  tender  beauty  a,nd  extraordinary  grandeur  of  this  faith 

aroused  in  Jesus  sentiments  of  admiration.     A  lioman  had  so  far 

overcome  tlie  power  of  prejudice  as  to  believe 

Je«aa  admires  him.       ,  _  ,        f  p  ^        ^ 

that  from  the  bosom  of  a  broken  and  enslaved 
community  might  arise  the  great  power  of  God.  A  soldier,  an 
officer,  representing  imperiiilisin,  had,  at  the  head  of  his  connnand, 
corae  to  believe  in  the  superiority  of  spiritual  power  over  mere 
brute  force.  Jesus  turned  to  the  crowd  about  him,  and  said, 
"Verily  I  say  to  you,  I  have  not  found  so  much  faith  in  Israel. 
And  I  say  to  you.  That  many  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the 
west,  and  shall  recline  with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jac-db,  in  the 
kiuirdom  of  the  heavens,  but  the  sons  of  the  kiui^dom  ^liall  be 
cast  into  the  darkni-ss  outside.  There  shall  be  wailing  and  grat- 
ing of  teetl>  "     Here   was   the  prediction  of  a  great  revolution 


IN   CAPEKNATIM   AND   NAIN,  300 

presented  in  a  picture.  It  is  the  picture  of  a  happy  family. 
The  elders  are  seated  or  stretched  on  couches,  the  children  reclin- 
ing in  their  presence,  enjoying  their  society.  But  strangers  from 
a  great  distance,  never  expected,  come  in  to  this  delightful  domes- 
tic banquet.  That  is  wonderful.  But  there  is  something  more : 
the  children  are  cast  violently  into  the  darkness  outside,  where 
they  give  vent  to  their  rage  in  wailing  and  in  grating  their  teeth. 
This  seems  to  be  as  much  as  if  he  had  said.  The  spiritual  blessings 
of  God's  kingdom,  which  is  as  wide  as  all  the  heavens,  are  not  to 
be  confined  to  a  close  corporation  on  earth.  Frotn  any  distance 
any  man  may  come,  and  if  he  have  such  faith  as  numbered 
Abraliam,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  among  the  servants  of  tlie  great  Kino-, 
he  shall  take  his  place :  whereas  those  who  rely  upon  a  mere 
traditional  right  to  the  kingdom  and  its  privileges  shall  be  thrown 
outdoors  into  the  night.  It  was  a  declaration  of  the  spirituality 
and  width  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and  was  a  great  blow  at  sacer- 
dotalism and  all  churchism,  a  thing  Jesus  hated  as  a  snare  to 
human  souls. 

He  then  justified  the  faith  of  the  centurion  by  telling  the  mes- 
sengers to  return  and  they  should  find  it  as  their  superior  desired. 
Upon  their  return,  they  found  that  the  servant 

11  1   •      ,  1      ,  1  mi  .  ,  The  servant  healed. 

nacl  recovered  m  that  same  Jiour.  This  wonder- 
ful cure  is  something.  It  stopped  pain.  It  gratified  and  rewarded 
the  centurion.  But  it  was  a  small  thing  as  compared  with  the 
saying  of  Jesus  in  the  utterance  of  a  grand  truth  which  is  to  help 
the  struggling  hearts  of  truly  religious  men  through  all  the  ages. 
A  truth  is  greater  than  a  miracle.  What  Jesus  said  in  the  Mount 
Sermon  is  much  more  valuable  to  the  world  than  what  Jesus  did 
among  the  diseased,  when  he  had  descended  from  his  lofty  pulpit. 
But  the  latter  have  a  historical  connection  and  unity  with  the 
former.  It  was  because  of  what  was  in  him  that  Jesus  spake  and 
did  his  wonderful  words  and  acts. 

Not  far  from  Capernaum,  a  few  miles  to  the  south  of  Mount 
Tabor,  on  the  north-west  declivity  of  Little  Ilermon,  commanding 
a  wide  view  of  the  plain  of  Esdraelon  and  the 
northern  hills,  stands  a  village  now  called  N"ein,  ^^""^^  "^^-  "■^^-  ^° 

'  o  J    Nam. 

in  the  time  of  Jesus  bearing  the  name  of  Xain. 
On  the  day  after  the  healing  of  the  centurion's  servant,  Jesus 
visited  this  place  with  his  company  of  disciples,  and  a  great  crowd 
attracted  by  his  recent  miracle.     As  he  entered  the  town  lie  saw 


310         PECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOTER   IN   TITE   LITE   OF   JESUS. 

a  funeral  procession.  It  was  the  Jewish  custom  tliat  all  who  met 
such  a  procession  should  join  it  and  add  their  lamentations  to  the 
tears  of  the  mourners.  This  was  a  particularly  touching  case. 
The  corpse  was  that  of  a  man  sti-icken  down  in  his  youth,  being 
the  only  child  of  his  m<jtlier,  who  was  a  widow.  lie  was  being 
carried  in  an  open  coffin.  AVlien  Jesus  saw  tlie  mother's  sorrow, 
his  heart  was  moved.  lie  stopped  the  bearers,  and  turning  to  the 
young  man,  he  said,  "I  say  unto  thee,  ^;w."     And  tlie  dead 


,..-?f^^*^ti 


sat  up  and  began  t<»  speak.    And  Jesus  "delivered  him  to  his 
mother." 

Here  was  an  open  meeting  between  death  and  the  forces  of 
life  which  Jesus  contained  and  directed.  There  was  a  crowd  of 
spectatoi-s.  Tliere  was  no  incantation.  There 
was  no  pi*ayer.  There  was  no  invocation  or  the 
help  of  anotlicr.  Out  (»f  himself,  and  by  virtue  of  his  own  jjowcr 
and  authority,  Jesus  said  to  a  dca<l  man,  "/say.  Arise."  There 
was  no  gi-adiial  recovery.  The  dciid  was  alive,  sat  up,  and  Itegan 
to  talk.     It  was  the  collision  of  life-force  with  the  inertness  of 


IN   CAPEENAUM   AND   NAIN.  311 

death,  and  the  former  prevailed.  All  such  collisions  are  awful, 
but  here  was  the  additional  element  of  extraordinariness.  Usually 
death  conquered.  Here  life  was  the  victor.  Great  fear  fell  upon 
the  people.  Jesus  had  at  fii*st  been  a  teacher,  then  a  physician ; 
now  he  is  a  great  prophet.  I^ever  since  the  days  of  Elisha  had 
Buch  a  miracle  been  performed.  For  nine  centuries  the  power  of 
resm-rection  had  been  in  abeyance.  ISTow  it  had  come  back  among 
men.  In  tones  of  awe  they  said  one  to  another,  "  God  has  visited 
His  people,"  and  the  fame  of  Jesns  spread  through  all  the  regions 
round  about.* 

While  Jesus  was  thus  increasing  in  popular  attractiveness,  and 
enlarging  his  field  of  operations,  his  friend  John  lay  pining  in  the 
castle  of  MachreruSjf  into  which  he  had  been 

.•,  ,        -i-r         jAi*  1  Ji    ^  •       1     T  ^        The  castle  of  Macha- 

thrown  by  Herod  Antipas,  because  of  his  bold  ^us.  jonn  m  prison, 
denunciation  of  that  tetrarch's  crimes  and  public  ^"'^^  '^^  ^^^^  ^^^ 
scandals.  John  had  hailed  Jesus  as  the  "  Coming 
One,"  the  Anointed,  the  Deliverer.  Sixteen  months  had  passed 
since  the  inauguration  of  Jesus,  and  as  yet  John  had  not  heard 
that  he  had  begun  to  perform  such  Messianic  acts  as  the  Jews 
looked  for  in  the  Deliverer.  From  a  national  blaze  of  reputation 
John  had  suddenly  gone  down  into  the  gloom  of  a  dungeon.  The 
lion  had  been  caged.  This  grand  spirit  that  had  walked  the 
wilderness  and  the  shores  of  Jordan,  and  had  drawn  vast  crowds 
to  hear  his  roaring  eloquence,  lay  cankering  in  the  silent  solitude 
of  a  prison.  Day  and  night,  through  months  of  winter  and  of 
spring  he  lay.     Now  and  then  notices  of  the  doings  of  Jesus  had 

*  But  the  contrast  between  the  pray-  I  ing  from  the  empire  of  death  a  soul 
erful  efforts  of  the  prophets  and  the    that  is  not  submissive  to  his  voice,  and 


sublime  authoritative  call  of  Jesus  must 
always  be  noticed.  It  is  set  forth  in  a 
passage  in  Massillon's  sermon,  Sur  la 
Divinite  de  Jesus-  Christ,  which  is  worth 
quotation  for  its  great  eloquence,  finer 
in  the  original  than  I  can  give  in  a  trans- 
lation :  ' '  Elias  raised  the  dead,  it  is 
true,  but  he  was  obliged  to  throw  him- 
self often  on  the  corpse  of  the  child  he 
would  resuscitate  :  he  breathed  hard, 
he  drew  himself  together,  he  threw 
himself  about ;  it  is  plain  that  he  is  in- 
voking a  power  outside  himself  (un 
puissance  etrangere),  that  he  is  recall- 


that  he  is  not  himself  the  master  of 
death  and  of  life.  Jesus  Christ  raises 
the  dead  as  he  does  the  most  common 
actions  ;  he  speaks  as  a  master  to  those 
who  are  slumbering  in  the  eternal  sleep ; 
it  is  quite  apparent  that  he  is  the  God 
of  the  dead  as  well  as  of  the  living,  but 
always  the  most  serene  when  he  is  per- 
forming the  grandest  deeds." 

I  Next  to  Jerusalem,  the  best  forti 
fied  place  in  the  Holy  Land.  It  waa 
near  the  summer  residence  of  Herod  in 
Per®. 


312         SECOND   AND   THIRD   TASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

reached  him.  All  that  these  seemed  to  show  was  the  free  and 
easy  manner  in  which  the  new  Teacher  mingled  with  peoples  of 
all  kinds,  rising  apparently  above  all  ecclesiastical  and  national 
prejudices,  and  setting  himself  and  his  disciples  free  from  the 
eremitical  restrictions  which  characterized  the  lives  of  John 
and  his  disciples.  John's  soul  was  growing  weak  with  waiting. 
He  was  beginning  to  doubt.  Ilad  he  made  a  mistake  ?  If  Jesus 
were  the  Deliverer,  why  did  he  delay  the  deliverance  ? 

It  was  probably  at  this  juncture  that  John  heard  of  some  of  the 
mighty  works  of  Jesus,  This  increased  rather  than  diminished 
John  hears  of  works  his  pcrplcxity.  It  secmcd  unaccountable  to  John 
of  Jesus.  i-jjat  more  than  a  year  before  he  should  have  pro- 

phetically seen  signs  of  Messiahship  in  Jesus  which  appeared  most 
unquestionable,  and  that  now  Jesus  had  begun  to  perform  miracles 
that  surpassed  the  deeds  of  even  Elijah,  and  that  still  he  declined 
to  assert  his  Messiahship.  He  determined  to  seek  a  solution  of  the 
difficulty.  Accordingly  he  sent  two  of  his  chosen  disciples  to 
Jesus.  They  found  him  surrounded  by  the  populace.  They  ad- 
dressed to  him  publicly,  in  John's  name,  the  question,  "  Art  thou 
the  Coming  One,  or  do  we  look  for  another  ?  " 

No  more  unfortunate  question,  as  coming  from  John,  could  have 
been  propounded  to  Jesus  at  this  moment,  and  under  tliese  cir- 

john'8  message  to  cumstauces.  It  Said  to  the  people  that  the  man 
Jesus,  and  his  reply,  -^yhom  they  had  regarded  as  one  of  the  greatest  of 
the  prophets,  who  had  introduced  Jesus  to  public  life  in  a  season 
of  great  excitement,  now  that  he  had  time  for  cool  reflection,  had 
begun  to  doubt  the  mission  of  Jesus.  It  was  a  blow  on  the  heart 
of  Jesus  from  the  hand  of  his  best  friend.  It  showed  him  what  a 
melancholy  effect  was  being  produced  upon  the  mind  of  John  by 
his  long  and  cruel  imprisonment. 

The  acts  and  words  of  Jesus  on  this  occasion  passed  up  into  the 
sphere  of  the  sublime.  John  must  be  saved.  That  was  the  firet 
thing.  In  the  presence  of  the  embassy  from  John,  Jesus  relieved 
many  of  the  infirmities  of  the  people,  opened  the  eyes  of  the  blind, 
and  cured  demoniacs.  Turning  to  the  messengci-s  he  said  in  sub- 
stance, "  Go  to  John,  and  tell  him  what  you  youi-selves  have  seen 
and  have  heard  from  reliable  witnesses.  The  blind  see,  the  lame 
walk,  the  lepers  are  cleansed,  the  deaf  hear,  the  dead  are  raised, 
and  the  men  of  humble  souls  have  g,  jubilee,  for  they  are  hearing 
glad  tidings.     And  happy  is  he  who  is  not  offended  in  me." 


IN   CAPERNAIIM   AND   NAIN.  313 

That  was  the  whole  message  to  John.  It  iinplied  more  than  it 
said,  Jesus  did  not  wish  to  wound  the  imprisoned  prophet  as  that 
friend  had  wounded  him.  He  was  grander  than  even  the  grand 
John.  Instead  of  saying,  "  Woe  to  him  who  is  offended  in  me," 
he  puts  it  in  the  softer  way,  "  Blessed  he  who  is  not  offended." 
John  knew  what  the  prophets  had  indicated  as  true  Messianic 
signs.  He  remembered  the  words  of  Isaiah  in  Ixi.  1,  2,  and  xxxv 
5,  6,  and  other  prophetic  utterances.  If  these  met  in  Jesus,  then 
Jesus  was  the  Messiah,  and,  for  any  who  believed  that,  it  was  a 
happy  thing  to  wait  his  motions  and  not  be  striving  to  precipitate 
his  announcements. 

But  there  were  the  people  hearing  all  these  things.  Tlie  repu- 
tation of  his  incarcerated  friend  was  dear  to  Jesus.  He  saw  at 
once  that  the  people  might  begin  to  turn  against  Defence  of  John  by 
John,  and  charge  him  with  weakness  in  thus  so  ''®^'- 
strangely  modifying  his  own  endorsement  of  Jesus.  As  soon 
therefore  as  John's  disciples  had  departed — for  he  would  not  even 
seem  to  flatter  his  great  friend — he  recalled  to  the  minds  of  his 
hearers  the  picture  of  John  in  the  glory  of  his  strength,  in  the 
height  of  his  popularity,  when  he  was  crowding  the  Jordan  with 
auditors  and  disciples.  If  they  suspected  John  of  being  a  vacil- 
lating weakling,  it  was  doing  him  great  injustice.  He  was  no  reed 
shaken  in  a  wind.  He  was  himself  rather  a  storm  that  shook 
others.  Nor  was  he  a  courter  of  public  applause,  a  flatterer,  or  a 
sycophant.  If  he  had  been  such  he  would  have  been  found  among 
the  sumptuously  dressed  attendants  on  the  court  of  Herod  Antipas, 
instead  of  a  prisoner  wasting  away  in  a  dungeon  because  of  his 
bold  out-spokenness  against  the  wrong.  He  was  neither  a  reed 
shaken  in  the  wind  nor  a  delicate  self-seeker.  He  was  acknow- 
ledged as  a  prophet  by  those  who  heard  his  tremendous  harangues 
at  the  Jordan.  And  Jesus  asserted  that  John  was  more  than  an 
ordinary  prophet,  that  he  was  as  great  as  the  greatest  prophet,  and 
that  no  greater  man  had  ever  been  raised  up  by  Providence  for 
any  work  so  great  as  that  of  John.  With  this  generous  eulogy  he 
at  once  defended  the  reputation  of  his  afflicted  friend,  and  made 
his  hearera  to  remember  that  the  greatest  men  have  their  hours 
of  weakness  and  distrust. 

But  having  so  done  justice  to  the  character  of  John,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  say,  "  Notwithstanding,  he  that  is  less  in  the  kingdom 
of  the  heavens  is  greater  than  John."  Here  manifestly  the  speaker 


314         PECOXD    AND   THTRD   PASSOVER   IN   TITE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

draws  a  distinction  between  the  world  which  closed  with  John 
and  the  world  which  opened  with  himself.     John  had  not  become 
Relative  estimate  of  a  citizen  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.    Jesu8 
J°^°-  is  proclaiming  that  kingdom,     John  had  not  been 

set  free.  He  was  still  held  by  formalisms,  and  still  made  much 
of  baptisms  and  mortifications.  He  had  not  yet  risen  to  regard 
the  kingdom  of  God  as  a  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  covering  all 
parts  of  the  universe  and  running  through  all  the  ages,  of  which 
our  planet  and  the  time  of  our  generation  make  a  very,  very  small 
part.  Jesus  came  speaking  the  breadth  of  God's  love  and  God's 
law.  lie  came  to  preach  those  principles  which  rituals,  and 
canons,  and  human  forms  of  creeds  and  hierarchies  cannot  bind ; 
principles  which  sur\nve  all  human  institutions,  all  consecutive 
literatures  and  civilizations,  and  which  vitalize  them  all.  He  that 
is  less  in  position,  or  office,  or  native  endowments  than  Jolm,  less 
in  relation  to  this  kingdom  than  John  to  the  old  theocracy,  is, 
nevertheless,  greater  than  John.  lie  has  gone  into  the  temple  on 
whose  porch  died  all  these  greatest  men  who  knew  things  only 
in  their  outwards. 

It  is  to  be  carefully  noted  that  Jesus  does  not  say  that  the 
crowds  who  waited  upon  his  ministry  are  so  superior;  that  those 
who  after  him  were  to  pervert  the  name  of  Christian  and  preach 
Churchism  were  so  superior.  Very  far  from  that.  Tliat  was  pre- 
cisely the  defect  in  the  Jews  generally,  and  in  John  specially. 
A  modern  churchman,  of  any  sect,  is  precisely  in  the  condition  of 
the  Israelite  who  depended  upon  his  having  Abraham  to  his 
father.  lie  is  a  citizen  of  perhaps  a  snug  little  kingdom  of  the 
earth,  but  he  is  not  a  citizen  of  the  broad  kingdom  of  the  heavens. 
He  is  depending  upon  what  must  perish  if  the  world  sliall  pass 
away,  and  not  upon  what  will  survive  the  measureless  cycles  of 
eternity.  He  that  builds  on  churchism,  builds  on  the  sand :  he 
ihat  builds  on  the  words  of  Jesus  erects  his  edifice  upon  the  rock. 
lie  that  even  measurably  recognizes  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens, 
and  strives  to  live  according  to  its  wide,  deep,  ceaseless  laws,  is  a 
greater  man  than  the  man  w^ho  is  greatest  in  a  kingdom  of  cir- 
cumcisions, baptisms,  and  general  decent  ritualisms.  That  seems 
to  be  what  Jesus  taught. 

Tlic  law  and  the  prophets,  he  proceeded  to  teach,  did  their  work 
np  to  John's  completion  of  his  public  ministry.  Now,  although 
that  last  and  greatest  of  the  prophets  had  retired  from  his  actual 


IN   CAPEENAUM   AND   NAIN. 


315 


labors,  tlie  spirit  of  his  work  lived.  He  had  been  a  herald.  He 
had  aroused  the  people.  He  had  announced  a  coming  King  anc' 
a  coming  kingdom.  There  was  power  in  the  announcement  and 
in  the  rushing  influences  which  had  begun  to  break  down  ecclesi- 
astical barriers,  and  bring  the  world  under  the  influence  of  this 
kingdom.  John  could  not  retract.  He  had  excited  a  furore 
which  should  increase.  From  his  days  the  kingdom  of  the  heav- 
ens suffers  violence ;  people  violently  press  into  it ;  multitudes  are 
eager  to  break  the  shell  and  reach  the  kernel ;  multitudes  are  zeal- 
ously striving  to  rise  into  the  higher  life.  John  had  come  in  the 
spirit  and  power  of  Elias  to  prepare  the  way  of  the  Lord  of  the 
kingdom. 

All  this  explanation  and  defence  was  made  to  a  fickle  genera- 
tion. Jesus  knew  their  waywardness.  He  reflected  upon  the 
treatment  received  by  John  and  by  himself.  To  Both  John  and  jesna 
John's  baptism  the  common  people  and  the  pub-  rejected. 
licans  had  come ;  but  the  Pharisees  and  Doctors  of  the  Sacred 
Law  had  rejected  him,  and  the  same  leaders  had  rejected  Jesus: 
and  the  two  rejections  were  for  opposite  reasons.  He  seemed 
for  a  moment  at  a  loss  how  to  describe  this  capriciousness,  and 
then  selected  an  illustration  from  the  petulance  of  whimsical  chil- 
dren so  often  exhibited  in  their  sports.  He  described  a  party  of 
boys  at  play  in  a  town  square.  One  party  endeavors  to  draw  the 
others  into  their  amusements.  First  there  is  a  mock  wedding,  and 
a  portion  would  not  join  in  that ;  then  the  leaders  get  up  a  mock 
fimeral,  but  the  same  companions  refuse  to  take  part  in  that ; 
whereupon  the  leaders  break  forth  into  vociferous  reproaches  : 
"  "\^^lat  kind  of  fellows  are  you  ?  We  have  tried  to  amuse  you 
every  way.  We  have  fluted,  and  you  would  not  dance  :  we  have 
played  funeral,  and  you  would  not  beat  your  breasts,  Wliat  will 
please  you?"  So  John  came,  an  ascetic,  withdrawing  himself 
from  the  ordinary  conventionalities  of  life.  He  was  most  abste- 
mious, confining  himself  to  a  diet  of  locusts  and  wild  honey.  The 
Pharisees  and  the  Doctoi-s  denounced  him  as  one  possessed  of  a 
demon.  lie  mourned  /  they  did  not  lament.  Jesus  came, — the 
Son  of  Man,  as  he  calls  himself  in  this  passage,  thus  claiming 
the  Messiahship,* — came  eating  and  drinking  as  other  men  did. 


*  The  reader  is  again  referred  to  Dan. 
vii,  13,  where  the  phrase  the  "  Son  of 
Man  "  is  used  confessedly  as  a  designa- 


tion of  the  Messiah.  By  applying  it  to 
himself  Jesus  obviously  intended  to 
claim  Messianic  functions  and  honors. 


316 


SECOND    AXD   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 


havino;  nothinsc  siiifjular  in  his  habits.  Tlie  Pharisees  and  the 
Doctors  denounced  him  as  a  ghitton  and  a  wine-bibber,  an  dissoci- 
ate of  tax-gatherers  and  vagabonds.  He  made  music  for  them  / 
they  did  not  dance.  Jesus  closed  this  vivid  invective  by  the  irony 
of  the  saying,  "And  such  is  the  justice  which  Wisdom  receives  at 
the  hands  of  her  professedly  devoted  children  !  " 

Tlecalliiig  the  treatment  which  he  had  received  from  several 
towns  ill  his  beneficent  mission,  he  breaks  forth  in  words  which 
show  the  depth  of  his  grief  and  anger.  "  "Woe  to 
thee,  Chorazin  !  woe  to  thee,  Bethsaida  !  For  if 
ill  Tyre  and  Sidon  had  been  done  the  things  of  might  which  have 
been  done  in  you,  in  old  times,  sitting  down  in  bag-cloth  and  in 
ashes,  they  would  have  changed  tlieir  minds  and  repented.  But 
I  say  unto  you.  That  it  shall  be  more  tolerable  for  Tyre  and  Sidon 
in  the  day  of  separation  than  for  you.  And  thou,  Capernaum, 
why  hast  thou  been  exalted  to  heaven  ?  Thou  shalt  descend  even 
to  Hades ! " 


DcnnnciatlonB. 


None  of  the  three  places  thus  denounced  bad  any  distinction 
beyond  what  they  derived  from  the  presence  and  works  of 
Jesus,  and  they  have  all  so  passed  away  that  the  site  of  them  is 
no  longer  definitely  known.  The  Tyre  and  Sidon  must  be  sup- 
posed to  refer  to  the  old  Phoenician  cities  against  which  the 
prophets  had  hurled  their  predictions,  and  on  the  niins  of  which 


IN   CA-PEENAUM  AXD   NAIN. 


317 


Luke  vii.  36-49. 
Dines  with  ii  Pharisee, 
and  is  anointed  by  a 
woman. 


stood  modern  towns  of  the  same  name.  Capernaum  had  been 
selected  as  his  residence  when  Jesus  had  been  driven  from  Naza- 
reth. The  lesson  seems  to  be  that  the  neglect  of  superior  privi 
leges  brings  the  greater  destruction.  Jesus  employed  phrases  from 
the  pagan  mythology  to  convey  this  idea,  "  heaven  "  as  contrasted 
with  "  hades  "  signifying  a  contrast  between  great  height  of  privi- 
lege and  great  depth  of  doom. 

A  few  daj's  afterwards  a  Pharisee  invited  Jesus  to  an  enter- 
tainment at  his  house,  probably  in  Capernaum,*  thus  paying  with 
a  small  civility  the  healing  of  some  small  ailmentf 
by  the  kindness  and  power  of  Jesus.  The  recep- 
tion of  the  great  Teacher  does  not  seem  to  have 
been  eminently  cordial.  Simon  felt  compelled  to 
invite  him,  and  was  probably  glad  to  have  the  interview  short.  lie 
showed  few  civilities  to  his  distinguished  guest.  Nevertheless 
Jesus  found  sufficient  reason  for  accepting  the  invitation.  "While 
recHning,  with  his  unsandalled  feet  stretched  fi-om  the  rear  of  the 
couch,  after  the  manner  of  the  ancients,  a  woman  of  the  city,  who 
was  a  notorious  sinner,  came  beliind  him  with  a  vase  of  j)erf  unied 
ointment,  weeping,  and  unostentatiously  wetting  his  feet  with  her 
tears,  and  with  most  exquisite  reverence  wiping  them  with  her 
beautiful  hair.  Her  adoring  tenderness  made  her  feel  that  when 
that  delicious  ointment  had  touched  the  holy  feet  of  Jesus  it  was 
sweeter  than  ever  before,  and  she  instinctively  caught  it  back  into 
her  tresses. 

The  Pharisee  at  length  noticed  this,  and  reasoned  thus  :  "  This 
man  has  a  certain  strange  power  with  him ;  but  if  he  were  a 
true  prophet  he  would  know  what  kind  of  woman  jesus  reads  his  hosts 
this  is  who  pollutes  him  by  touching  liim,  would  ti»o"giits. 
know  that  she  is  a  prostitute."  Jesus  read  his  thoughts.  This 
Teacher  seems  to  have  been  the  first  of  pure  men  who  had  for- 
giveness and  pity  for  that  sin  which,  in  a  woman,  no  one  forgives. 
Turning  to  his  host,  he  said :  "  Simon,  I  have  something  to  say  to 
you."  And  Simon  replied,  "  Teacher,  say  it."  "A  money-lender 
had  two  debtors.  One  owed  him  five  hundred  denarii,  and  the 
other  fifty.     And  when  neither  could  pay  he  freely  forga\'e  them 


*  Robinson  and  Meyer  believe  that  it 
was  Capernaum. 

f  If  Jesus  had  not  conferred  some 
favor  upon  him  there  had  been  no  point 


in  his  comparison  of  those  who  love 
much,  as  the  woman  did,  and  those  who 
love  little,  as  the  Pharisee  did. 


318         SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

both,  Now,  which  of  tliein  will  love  him  most  ? "  Simon,  not 
seeing  as  yet  the  bearing  of  the  question,  replied,  "  I  suppose  he 
to  whom  he  forgave  most."  "  Quite  right,"  said  Jesus ;  and  turn- 
ing upon  his  elbow  as  he  reclined,  so  that  he  could  see  the  woman, 
he  said,  •■'  Simon,  look  at  her :  I  entered  your  house  a  bidden  guest, 
yet  you  failed  of  the  ordinary  courtesy  of  furnishing  water  for 
my  feet,*  while  this  woman  has  washed  my  feet  with  her  tears 
and  wiped  them  with  the  hair  of  her  head.  Ton  gave  me  no 
warm  salutation:  she  has  caressed  my  feet  with  kisses.  You 
poured  not  even  ordinary  oil  upon  my  head :  she  has  expended 
her  precious  ointment  on  my  feet." 

This  was  most  delicately  pungent.     The  woman  had  entered 

the  apartment  in  the  crowd  accompanying  the  Teacher.     Simon 

did  not  take  offence  at  this,  because  he  knew  that 

The  deUcacy  of  Jeaus.  i       i        n     i  .      i  r      /  •        i  • 

Jesus  had  all  kinds  of  characters  in  his  train. 
But  when  he  saw  what  he  considered  the  polluting  touch,  he  won- 
dered and  was  scandalized.  Jesus  most  delicately  gave  him  to 
understand  that  this  unbidden  guest  was  now  in  a  better  moral 
condition  than  the  giver  of  the  entertainment.  Her  great  sins 
had  been  forgiven  her,  or  else  she  never  would  have  been  so 
grateful.  Jesus  had  done  more  for  her,  whatever  it  was,  than  he 
had  done  for  Simon,  and  therefore  she  loved  much  more.  It  was 
no  longer  a  prostitute  who  bent  over  his  feet,  but  a  penitent.  She 
lingered.  She  had  been  a  great  sinner.  It  required  distinct  as- 
surance to  confirm  her  faith.  Jesus  said  to  her :  "  Your  sins  are 
forgiven  you."  Then  those  who  were  reclining  at  the  dinner- 
table  began  to  whisper  among  themselves  in  protest  against  his 
assumption  of  power  to  forgive  sins.  It  was  greater  to  forgive  a 
sin  than  perform  a  miracle.  Cut  Jesus  repeated  it,  "  Your  faith 
has  saved  you  ;  go  in  peace." 

Who  this  woman  was  is  not  known.     There  is  not  the  slightest 
intimation.    By  a  most  unhappy  mistake  Mary  of  Magdala,  called 
This  woman  not  Uarj  iu  our  comiuou  vei'siou  Mary  ]\Iagdaleiie,  has  been 
of  Magdala.  coufoundcd  with  this  woman.f   This  mistake  has 

been  ])oi-petuated  in  painting  and  in  sculptui-e,  and  is  counte- 
nanced by  the  caption  to  the  chapter  of  St.  Luke  in  the  English 


*  Which  was  necessary  in  a  country 
where  men  walked  over  dusty  roads 
withotit  shoes. 

f  The  anointing  took  place  in  Nain 


or  Capernaum,  of  one  of  which  cities 
this  penitent  sinner  probably  was  a  na- 
tive or  an  inhabitant ;  but  Mary  was  o/ 
Magtlalti. 


m  OAPEENAUM  AND  KAIN. 


319 


version.  But  there  is  nothing  whatever  on  record  in  the  history 
to  o-ive  the  slightest  coloring  to  this  supposition.  It  is  doing  as 
much  injustice  to  the  trath  of  history  as  to  suppose  that  the  Vir- 
gin Mary  was  this  sinner.  The  name  of  this  penitent  sinner  is 
strictly  withheld.  There  is  nothing  in  the  history  of  Mary  of 
Magdala  to  justify  this  aspersion  of  her  fair  fame ;  on  the  con- 
trary, we  shall  see  how  she  came  into  greatest  intimacy  with  the 
purest  followers  of  Jesus,  devoted  herself  to  him,  and  came  to 
be  controlled  by  a  powerful  yet  pure  passion  for  Jesus,— the  Virgin 
Mary  and  the  Magdalan  Mary  being  his  most  devoted  friends, 
and  this  latter  Mary  loving  him  quite  as  warmly  as  the  Blessed 
Virgin,  but  with  an  ardor  which  certainly  was  not  mother-love. 


->:S^S:-'-:^f*^^fc^M^^— =is:^^^'*^-'-=^='--^'' 


KCrNS    AT   TELL   HUM.       CAPERNArM. 


CHAPTER    yi. 

THE   SECOND   TOUK   OF   GALILEE   AXD   KETUKN   TO   OAPEENAUM. 

LkOEEDiATELY  after  this,  Jesus  began  another  circuit  of  preach- 
ing  and  miracle-working,  going  from  village  to  village  and  from 
Luke  viiL  1-3.  Ac-  citj  to  citj,  preaching  the  happy  news  of  God's 
companied  by  women.  ki„g,iom.  Ou  this  tour  he  was  accompauied  by 
his  twelve  chosen  Apostles,  and  by  many  women  whom  he  liad 
cured  of  evil  spirits  and  other  inlBrmities.  This  companionship 
with  Jesus  was  not  out  of  the  usual  order  of  things,  since  it  was 
customary  for  women  of  means,  especially  for  widows,  to  con- 
tribute of  their  substance  to  the  support  of  rabbis  whom  they 
reverenced.*  Three  are  mentioned  as  being  in  this  company, 
namely,  Mary  called  Magdalene,  and  Joanna,  and  Susanna.  The 
first  of  these  so  devoted  herself  to  Jesus  that  she  became  his  chief 
fi-iend  among  women,  and  it  may  be  worth  while  to  make  a  sum- 
mary of  what  we  can  learn  concerning  her. 

In  the  first  place,  it  should  be  repeated  that  there  does  not  ap- 
pear the  slightest  reason  for  believing  that  she  had  been  an  extra- 
ordinary bad  woman,  particularly  that  she  was  a  prostitute,  but 
quite  the  contrary.  Here  is  one  of  those  unhappy  cases  in  liis- 
toiy  in  which  some  misapprehension  has  occurred  which  has  suc- 
ceeded in  branding  a  name  with  an  undeserved  infamy  and 
perpetuating  it  through  generations.  Let  us  see  what  is  said 
about  her. 

El-Mejdel  is  the  name  of  a  "  miserable  little  Muslim  village," 

as  Kobinson  calls  it,  which  is  most  probably  the  representative  of 

the   town   on   the  western  shore  of  the  lake  of 

Magdala. 

Gennesaret,  known  as  Magadan  in  the  days  of 
Jesus,  and  so  called  in  the  chief  MSS.,  although  in  the  author- 
ized English  vei-sion,  and  in  the  usually  received  Greek  text  of 
Matthew  (xv.  39)  it  is  written  Magdala.f   It  was  one  of  the  many 

*  See  Jerome  on  1  Cor.  ix.  5.  I  embrace    every    point    worth     notice, 

f  Prof.  Stanley's  description  seems  to  I  "  Of  all  the  numerous  towns  and  vil- 


THE    SECOXD    TOUR    OF    GALILEE.  321 

Migdoh  {nuoatch-toioc.rs)  which  existed  in  Palestine.  The  mifortn- 
nate  identification  of  the  saintly  and  loving  friend  of  Jesns 
with  the  sinner  who  bathed  the  feet  of  Jesns  with  her  tears,  has 
made  Magdala,  this  Mary's  birthplace,  familiar  to  all  modern 
languao-es. 

She  comes  before  ns  first  in  this  passage  in  St.  Luke,  associated 
with  women  of  great  respectability.     These  ladies  were  Joanna 
and  Susanna.  The  former  was  the  wife  of  Chuza, 
the  steward  of  Herod  Antipas,  the  tetrarch  of  '^  "  ^°^' 

Galilee.  It  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  this  lady  of  the  court 
would  associate  herself  with  a  "  woman  of  the  city,"  a  street- 
walker, a  prostitute,  or  probably  even  with  one  who  had  had  that 
reputation.  ]Moreover,  the  fact  that  Mary  was  engaged  with  these 
ladies  in  ministering  to  the  personal  wants  of  Jesus,  shows  that 
she,  as  well  as  each  of  the  others,  had  means  at  her  own  disposal. 
She  was  not  a  woman  of  the  lower  ranks,  in  point  either  of  prop- 
erty or  of  reputation. 

In  this  passage,  and  in  Mark  xvi.  9,  the  fact  is  stated  that  out 
of  her  Jesus  had  cast  seven  devils.  Modern  thought  has  been 
accustomed  to  associate  demoniac  possession  with 
the  idea  of  bad  moral  character  in  the  pos- 
sessed, which,  however,  is  a  very  great  error.  Children,  women 
of  good  rejjute,  people  in  any  class  of  society,  had  been  liable  to 
this  terrible  disease.  It  is  a  very  proper  remark,  therefore,  that 
we  must  think  of  her  "  as  having  had,  in  their  most  aggravated 
forms,  some  of  the  phenomena  of  mental  and  spiritual  disease 
which  we  meet  with  in  other  demoniacs,  the  wretchedness  of  de- 
spair, the  divided  consciousness,  the  preternatural  phi-ensy,  the 
long-continued  fits  of  silence."  Her  case  had  been  so  marked 
and  painful  that  the  contrast  it  afforded  with  the  serenity  of  lier 
condition  after  the  great  Healer  had  restored  her,  made  such  an 
impression  upon  those  wlio  were  familiar  with  the  circle  of  Jesus, 


Her  "seven  devils." 


lag-es  in  what  must  have  been  the  most 
tliickly  peopled  district  of  Palestine, 
one  only  remains.  A  collection  of  a 
few  hovels  stands  at  the  south-east  cor- 
ner of  the  plain  of  Gennesaret,  its 
name  hardly  altered  from  the  ancient 
-Magdala  or  Migdol,  so  called  probably 


trance  to  the  plain.  A  large  solitary 
thorn-tree  stands  beside  it.  The  situa- 
tion, otherwise  unmarked,  is  dignified 
by  the  high  limestone  rock  which  over- 
hangs it  on  the  south-west,  perforated 
with  caves,  recalling,  by  a  cxirioua 
though  doubtless  unintentional  coinci- 


from  a  watch-tower,  of  which  ruins  ap-  i  dence,  the   scene   of    Correggio's  cele- 
pear  to  remain,  that  guarded  the  en-  |  brated  picture. " 

21 


322         SECOND    A^T)   THIRD   PAPSOTER   IN   THE   LITE    OF   JESUS. 

and  who  afterwards  chronicled  tlieir  movements,  that  repeated 
mention  is  made  of  the  fact. 

It  seems  probable  from  the  whole  history  that  other  women 

came  and  went,  and  did  for  Jcsns  all  their  love  prompted  and 

their  means  allowed,  but  'Marx  Magdalene  never 

Her  devotion  to  Jesus.  i    i  .  -r  i   o      "^  ^  j.       -i.! 

forsook  him.   Joanna  and  bnsanna  were  not  witli 
him  in  his  last  moments.     Mary  Magdalene  was.     She  was  then 
accompanied  by  the  wife  of  Alpha^ns  and  the  wife  of  Zebedee. 
She  remained  even  after  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesns,  had  left  the 
sio-ht  of  horror.*     Iler  love  never  faltered.      The  other  women 
stood  afar  off.     She  stood  close  to  the  cross,  where  she  heard  all 
his  last  words  and  groans.     She  endured  the  sight  of  the  death 
of  him  whom  her  heart  adored.     She  was  present,  perhaps  ten- 
derly aiding,  when  the  body  was  taken   down  and  when  it  was 
wiapped  in  fine  linen,  and  probably  assisted  in  depositing  it  in  the 
sepnlchre,  and  then,  with  her  friend  Mary  the  mother  of  Joses, 
she  sat  down  over  against  the  sepnlchre.   All  her  attentions  were 
such  as   the   daintiest  love   gives   to  the   most  honoraWe   and 
dearly  beloved.     She  had  regarded  him  as  a  man ;  but  as  the 
holiest,  most  gifted,  most  charming  of  all  the  sons  of  men.     She 
saw  him  buried,  and  had  no  hope,  nor  even  thought,  of  his  i-e- 
surrection.     She  \n'apped  her  heart  up  with  her  lord  in  the  linen 
cloth  they  wound  about  the  precious  limbs.     The  next  day  wis  a 
sorrowful  Sal)bath,  and  on  the  morning  following  she  went  to  the 
sepulchre  and  found  it  empty.     She  saw  angels  there :  but  one 
Jesus  was  to  her  worth  more  than  a  thousand  angels.     She  flew 
with  anguish  to  Peter  and  John,  and  ran  back  with  them  to  the 
sepulchre,  crying,  "  They  have  taken  away  my  loi-d,  and  I  know  not 
where  they  have  laid  him."  And  then  she  sank  doAvn  almost  to  the 
vero-e  of  that  horrible  pit  of  mental  disease  from  which  she  had 


*  From  reading  all  the  accounts  in 
the  four  historians,  it  would  seem  that 
there  was  a  crowd  of  women  sorrow 
fully  present  at  the  execution,  but  all 
"standing  afar  off."  Some  sign  from 
Jesus,  or  the  promptings  of  uatiire,  sent 


panied  the  mother,  so  that  only  Mary 
Magdalene  was  present.  Mary  th« 
mother  of  Jesus  joined  her,  probably 
coming  \ip  from  the  crowd  which  stood 
at  a  distance,  and  sat  down  with  her  be- 
side tlie  sepulchre.    But  the  whole  story 


his  mothor  Miiry,  and  his  aunt,  and  his  i  puts  Mary   Magdalene   forvvard.     This 
friend  Mary  Magdalene,  and  his  disciple    much  of  the  history  we  have  boon  corn- 


John  up  near  the  cross.  When  Jesus 
had  committed  his  mother  to  this  disci- 
ple, the  latter  drew  her  away  to  the 
city.     The  aunt  seems  to  have  accom- 


pelled  to  anticipate  to  make  cloar  the 
case  of  Mary  of  Magdala,  the  sweet  and 
suffering  saint. 


THE    SECOND    TOUR   OF    GALILEE.  323 

been  lifted.  AVhen  Jesus  came  she  did  not  perceive  that  it  was 
he.  He  spoke.  He  said  "  Mary."  Probably  it  was  the  one  tone 
in  which  he  had  always  spoken  to  her.  It  thrilled  her  back  to 
widest  consciousness,  and  she  rushed  forward  to  clasp  his  feet. 

Can  there  be  anything  more  beautiful  than  this  ?  Every  great 
man — great  in  purity  as  well  as  power — has  some  special,  honored 
friend  among  women,  which  friend  is  not  his  kins-  The  relation  of  jesus 
woman.  Such  Jesus  had,  and  that  nearest  and  ^^°'^- 
dearest  friend  was  Mary  called  Magdalene.  It  was  not  fitting 
that  he  should  marry.  His  mission  was  too  awful.  He  was  to 
stand  in  sublime  solitariness.  He  had  no  eartlily  father ;  he  was 
never  to  have  bodily  descendant.  But  he  had  a  human  heart,  and 
must  have  had  craving  for  human  love.  He  was  the  incarnation 
of  goodness,  and  had  no  fierce  words  of  denunciation  for  fallen 
women,  whom  he  raised  as  well  as  forgave  ;  but  his  whole  record 
is  so  spotless  that  it  shocks  us  to  think  that  such  a  being  could 
have  found  his  best  beloved  friend  in  a  former  prostitute,  and  that 
she  who  had  been  so  morally  degraded  could  have  had  more  than 
any  other  woman  the  fineness  of  soul  to  have  been  able  to  appre- 
ciate Jesus  and  to  attach  herself  to  such  a  man  with  such  adherent 
love.  She  was  a  beautiful  character.  She  had  been  a  great  suf- 
ferer. Jesus  had  healed  her.  She  was  all  the  finer  for  what  she 
had  endured.  She  was  the  watchful  attendant  of  his  footsteps. 
Hers  were  probably  the  last  human  eyes  into  which  the  dying 
eyes  of  Jesus  looked,  and  hers  the  first  human  eyes  he  is  repre- 
sented to  have  shown  himself  unto  when  he  came  back  from  the 
grave.     This  is  all  that  is  told. 

It  is  most  exquisite.  The  utmost  delicacy  is  here.  It  is  the 
sweetness,  not  the  words  of  the  narrative,  which  betrays  the  holy 
love.  And  after  that  last  interview  in  which  Jesus  xhe  most  beautiful 
showed  her  ho^v  her  mortal  affection  must  be  lifted  <**  '^°^^- 
into  religious  worship,  there  is  nothing  more  said  of  Mary.  And 
then  history  takes  this  beautifullest  love  of  all  the  world  and  mars 
it,  and  blotches  her  name,  and  associates  her  with  all  the  fallen  of 
her  sex.  It  is  to  us  one  of  the  most  awful  problems  of  human 
biography.  Hers  was  a  bitterly  beautiful  kjt.  She  had  sufi'ered. 
She  bad  recovered.  She  loved  her  healer.  She  never  could  be 
asked  to  cross  a  certain  line.  But  there  she  was  met,  more  than 
any  other  woman,  by  the  confidence  and  affection  of  the  most  ex- 
ceptional of  all  marrellously  fine  characters.     He  died  looking  at 


324 


PECOXl^   AN13   THIRD   PASSOVER    IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESTS. 


her.  ITe  rose  and  showed  himself  fii-st  to  her.  If  she  lived  to 
be  a  century  old,  she  had  such  a  memory  as  never  has  heen  voueli- 
safed  to  any  other  woman.  In  her  real  life  she  was  lifted  to  a 
heaven  of  love ;  in  history  she  has  been  cast  down  to  a  hell  of 
infamy.  Let  her  be  restored.  The  truth  does  restore  her.  Tli& 
Friend  of  Jesus  was  a  blessed  saint. 

Wlien  Jesus  and  his  party  returned  to  Capernaum,  so  great  was 

his  fame  that  crowds  assembled  about  the  dwelling  and  pressed 

them  so  nnich  that  thev  could  not  even  eat  bread. 

Capernaum.       Mark  " 

iii.  i!t-35;  Matt.  xii.  Ilis  mother  and  brothers,  learning  how  he  was  ex- 
24-50;  Luke  xi.  14-64.  gj.|-jj,o,  himsclf,  and  liow  the  crowds  were  pressing 
him,  said,  "  lie  is  beside  himself,"  and  went  to  restrain  him  from 
such  excessive  labors.  Although  they  did  not  believe  in  his  doc- 
trines, they  loved  his  person  and  had  tender  care  of  him.  But  the 
multitude  blocked  the  entrance. 

Meanwliile  there  had  been  brought  him  one  possessed  of  a 
demon,*  and  at  once  blind  and  dumb.     It  was  certainly  the  most 
The  blind  and  dumb  cxactiug  demand  upon  power  to  heal  this  com- 
dcmoniac.  plicatioii  of  mental  and  physical  disease.     If  the 

objective  theory  of  demoniacal  possession  be  held,  then  some  evil 
spirit  had  found  in  this  human  soul  an  organ  it  could  use,  and 
in  malignity  had  deprived  the  victim  of  sight  and  speech.  On 
the  subjective  theory,  the  psychical  ailment  had  struck  out  and 
had  bedumbed  and  blinded  the  patient.  In  either  view  Lange 
has  graphically  described  the  case,  in  his  Lehen  Jesu^  when  he 
says :  "  Shut  up  in  this  most  shocking  manner  did  this  being  come 
before  Jesus,  like  a  dark  riddle  of  hellish  restraint  and  human 
despair."  The  simple  statement  of  the  historian  is,  "And  he 
healed  him,  insomuch  that  the  blind  and  the  dumb  both  spake 
and  saw."  This  was  a  culminating  marvel.  It  was  a  manifold 
miracle.  It  showed  the  power  of  Jesus  over  nature  and  super- 
nature.  It  threw  the  populace  into  an  ecstasy.  They  hailed  Jesus 
with  Messianic  salutations.  They  cried  out,  "  Is  not  this  the  Son 
of  David?" 

At  this  time  there  had  come  do^vn  from  Jerusalem  to  Caper- 
naum delcf^atious  from  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  engaged  in  the 


*  It  cannot  be  necessary  to  go  into  the 
question  of  demoniacal  poflsession  every 
time  an  incident  of  this  species  of  ail- 


ment appears.  The  reader  ia  referred 
to  the  ample  disctission  given  this  sub- 
ject on  p.  172. 


THE    SECOND    TOUK    OF    GALILEE. 


325 


work  of  laying  snares  for  Jesus  that  they  might  with  impunity 
put  him  out  of  the  way.  Affairs  liad  now  reached  a  climax. 
He  had  raised  the  son  of  the  widow  of  ISTain  ;  he 

..,  1/-111  •  •  Pharisaic  conspirators. 

liad  made  a  circuit  through  Galilee,  increasing 
his  train  and  his  fame ;  and  he  had  returned  to  find  the  people  re- 
garding him  with  greater  reverence  and  wonder  than  before ;  and 
he  had  cured  the  "  possessed  "  man,  opening  his  eyes  and  ears  and 
restoring  him  to  mental  sanity.  He  had  thus  aroused  the  popu- 
lar enthusiasm  to  a  degree  that  they  were  ready  to  crown  him  king 
and  accept  him  as  the  Messiah.  As  he  would  not  rank  himself 
with  the  ruling  class,  but  had  set  his  influence  directly  against 
their  authority,  the  hour  had  come  when  something  must  be  said. 

The  unfortunate  expression  which  the  other  sons  of  Mary  had 
used  in  kindly  meaning  toward  Jesus,  namely,  "  He  is  beside  him- 
self," was  probably  suggested,  if  not  it  was  seized,  They  charge  that 
by  the  hierarchic  party  and  employed  against  him.  J^sus  has  a  demon. 
"  You  see  that  his  own  mother's  sons  sav  that  he  is  deranged.  The 
truth  is  that  this  fellow  has  Beelzebul,*  and  casts  out  devils  only 
through  Beelzebul,  the  prince  of  the  devils."  It  is  to  be  noticed 
that  they  do  not  deny  the  apparentlj^  hopeless  condition  of  the 
patient,  nor  the  greatness  of  the  miracle  which  Jesus  had  openly 
performed  in  the  presence  of  them  all.  They  did  as  other  men 
do  when  a  great  good  deed  has  been  performed  by  one  whose 
goodness  they  do  not  desire  to  admit:  they  assigned  the  good  deed 
to  a  bad  motive  and  a  wicked  source. 

This  accusation  roused  Jesus.  He  called  them  nearer  to  him 
and  addressed  them  first  in  a  parable.  "Every  kingdom  divided  , 
against  itself  is  desolated,  and  every  city  or  house  divided  against/ 
itself  shall  not  stand.  If  the  Satan  cast  out  the  Satan,  he  is 
divided  against  himself.  How  then  shall  his  kingdom  stand  ?  '* 
Whatever  anarchy  there  may  be  in  this  kingdom  of  the  Satan, 
there  is  this  point  of  unity,  that  all  its  energies  are  directed 
toward  marring  where  he  cannot  destroy  the  kingdom  of  God. 
lie  shows  how  this  perverse  captiousness  is  caught  in  its  own  net. 


*  This  is  the  word  in  the  original,  not 
Beelzebub.  The  name  of  the  Philistine 
god  was  Baal-zebul.  god  of  the  fly,  wor- 
shipped as  represented  by  the  Scara- 
ba'ns  pillnlanus,  or  d>/»f/JiUl  beetle. 
Beel  zebul,  which  means  d>mff-f/od,  is  a 
form  given  according  to  a  custom  the 


Jews  had  of  changing  a  letter  so  as  to 
convert  a  word  into  another  having  a 
contemptible  signification.  As  it  does 
not  appear  earlier  in  Jewish  literature, 
may  it  not  have  been  invented  to  deride 
Jesus  on  this  special  occasion  ? 


326  SECOND    AN'D    TIIIKD    PASSOVER    Df   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

Tliere  is  certainly  one  course  of  conduct  which  cannot  be  said  to 
be  instigated  by  Satan,  and  that  is  such  conduct  as  shows  the 
actor's  deteVmination  to  do  all  he  can  to  overthrow  Satan.  This 
is  the  brief  and  conclusive  reply. 

But  Jesus  furthermore  said,  "  If  I  by  Beelzebul  cast  out  de- 
mons, by  whom  do  your  sons  cast  them  out?      Therefore  they 
shall  be  your  iudges."     lie  calls  attention  to  the 

The  reply  of  Jeeus.  i  i  i 

fact  that  he  was  not  the  only  healer  oi  tliese  ter- 
rible maladies  ;  that  there  were  those  among  the  sons  or  disciples 
of  the  Pharisees  who  had  been  healers,  and  whose  success  had 
always  been  attributed  to  the  aid  of  the  Spirit  of  God.*  His 
works  in  this  department  surpassed  those  of  their  sons  in  the 
greater  malignity  of  the  cases  cured,  in  the  suddenness  of  the  re- 
lief afforded,  and  in  the  authority  with  Avhich  he  spoke  the  word 
of  power.  The  people  testified  (Matt.  ix.  33)  on  one  occasion 
that  "  it  was  never  so  seen  in  Israel."  Some  milder  forms  had 
yielded  to  the  spiritual  influence  of  some  of  the  healers,  but  never 
in  such  a  manner  had  they  seen  such  a  case  so  thoroughly  cured. 
If  the  one  had  no'  collusion  with  Beelzebul,  the  other  must  not  be 
so  charged.  If  not  of  the  Evil  One  it  must  be  of  God.  "  But 
if  I  cast  out  demons  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  then  the  kingdom  of 
God  has  come  upon  you."  A  celestial  surprise  had  come  upon 
that  generation.  Without  their  expectation  the  kingdom  of  God 
had  come  in  on  them.  And  whether  the  Pharisees  believed  it  or 
not,  the  long  prayed  for  kingdom  had  come.  And  this  was  the 
king  of  that  kingdom. 

Jesus  represents  himself  as  more  powerful  than  Satan.     "  IIow 
can  one  enter  the  house  of  the  strong  and  carry  off  his  instruments  f 
He  is  more  powerful  exccpt  lic  first  bind  tlic  stroug  ?  and  then  he  can 
than  satau.  pluudcr  liis  housc."     lu  thcsc  words  Jesus  claims 

to  have  the  power  to  bind  the  Evil  One  and  wrench  the  prey  from 
him.  "When  a  man  of  power,  able  to  defend  himself  against  oi- 
dinary  robbers,  is  openly  deprived  of  his  goods  in  broad  day  liy 

*  See  in  Acta  xix.  13  an  account  of  I  the  greater  deeds  of  Jesus  should  be 
travelling  exorcists,  the  seven  sons  of  i  attri])utcd  to  a  bad  source  shows  the 
a  high-priest.     The  argument  of  Jesus    malignity  of  his  accusers:  and  that  was 


has  the  same  force  whether  the  ordinary 
Jewish  exorcists  did  really  cast  out 
demons  or  were  only  believed  to  have 
done  80.     In  either  case  their  success 


all  liLs  argument  was  intended  to  estab- 
lish. 

f  The  word  means  all  the  furniture 
which  constitutes  the  outfit  of  a  house, 


was  always  spoken  of  favorably,  and  that    all  the  vessels  and  instruments. 


THE    SECOND    TOUR   OF    GALILEE.  327 

one  whom  he  sees,  tlieu-no  one  is  so  much  a  fool  as  to  say  that  the 
strong  man  robbed  himself.  All  say  that  some  one  who  was  able 
to  bind  the  strong  man  had  done  so,  and  then  spoiled  him.  Jesun 
declared  that  a  stronger  than  Satan  had  come.  The  Messiah  was 
to  be  the  hero  of  God.  All  such  prophecies  as  are  represented  by 
the  passages  in  Isaiah  (xlix.  24,  and  more  particularly  liii.  12, 
"  He  shall  have  the  strong  ones  for  a  prey  ")  were  attributed  to 
him.  N^ow  Jesus  declares  himself  that  Mighty  One.  Then  he 
pushes  the  ecclesiastical  clique  of  inquisitors  and  ^persecutors  a 
little  harder.  lie  plants  himself  against  Satan.  These  two 
champions  are  at  war  for  the  empire  of  the  world.  One  is  to  con- 
quer. All  must  take  sides.  There  is  no  neutrality.  The  light 
is  over  the  surface  of  the  universe.  Satan  is  to  be  destroyed,  or 
Jesus.  All  who  are  not  for  Jesus  are  for  Satan.  And  thus  he 
s^viftly  retorts  the  charge,  and  shows  them  to  be  in  league  with 
Satan  by  opposing  him  ?  There  is  no  passivity  possible  to  a 
rational  being.  "  Wlioever  does  not  collect  *  in  aid  of  me, 
scatters."  He  that  does  not  help  the  work  of  Jesus  breaks  down 
and  scatters  the  work  of  God.  Opposition  to  Jesus  is  allegiance 
to  Satan. 

Jesus  then  uttered  one  of  the  most  profound  and  mysterious 
sentences  which  ever  fell  from  his  lips.     Few  people  have  been 
able  to  read  it  without  shuddering.     It  is  so  ira-     Blasphemy    against 
portant  that  I  shall  present  a  careful  translation,  *^°  ^°'y  ^'^"^'^ 
hoping  to  be  helped  thereby  to  a  better  understanding  of  the 
words.     The  passage  in  Matthew  is,  "  Because  this  is  the  case,  I    j 
say  to  you.  Every  (kind  of,  or  form  of)  sin  and  blasphemy  shall  j 
be  forgiven  to  men.     But  the  blasphemy  of  the  Spirit  shall  not  bey 
forgiven.     If  one  speak  a  word  against  the  Son  of  Man,  it  shaU 
be  forgiven  him  ;  but  if  one  speak  against  the  Holy  Spirit,  it  sh.^11 
not  be  forgiven  him,  in  this  age  nor  in  the  coming."     In  Mark  it 
is  :  "  Assuredly  (amen)  I  say  to  you.  That  all  sins  shall  be  f«)r- 
given  to  the  sons  of  men,  and  the  blasphemies,  whatever  they 
shall  have  blasphemed.     But  whoso  shall  blaspheme  in  reference 
to  the  Holy  Spirit  has  not  forgiveness  for  an  age  (during  the  seon), 
but  is  held  bound  by  a  perpetual  loss."      Mark  says  that  he 
uttered  these  words  because  the  Pharisees  had  said,  "  He  has  a  fil- 
thy spirit."    The  passage  in  Luke  gives  no  variation  from  these  two. 

*  The  word  does  not  mean  coming  1  street,  but  rather  conveys  the  idea  ol 
together,  as  a  crowd  collects  upon  the  I  gathering  a  harvest. 


328 


SECOND   AND   THEED   PASSOVER   IN    THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


We  may  be  helped  to  the  meaning  of  this  utterance  by  recol- 
lecting that  it  is  a  warning,  and  that  the  Pharisees  had  not  yet 
committed  this  fatal  offence  ;  and  also,  that  whatever  this  destruc- 
tive sin  may  be,  it  is  a  sin  of  words,  of  speech  rather  than  of  action 
or  of  thought.  Tlie  perpetrator  of  this  hopeless  sin  tnui<t  have 
said  it  !  It  is  hlasjyfioni/  against  the  Holy  S])irit,  not  a  sin  against 
the  Holy  Spirit.  It  seems  to  be  an  open,  outspoken  vituperation 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God,  deliberately  uttered  by  a  man  when 
he  knows  what  he  says  to  be  false,  and  says  it  for  the  distinct  ])nr- 
pose  of  committing  spiritual  suicide.  The  enemies  of  Jesus  had 
not  yet  done  this.  They  had  said  that  Jesus  had  an  unclean 
s]U]-it ;  but  this  they  had  uttered  in  the  heat  of  passion.  Never- 
theless, that  speech  had  come  out  of  bad  hearts,  and  he  kindly 
M-arns  them  to  beware  lest  they  come  to  such  a  state  as  to  be  aljle 
to  c(nnniit  this  fatal  crime.  They  were  blaspheming  the  Son  of 
Man  in  their  anger,  and,  because  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God  was  in 
him,  as  he  claimed,  they  might  by  persistent  wicked  intent  against 
him  come  to  some  such  state  as  to  be  able  to  do  what  would  be 
endlessly  destructive  to  their  souls. 

The  sense  in  which  Jesus  uses  the  word  "a3on,"  age,  it  is  im- 
portant to  know.  In  the  lexicons  it  has  different  meanings,  as 
has  the  corresponding  adjective,  "jeonial,"  which 
seems  to  signify  "  continuous  duration  throughout 
the  period  referred  to,"  and  that  period,  the  duration  indicated 
by  "  ajon,"  must  be  understood  by  the  context.*     One  of  the  most 


The  word  "seon." 


*  Thus  the  phrase  *  is  ruu  aia-va,  which 
I  have  translated  by  the  two  phrases 
for  an  age,  or,  during  the  (ton,  is  precise- 
ly the  phrase  which  occurs  in  1  Cor. 
vili.  13,  where  Paul  says  that  if  meat 
make  his  brother  to  offend,  he  will  eat 
noanore  meat  €iv  tov  aiavo.,  for  an  age, 
during  the  aeon,  but  in  the  common 
version,  "while  the  world  standeth," 
vjnich  seenis  to  me  a  goo<l  translation  ; 
bnt  a  better  rendering  would  be,  "as 
l(|ng  aa  I  live,"  as  Paul  simply  meant  to 
make  a  strong  assertion  in  regard  to  his 
total  abstinence  from  meat,  not  in 
eternity  btit  in  his  lifetime.  We  find 
in  Kph.  iii.  fl,  and  in  Col.  i.  20,  the 
phrase,  imh  rwv  aliifwf,  aud  in  Romans 


xvi.  25,  XP"*'""  olwi-liits.  The  common 
version  renders  the  first  pas.«age  "  from 
the  beginning  of  the  world  ;"  the  second, 
"from  ages;"  and  the  third,  "since the 
world  began  ; "  but  the  phrase  in  the 
first  two  in.stances  is  the  same  in  the 
original,  aud  strictly  translated  means, 
"  from  the  ages,"  and  the  third  signifies 
"through  age-long  times."  These  ci- 
tations are  made  that  tlie  reader  may 
see  that  the  signification  of  the  word  is 
limited  by  its  coimections.  The  Hebrew 
word  which  the  Sojituagint  tran.><lat«8 
bj'  these  Greek  words,  is  one  ai)i)lic(l  to 
many  things  which  have  piussed  away, 
sucli  ius  the  Jewish  priesthoo<l,  the  time 
for  which  a  person  whose  ears  had  been 


THE   SECOND   TOUK   OF    GALILEE.  329 

Btriking  characteristics  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  is  the  absence  of 
all  metaphysical  terms.  Thus  he  has  no  word  for  eternity,  oi 
eternal,  nor  apparently  any  phrase  to  convey  the  idea  of  never- 
beo-inningness  and  never-endingness.  Whatever  he  speaks  of 
is  mentioned  as  if  its  duration  were  connected  with  an  aeon,  or 
the  seons,  an  age,  or  the  ages.  So  here,  "  in  this  aeon,  or  age," 
may  mean  the  age  before  the  establishment  of  the  Messianic  king- 
dom, and  the  "  seou,  or  age  to  come"  may  mean  the  Messianic  age ; 
or  the  former  may  mean  the  duration  of  the  human  race,  or  any 
part  of  them,  on  the  earth,  and  the  latter  the  duration  of  the 
human  race,  or  any  part  of  them,  elsewhere  and  hereafter.  Or 
the  whole  phrase  may  be  taken  hyperbolically,  to  give  the  utmost 
strength  to  the  expression  ;  or  it  may  be  taken  literally.  If  liter- 
ally, whatever  may  be  the  interpretation  given  to  the  special 
phrases,  the  statement  must  have  meant,  to  any  intelligent  and 
attentive  hearer,  that  it  was  possible  to  commit  a  sin,  from  the 
direful  and  spiritually  ruinous  results  of  which  there  could  never 
be  any  escape.  But  if  taken  literally,  and  "  the  age  to  come  "  be 
understood  to  mean  the  state  of  human  existence  beyond  the 
grave,  then  the  w^ords  also  imply  that  there  are  sins  and  blasphe- 
mies that  may  be  forgiven  after  death ;  nay,  that  every  kind  may 
be  forgiven  except  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost.  No  less 
a  person  than  Augustine  *  does  actually  make  that  inference,  and 
the  Roman  Catholic  Church  teaches  it  for  a  dogma. 

"  Either  make  the  tree  good  and  its  fruit  good,  or  else  make 
the  tree  rotten  and  its  fruit  rotten :  for  the  tree  is  known  by  its 
'fruits."  This  was  the  proposition  with  which  ^^^^  ^^  ^^, .,,  ^,, 
Jesus  closed  the  reply  to  his  enemies.  It  is  the 
announcement  of  a  well-known  fact  in  nature,  that  the  outer  is  a 
representative  of  the  inner.     Good  fruits  come  only  from  good 

in  the  resurrection  of  the  dead  there 


bored  might  be  held  in  slavery,  the 
doors  of  the  temple,  landmarks,  waste 
places,  etc.  The  Aramaic  word  which 
Jesus  used  in  his  discourses  was  doubt- 
less the  best  possible  representative  of 
the  Hebrew  and  Greek  words  employed 
in  the  Hebrew  Bible,  and  in  the  Greek 
translation  of  the  Evangelists,  and  there- 
fore subject  to  the  same  interpretations 
as  those  words. 

*  He  says,  in  a  passage  of  which  the 
following  is  a  literal  translation,  ' '  As 


will  be  some  who,  after  the  punLshment 
which  the  spirits  of  the  dead  suffer,  will 
receive  mercy,  so  that  they  will  not  be 
cast  into  everlasting  fire.  For  it  could 
not  with  truth  be  said  of  some  that 
their  sins  would  not  be  forgiven  in  this 
world,  or  in  that  which  is  to  come,  un- 
less there  were  others  who  would  be 
forgiven  in  the  world  to  come,  though 
not  in  this  world."  I  think  the  phrase 
is  not  to  be  taken  literally. 


330         SECOND    AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

trees,  and  bad  fruits  from  bad  trees.  lie  probably  designed  this 
statement  to  tell  both  ways.  As  if  lie  had  said,  So  far  as  I  am 
concerned,  take  all  my  life  that  men  can  see.  Does  that  look  as 
though  it  were  the  product  of  a  bad  soul  ?  So  far  as  you  are  con- 
cerned, the  fact  that  you  speak  such  vile  things  should  alarm  you 
as  to  your  real  character. 

And  then  he  broke  upon  them  with  language  of  great  severity. 

"  Offspring  of  vipers,  how  can  you,  being  evil,  speak  good  things? 

For  the  mouth  utters   the  ovei'fiowings   of   the 

Severe  worda.  »  i  i       i   •  i? 

heart.  A  good  man  throws  good  things  out  of 
the  good  treasure,  and  an  evil  man  throws  evil  things  out  of  the 
evil  treasury.  But  I  say  unto  you,  That  every  idle  word  men  speak 
they  shall  render  an  account  thereof  in  the  day  of  separation. 
For  from  thy  words  thou  shalt  be  declared  right,  and  from  (thy) 
words  thou  shalt  be  condemned."  This  is  a  broad  and  deep  say- 
ing for  one  whose  whole  teaching  seems  to  dwell  upon  character . 
and  its  proper  cultivation.  Commentators  have  generally  endeav- 
ored to  explain  it  away.  But  the  truth  lies  open  on  the  })lain 
surface  of  the  statement,  if  it  be  only  considered  that  a  man's 
words  invariably  show  his  real  character ;  not  a  word  here  and 
there,  detached  speeches,  but  the  whole  body  of  all  his  utterances, 
all  his  words  spoken  through  all  his  life.  Speech  is  the  ovei-flow 
of  the  heart.  A  man's  heart  is  full  of  that  kind  of  thing  which 
drops  from  his  tongue  and  pen.  It  is  utterly  impracticable  for 
any  man  to  misrepresent  himself  in  the  whoh  body  of  his  sjxech. 
It  is  the  forgetfulness  of  this  which  allowed  one  of  the  most 
sagacious  of  commentators*  to  say  that  such  a  criterion  "  would 
be  absurd,  and  put  it  in  the  power  of  any  man  to  settle  his  own 
destiny  by  sheer  talking  or  profession."  Not  at  all.  Su]iposc'  a 
bad  man,  intending  thus  to  settle  his  destiny,  should  utter,  from 
day  to  day  even,  words  which  in  themselves  are  good,  but  with 
the  intent  to  deceive  his  fellow-men  as  to  his  real  character. 
Those  wolds  are  then  bud.  Men  might  be  deceived;  but  the 
Judge  knows  his  heart,  and  knowing  that  he  uttered  hypocritical 
words,  from  those  very  W(»rds  he  shall  bo  condemned  as  a  hypo- 
crite. Even  idle  words,  words  that  carry  no  meaning  and  go  on 
no  mission,  come  out  of  a  meaningless  and  empty  soul  and  con- 
demn the  Mum  as  worthless.  Or,  if  the  word  be  one  of  wanton 
thoughtless  calumny  the  utterer  shall  not  escape  condemnation. 
*  Dr.  Joseph  Addisoa  Alexander. 


THE   SECOND   TOUK   OF    GALILEE. 


331 


Jesus  had  commenced  to  act  so  vigorously  on  the  offensive  that 
the  hierarchic  clique  felt  compelled  to  make  some  movement 
which  should  divert  the  force  of  his  vigorous  ^^^.^^^^^^^ 
blows.  The  crowd  was  increasing  and  growing 
excited.  It  was  known  that  the  wonder-loving  multitude  looked 
for  displays  of  miracles  on  the  part  of  the  Messiah  when  he 
should  come.  So  their  leader  said,  "  Teacher,  we  wish  to  see  a 
sign  from  you."  That  is,  a  sign  showing  yourself  the  Messiah. 
He  replied,  "  A  wicked  and  idolatrous*  generation  seeks  a  sign! 
No  sign  shall  he  given  it  but  the  sign  of  Jonah  the  prophet :  for 
as  Jonah  was  three  days  and  three  nights  f  in  the  belly  of  the 
great  fish,:]:  thus  shall  the  Son  of  Man  be  in  the  heart  of  the 
earth  three  days  and  three  nights." 

He  charged  them  that  they  had  gone  into  heathenism ;  that 
they  were  worshippers  of  signs  and  wonders.   This    ^^^  ^.^  ^^  ^^^^^ 
evil  disposition  should  not  be  nurtured  by  any  thuig 
he  should  do.     The  Messianic  signs  should  come  in  their  seasons, 


*  The  word  here  used  signifies  ' '  adul- 
terous" when  applied  as  usual,  but 
when  employed  to  signify  things  spirit- 
ual it  means  "idolatrous."  There  would 
have  been  no  point  in  the  appUcation  of 
the  former  epithet  to  the  Jews.  But 
they  were  familiar  with  the  idea  of  the 
Lord  God  being  the  husband  of  His 
people,  and  with  the  application  of  the 
words  "  adultery"  and  "  whoredom  "  to 
idolatry,  which  was  represented  as  com- 
ing from  an  unclean  love.  This  proper 
translation  of  the  word  has  the  advan- 
tage of  affording  a  key  to  the  connec- 
tion of  this  discourse.  Jesus  charged 
them  with  being  idolaters,  heathen, 
because  they  worshipped  visible  things, 
such  as  signs.  This  suggested  his  .two 
illustrations  drawn  from  heathen  na- 
tions, Ninevites  and  Arabians  (or  per- 
haps Abyssinians). 

f  That  is,  by  the  Jewish  reckoning. 
In  the  Tidm.  Hieros.  it  is  written :  "  Day 
and  night  make  together  a  space  of 
time,  and  a  part  of  it  is  as  the  tc/iok." 
That  "space  of  time"  is  called  in  He- 
brew nz'l\  which  hterally  means  an 
eoening -morning.   The  Septuagint  trans- 


lation gives  wx^viJ-fPov  as  the  equivalent. 
See  Daniel  viii.  14,  and  the  same  word 
used  by  Paul  in  2  Cor.  xi.  25,  and  trans- 
lated in  the  common  version  "  a  night 
and  a  day."  From  Monday  afternoon  to 
Wednesday  morning  would  be  repre- 
sented as  three  of  these  spaces  of  time, 
three  wx&Vf^f pa,  three  evening-mornings, 
three  nights  and  days.  Olshausen  makes 
the  following  fine  remark:  "  The  accu- 
racy of  Scripture  never  degenerates  into 
minute  and  anxious  precision.  Like 
nature,  it  combines  regularity  with  free- 
dom ;  and  hence  it  affords  scope  to  hb- 
erty,  and  states  and  fulfils  aU  prophecies 
in  such  a  manner  that  they  may  either 
be  believed  or  contradicted.  The  Holy 
Scriptures  would  altogether  miss  their 
aim  if,  by  mathematical  precision  and 
strictness,  they  should  cmrpd  belief." 

X  In  the  Mediterranean  Sea  there  is 
found  to  this  day  a  shark,  the  squnlus 
carcharias,  called  also  lamia,  sometimes 
as  long  as  sixty  feet.  Lange  says  that 
Hubner  relates  the  instance  of  a  sailor 
who  was  swallowed  by  a  shark  and  yet 
presers-ed. 


332 


SECOND    AND    TIIIUD    I'A^iSOVKK    IX    THE    IJFE    OF   JESUS. 


but  should  not  1)0  advanced  to  gi-atify  a  mere  curiosity.  Jonah 
Mas  a  type  of  tlie  Messiah,  His  wonderful  adventure  shall  i)e 
paralleled  in  the  history  of  the  Son  of  Man.  "What  he  meant 
must  have  been  wholly  unintelligible  to  all  his  hearers,  learned 
and  illiterate.  Not  one  of  his  disciples  undei'stood  it  to  intimate 
a  resurrection  from  the  dead.     It  was  a  perplexing  answer. 

The  mention  of  their  idolatrous  tendency,  and  of  Nineveh,  led 
liim  to  say  that  Ninevite  men,  heathens,  who  were  despised  by 

The   Kinevjtes    and    tllC    SUpcrcilioUS    JcWS,  sllOuld    HsC     iu    judgmcut 

the  Queen  of  the  South,  ^^j.  ggparation)  against  the  men  of  the  generation 
of  Jesus,  and  condemn  tliem ;  that  whenever  any  moral  discrim- 
inations should  be  made,  the  men  among  the  heathen  who  repented 
when  such  a  man  as  Jonah  warned  them  shall  be  considered  bet- 
ter than  the  Jewish  churchmen  who  heard  Jesus,  a  greater  than 
Jonah,  and  rejected  him.  He  added  another  illustration.  A 
Queeu  came  from  the  South*  to  hear  the  wisdom  of  Sol(jmon. 
She  was  "  from  the  ends  of  the  earth,"  from  the  people  who  were 
most  removed  from  the  true  religion.  Without  invitation,  against 
friirhtful  risks,  a  woman  was  so  moved  with  a  desire  to  bo  iu- 
structed  in  religion  f  that  she  made  the  long,  painful,  and  peril- 
ous journey  from  barbaric  regions  to  Jerusalem.  Whenever  a 
discrimination  or  judgment  is  made  on  moral  grounds,  she  shall 
be  declared  better  than  the  peo])le  of  tlie  Jewish  church,  wlio,  ]>ro- 
fessing  to  desire  to  know  the  truth,  reject  a  teacher  who  had  per- 
formed greater  deeds  and  spoken  greater  words  than  Solomon 
ever  did,  and  whom  following  generations  would  pronounce  a 
man  superior  to  great  David's  splendid  son. 

He  closed  his  address  with  a  description  of  the  condition  of 
the  Jewish  nation,  contained  in  a  parable  founded  upon  their 
notions  in  regard  to  demoniacal  possession.  This 
peroration  cannot  pi-obably  be  rendered  better 
than  in  the  paraphrase  by  Professor  Strong :  "  According  to  your 


The  peroration. 


*  From  the  southern  portion  of  the 
Arabian  pciiinKiila,  or  from  the  Cushite 
kingdom  of  Seba  in  Ethiopia.  Jose- 
phu.s  (Ant.,  viiL  5,  G)  says  the  latter. 
The  Ethiopian  (orAbyssian)  church  has 
a  tradition  to  the  same  effect.  It  is  not 
nt  all  material  to  the  argument  of  Jesus. 
He  was  contrasting  the  conduct  of 
heathens  with  that  of  the  churchmen  of 


his  day,  to  the  disparagement  of  the  lat- 
ter. ~ 

f  It  is  merely  fair  to  attribute  this 
motive  to  her,  since  the  historj'  wliich 
records  her  vi.sit  says.  "  When  the  Queen 
of  Sheba  heard  of  the  fumo  of  Solomon, 
conc4>,rning  the  name  of  JeJiocu/i,  she 
came,"  etc.     1  Kings  x.  1. 


THE    SECOND    TOUR    OF    GALILEE,  333 

OTm  belief,  a  foul  fiend,  upon  his  expulsion  from  the  possessed, 
ranges  disconsolate  through  some  barren  region,  in  [[uest  of  relief 
from  the  anguish  of  guilt  that  torments  him,  by  a  shelter  in  some 
human  tenement ;  and  to  save  your  credit,  upon  the  relapse  of  a 
demoniac  whom  you  profess  to  have  rendered  sane,  you  say  of 
the  exorcised  denKJU  in  such  a  case  that,  being  unsuccessful  in  the 
search,  he  resolves  to  return  to  his  late  victim,  and  take  up  his 
quarters  there.  Be  that  as  it  may,  such  a  fiend,  if  at  his  return 
he  find  that  former  abode  untenanted  by  any  better  occupant,  l)ut 
swept  clean  and  put  in  order  as  if  for  his  reception ;  he  will  then 
assuredly  go  forth  to  the  general  rendezvous  of  his  comrades,  and 
associate  with  him  perhaps  seven  other  demons,  worse,  it  may  be, 
than  himself,  for  the  secure  possession  of  such  an  inviting  resi- 
dence, and  these  all  repairing  thither  will  enter  and  permanently 
occupy  that  mansion.  In  the  state  of  him  whose  mind  is  the 
theatre  of  such  an  occupancy,  ^  the  latter  evil  is  greater  than  the 
former.'  Precisely  such  will  become  the  condition  of  the  aban- 
doned race  who  now  hear  me ;  the  incipient  conviction  forced 
upon  them  by  my  previous  preaching  and  miracles,  by  being  re- 
sisted, will  but  increase  their  guilty  obduracy,  which  not  even  the 
required  miracle  would  remove." 

As  he  spoke  these  words  a  woman  in  the  crowd,  an  enthusias- 
tic admirer  of  the  young  Rabbi,  broke  out  into  the  exclamation, 
"  Blessed  is  the  womb  that  bare  thee,  and  the 
breasts  which  thou  hast  sucked  !  "     lie  answered  ^^^t. 
this  womanly  but  commonplace  compliment  by 
correcting  her  low  ideas.     "  Eather  are  they  blessed  who  hear 
and  keep  the  word  of  God."     As  if  he  had  said,  "  Even  Mary's 
blessedness  does  not  lie  in  the  historic  fact  that  I  became  son  of 
her  flesh,  but  that  she  was  so  humble  and  faithful  a  keeper  of  the 
word  of  God  as  to  be  selected  to  be  my  mother."     Biographical 
circumstances  are  so  little  when  compared  with  real  loftiness  of 
character ! 

All  this  while  the  mother  and  brothei-s  of  Jesus  were  outside 
the  door,  and  could  not  reach  him  for  the  pi-ess,  but  sent  Avord  in 
to  him.  They  had  heard,  and  perhaps  partly  be-  ^^^  ^^^  ^^^  ^^^ 
lieved,  the  slanders  of  the  Pharisees.  Even  Mary's 
moment  o:^  weakness  was  upon  her.  She  f eai-cd.  She  did  not 
know  into  what  the  effect  of  his  excessive  laboi-s  may  have  be- 
traved  him.     But  he  was  her  son.     "Wlien  the  message  came  to 


334         SECO>«T)   AND   THIRD   PAgSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   .TESU8. 

him  throni,^li  tlic  crowd,  he  said  :  ""Wlio  is  my  motlior?  Wlio  are 
my  brethren  ? "  And  tlien,  looking  upon  the  multitude  about 
him,  and  more  particularly  upon  the  disciples  who  were  clinging 
more  and  more  closely  to  him,  and  striving  more  and  more  to 
comprehend  him,  he  said  :  "  Behold  my  mother  and  my  brothers ! 
For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  God,  the  same  is  my  brother, 
and  sister,  and  mother ! "  The  first  sentence  seems  a  sharp 
rebuke  to  the  weakness  of  Mary  and  the  infidelity  of  her  other 
sons  in  regard  to  this  her  greatest  son  and  their  glorious  brother. 
The  second  takes  them  back  into  loving  arms,  if  they  will  also 
have  spiritual  relationship  with  him.  The  whole  sets  forth  a 
great  advance  in  the  teaching  of  Jesus,  It  is  to  be  noticed  that 
he  claims  more  and  more.  lie  is  looking  widely  through  human- 
ity and  into  the  future.  lie  is  caring  less  for  fleshly  ties.  His 
love  is  founded  on  a  principle.  "NYlioever  lovingly  obeys  God  is 
a  Mary  that  hath  borne  Jesus  in  the  heart.  Whoever  lovingly 
obeys  God  is  his  brother:  the  same  spirit  animates  both.  If  his 
mother  do  not  obey  God,  Jesus  is  ready  to  disown  the  relationship. 
If  the  poorest  woman  in  the  world — such  as  the  poor  barbarian 
woman  in  Africa  who  gave  water  to  Mungo  Park,  and  sang  lulla- 
bies to  him  in  his  sickness  and  solitude — shall  only  lovingly  obey 
God,  Jesus  is  ready  to  recognize  her  as  sister  or  mothei*.  It  is  a 
sublimely  wide  and  deep  saying! 

"While  Jesus  was  making  these  speeches,  one  of  the  Pharisaic 
party,  seeing  the  defeat  they  were  suffering,  invited  Jesus  to  a 
Eau  with  a  Pharisee,  l"iieheon  at  his  houPC,  apparently  that  he  nn'glit 
and  denounces  Thnri-  brcak  up  tliis  public  discussiou  aiid  takc  from  Jesus 
*"  '""  the  support  of  the  popular  presence  and  approval, 

and  suiTound  him  in  ])rivate  by  his  deadly  enemies.  Jesus  accepted 
the  invitation.  Doubtless  the  Pharisee  thought  that  this  was  done 
In  rustic  simplicity  by  an  unsophisticated  man.  But  Jesus  saw 
the  whole  mananivre.  He  went  into  the  house  and  sat  do^vn  at 
the  table,  omitting  the  ceremonial  washing  of  hands.  He  was 
surrounded  by  Pharisees,  who  were  Se])aratists,  Purists,  Puritans, 
as  their  name  implies.  These  well-washed  gentlemen,  with  nicely 
pared  finger-nails,  in  all  things  fastidiously  neat,  exclianged 
glances  of  wonder  that  he  did  not  wash  his  liands.  He  saw  it. 
He  knew  what  it  meant.  He  had  been  invited  into*  net.  He 
was  g<)ing  to  break  its  meshes.  Just  then  a  servant  may  have 
wiped  the  plates  and  cups  with  a  clean  napkin,  to  remove  au}- 


THE    SECOND   TOIJK   OF    GALILEE. 


335 


little  dust  that  may  have  settled  on  the  dishes.  Jesus  took  the 
occasion  to  reply  in  words  to  the  accusations  they  were  making 
by  glances.  "You  Pharisees  are  now  as  faultless  in  your  out- 
ward behavior  as  these  dishes  are  clean  of  every  kind  of  dirt ; 
but  your  hearts  are  full  of  extortion  and  wickedness.  Thought- 
less men,  he  that  makes  clean  that  which  is  without,  does  not 
necessarily  clean  that  which  is  within  also  ?  But  you  give  alms, 
and  then  say,  All  things  are  clean !  *  But  woe  to  you,  Pharisees ! 
you  are  so  careful  in  your  titlies  that  you  give  a  tenth  of  even 
your  mint  and  rue  and  ever}'  herb,t  and  omit  righteousness  and 
the  love  of  God  :  these  are  absolutely  necessaiy,  while  your  scru- 
pulousness in  otlier  things  sliould  not  be  omitted.  "Woe  to  you, 
Pharisees  !  for  ye  love  the  uppermost  seats  in  the  sjmagogues,  and 
the  greetings  in  the  markets.  Woe  to  you  !  for  ye  are  as  hidden 
graves  which  men  do  not  see,  and  so  walk  over  them  and  are 
ceremonially  defiled." 

Amongst  those  present  was  a  "  lawyer."  Wlien  that  name  is 
mentioned  we  are  not  to  suppose  that  the  person  occupied  the 
same  position  in  society  as  our  modern  lawyers. 
The  lawyer  in  this  case  was  rather  a  professor  or 
doctor  of  divinity.  lie  was  an  authority  in  sacred  law.  This 
person,  perhaps  feeling  pinched  by  the  statement  about  the  punc- 
tilious tithing  of  the  smallest  products  of  the  garden,  a  cpiestion 
the  decision  of  which  came  before  the  lawyers,  pertly  addressed 
Jesus  with  the  remark,  "  Teacher,  saying  these  things  thou  insult- 
est  us  also." 

Then  Jesus  broke  upon  him :  "  And  to  you,  professors  of  the 
moral  law,  woe !   for  ye  lade  men  with  burdens  grievous  to  be 


A  "lawyer." 


*  This  seems  to  me  to  be  the  mean- 
ing of  Jesus,  an  interpretation  held  by 
Erasmns,  Lightfoot,  Kuinoel,  Schleier- 
macher,  the  devout  Stier,  and  others ; 
but  opposed  by  Dean  Alford,  who  has 
five  reasons  against  the  correctness  of 
this  rendering,  one  of  which  is  a  strong 
reason  for  the  interjiretation  here  given, 
three  are  giammatical,  one  of  which  is 
not  pertinent  when  we  regard  this  as  a 
dramatic  sketch,  and  another  begs  the 
question.  This  fifth  reason  is,  that  this 
makes  Jesus  cast  a  slur  upon  almsgiving, 
which  is  a  mistake ;    perhaps  he  slurs 


Kuch  almsgiving  as  the  Pharisees  made, 
but  he  is  not  speaking  of  the  giving  of 
alms,  but  of  substituting  outward  and 
ceremonial  for  inward  and  moral  clean- 
liness. The  interpretation  given  in  the 
text  has  this  advantage,  it  makes  sense; 
which  the  usual  reading  does  not,  unless 
it  be  the  sense  that  he  that  gives  alms 
is  therefore  inwardly  pure — the  very 
doctrine  of  the  Pharisees  which  JesuH 
was  vehemently  denouncing. 

f  Perhaps,  by  a  rigid  rendering  of  the 
passage  of  the  law  in  Levit.  ixvii.  30, 
the  Pharisees  made  this  precept. 


EECOND    AND   TIIIKD   PASSOVER    IN   THE   LIFE    OF   .rEPL'S. 


Lawyers  denonnced. 


boiTie,  and  jon  yoin*selves  touch  not  the  bui-dens  with  one  of  your 
little  fingei"s.  Woe  to  you  !  for  ye  build  the  tombs  of  the  jirophets, 
and  your  fathere  killed  them.  Truly  ye  are  wit- 
nesses that  you  approve  the  deeds  of  your  fathers  : 
for  they  killed  the  prophets,  and  over  them  you  erect  monuments 
of  your  o\vn  heavy  ordinances.  On  this  account  the  wisdom  of 
God  has  said :  'I  will  send  them  prophets  and  apostles,  and  some 
of  them  they  will  slay  and  persecute,  that  the  bhjod  of  all  the 
prophets,  shed  from  the  foundation  of  the  world,  may  be  required 
of  this  generation,  from  the  blood  of  Abel  to  the  blood  of 
Zacharias,*  who  perished  between  the  altar  and  the  temple  : '  veri- 
ly, I  say  unto  you,  It  shall  be  required  of  this  generation.  "Woe 
to  you,  professors  of  the  moral  law  !  for  ye  have  taken  away  the 
key  of  knowledge ;  ye  entered  not  in  youi-selves,  and  those  that 
were  entering  in  ye  hindered." 

This  broke  up  the  meal.  His  enemies  and  he  rose  to  their 
feet.  The  Pharisees  were  furious.  They  might  have  despatched 
him  there,  but  between  the  pauses  of  his  awful 
speech  they  heard  the  surging  of  the  great  crowd 
which  blocked  the  street  outside,  among  whom  were  hundreds 
who  had  been  wrought  into  an  enthusiasm  for  the  Teacher,  and 
were  anxious  to  have  him  make  his  appearance.  lie  passed  out 
fi-om  the  circle  of  his  deadly  foes  into  the  midst  of  the  multitude. 


The  meal  broken  np. 


*  This  is  not  so  much  a  quotation  of 
Scripture  as  an  amplification  of  a  say- 
ing of  Scripture.  The  allusion  seems 
to  be  to  the  account  of  the  slaughter  of 
Zacharias,  the  son  of  Jehoiada  (as  re- 
corded in  2  Chron.  xxiv.  18-23),  who 
was  stoned  in  the  court  of  the  house 
of  the  Lord,  because  he  had  faith- 
fully borne  witness  against  the  sins  of 
the  people.  As  he  was  dyinij;  he  said, 
"  The  Lord  look  upon  it,  (iiidrrquire ity 
Jesus  amplifies  this  expre.ssion,  and 
makes  the  assertion  that  God  will  "re- 
quire "  of  the  Jews  of  his  generation  the 
blood  of  all  the  holy  martyrs  who  had 
died  for  confessing  the  truth,  from  Abel 
the  first  prophet-martyr  to  Zacharias 
the  last  martyr-prophet.  He  predicts 
that  such  obstniatc  and  wii^ked  rejec- 
tion of  the  truth  by  \i\a  people  should 


bring  upon  them  a  destruction  which 
shoulil  justify  all  the  assertions  of  good 
men  in  regard. to  the  ruinous  nature  of 
sin,  and  as  complete  as  if  they  had  real- 
ly heard  and  rejected  each  confessor  of 
the  truth  in  every  age.  Matthew  calls 
this  Zacharias  "  the  son  of  Barachias," 
thus  creating  a  difficulty  to  which  two 
solutions  have  been  offered  :  (1),  That  of 
Olshausen,  who  says,  "  There  is  nothing 
offen.<?ive  in  the  supposition  that  Mat- 
thew might  have  confused  the  name  of 
the  murdered  man's  father  with  the 
father  of  the  Zacharias  whose  book  we 
have  in  the  ciinon  of  Scrii)turc  ; "  or  (2), 
Perhaps  still  hotter,  that  of  Ebrard,  who 
suggests  that  Zacharias  might  have  been 
the  grandson  of  Jehoiada,  and  that 
Barachias  stood  between. 


THE    SECOND   TOUR   OF    GALILEE. 


33' 


lie  commenced  to  warn  them  against  li}^ocrisy,  against  accept- 
ing hypocritical  invitations  to  feasts,  but  was  interrupted  by  a 
■^oice  from  the  crowd  inopportunely  saying,  warning  against  hy- 
"  Teacher,  speak  to  my  brother,  that  he  divide  p*'*^"'^- 
the  inheritance  with  me."  This  man  was  not  a  disciple,  nor 
apparently  about  to  become  one,  but  seeing  the  great  and  grow- 
ing influence  of  this  rabbi,  he  supposed  that  he  had  come  to  set 
all  things  right,  and  so  put  in  his  selfish  appeal.  Jesus  turned 
upon  him  with  the  speech :  "  Man,  who  made  me  a  judge  or  a 
divider  over  you  ? "  He  remitted  him  to  the  laws  of  the  land. 
But  it  gave  him  occasion  to  deliver  another  warning  agrainst  covet- 
ousness.  "  See  and  guard  yourselves  against  covetousness.  Not 
because  a  man  has  abundance  does  this  life  consist  in  his  goods." 
The  life  comes  from  God.  It  may  be  sustained  by  a  portion  of 
worldly  goods,  but  all  that  is  over  and  above  what  a  man  can  use 
is  really  useless  to  him.     It  adds  nothing  valuable  to  his  life. 

This  admonition  is  enforced  by  the  parable  of  the  Rich  Fool, 
told  very  dramatically :  "  The  large  field  of  a  rich  man  produced 
plentifully.  And  he  thought  within  himself,  parabie  of  the  Rich 
'  "What  shall  I  do  ?  Because  I  have  not  where  to  ^°°'- 
store  my  fruits.'  And  he  said,  '  This  will  I  do :  I  will  pull  down 
my  barns  and  build  larger :  and  there  will  I  gather  all  my  pro- 
duce. And  I  will  say  to  my  life,  'Life,  thou  hast  many  good 
things  laid  up  for  many  years:  take  thine  ease,  eat,  drink,  be 
merry!'  But  God  said:  'Thoughtless  man!  this  night  they* 
require  of  thee  thy  life,  and  to  whom  will  belong  the  things 
which  thou  hast  prepared  ? '  So  is  he  who  layeth  up  treasure  for 
himself,  and  is  not  rich  toward  God." 

It  would  be  exceedingly  diflicult  to  find  another  passage  in  the 
discourses  of  Jesus  fuller  of  lessons  in  as  few  words.  A  man 
had  become  rich.      He  owned  a  great  field.     He 

'  »      1  1  -11  Exposition. 

was  growing  richer  every  day.    At  last  he  reached 

a  point  of  perplexity.     His  business  had  grown  into  a  very  large 


*  It  was  a  common  belief  among  the 
Jews  that  the  angels  had  to  do  with 
dying  men,  a  belief  alluded  to  again  by 
Jesus  in  the  parable  of  Dives  and 
Lazarus,  Luke  xvi.  22.  Evil  men  had 
their  souls  reqviired  of  them,  dragged 
out  of  them ;  but  the  souls  of  the 
righteous    were     drawn     from     their 

22 


mouths  gently  with  a  kiss  by  the  angel 
Gabriel.  To  something  of  this  kind 
Trench  thinks  allusion  is  made  in  the 
formula  by  which  the  early  church  so 
frequently  described  the  departure  of  a 
good  man.  ' '  In  osculo  Domini  obdormi- 
vit,"  he  hath  gone  to  sleep  in  the  kiss  of 
the  Lord. 


33S        SECOND    AND   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   TIIE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

affair.  IIu  had  reached  a  point  when  some  plan  for  life,  which 
should  arrange  for  the  disposal  of  all  these  riches,  must  be 
adopted.  The  Teacher  shows  us  the  inmost  mind  of  the  man, 
and  pnts  his  thoughts  into  words,  and  then  renders  the  verdict  of 
God  upon  his  character  and  conduct.  God  pronounced  hira  "  a 
fool."  It  is  proper  to  learn  avIio,  in  the  judgment  of  God,  is  a 
fool. 

It  is  quite  apparent  that  the  man  was  not  engaged  in  an  ille- 
gitimate business,  not  even  in  one  that  was  at  all  questionable, 
lie  was  not  a  thief  nor  rambler,  nor  was  he  a 

Business  legitmuite.  ,  ,  "  ' 

speculative  operator  in  stocks.  lie  was  neither 
banker  nor  merchant.  If  money  has  pollution  in  its  touch,  he 
avoided  it.  lie  was  not  exposed  to  the  trials  which  beset  those 
men  whose  business  compels  them  to  buy  in  the  cheapest  and  sell 
in  the  dearest  market.  lie  lived  in  the  rural  districts,  away  from 
the  metropolis;  and  he  was  an  agriculturist.  If  any  man  can 
lead  a  spotless  life,  surely  a  fanner  can.  But  spotless  lives  are 
not  more  frequently  led  in  agriculture  than  in  other  pui-suits. 
Farmers  are  as  good  as  others,  and  no  better.  There  are  farmers 
who  have  grumbled  at  the  extortion  of  merchants,  but  who 
eagerly  snatched  at  the  advantage  given  them  by  a  drought  (h-  a 
bhjckade  to  lock  up  their  corn  and  wait  for  still  greater  advance 
in  the  prices.  But  the  employment  of  farming  is  one  in  which  a 
man  is  subjected  to  the  fewest  temptations.  If  he  do  wrong, 
it  is  because  it  is  in  him.     This  man  was  a  farmer,  and — a  fool. 

But  he  was  not  intellectually  or  spiritually  a  fool,  because  he 
was  rich.     It  is  not  true  that  "  any  fool  can  make  money."     It 
Riches  no  proof  of  rcquircs  braius,  and  thought,  and  energy,  and 
fouyorsin.  perscvcrance, — all  these  in  such  amount  and  pro- 

portion as  would  make  the  man  great  in  any  department.  Nor 
docs  it  follow  that  he  was  a  sinner  because  he  was  rich. 
Ordinarily,  if  a  man  be  very  rich,  it  is  because  he  or  some  ances- 
tor has  done  some  wrong.  But  it  is  not  so  always.  Some  men 
are  so  wise  and  good  that  with  increasing  liberality  they  grow 
rich.  Job  was  that  perfect  man  who  won  even  the  admiration  of 
God,  and  he  was  the  richest  man  of  his  region,  if  not  of  his  age. 
Abraham  was  the  "  friend  of  God,"  and  he  was  a  millionaire. 
In  every  age  some  of  the  saintliest  have  lieen  among  the  most 
prosperous,  ^fen  ought  not  to  despise  or  hate  the  rich,  but  pity 
them  ;  for  with  great  difficulty,  as  Jesus  says,  do  they  enter  the 


THE    SECOXD   TOUK   OF    GALILEE.  339 

kingdtjin  of  heaven.  And  he  tliat  sets  the  poor  against  the  rich, 
inciting  the  many  against  the  few,  appealing  to  the  passions  of 
those  who  have  not  against  those  who  have,  turning  servants 
against  masters,  employes  against  employers,  labor  against  capi- 
tal, wresting  men's  houses  and  lands  and  servants  from  them  by 
preaching  the  crusades  of  agrarianism  is,  to  speak  after  the  man- 
ner of  God,  a  "  fool." 

This  man  in  the  parable  was  a  farmer,  was  shrewd  enough  to 
become  rich, — but  he  was  a  fool. 

This  severe  verdict  was  pronounced  on  his  character  because. 
Firstly^  He  could  not  comprehend  the  state  of  affairs  which  he 
himself  had  created.  He  had  labored  for  an  in-  i.  He  did  not  com- 
crease,  and  when  the  increase  came  he  was  not  p'^i^c^'^  ^'s  affairs. 
prepared  to  invest  it  permanently  for  perpetual  use.  TThen  a 
man  reaches  a  point  that  he  begins  to  destroy  what  he  has  made, 
it  is  clear  that  he  is  not  long-sighted.  This  man  had  invited 
Success  to  be  his  guest.  Success  came,  and  he  did  not  know  how 
to  entertain. 

Secondly^  Because  he  misunderstood  his  relation  to  the  exter- 
nal world.    lie  speaks  like  a  proprietor.    "  /have  no  room  where 

to    bestow    my    goods."       "/will    pull    down    my       2.  Nor  his  relation  to 

barns,  and  build  greater,  and  there  will  I  bestow  the  external  world. 
all  my  goods  and  my  fruits."  Jesus  represents  him  as  a  man  who 
did  not  know  how  to  adapt  himself  to  the  facts  of  God  and  the 
laws  of  the  universe.  A  wise  man  acknowledges  God  as  the 
proprietor,  and  himself  as  the  agent  whose  business  it  is  to  im- 
prove and  beautify  God's  world.  He  sees  that  in  order  to  have 
his  world  beautified  God  has  made  this  law,  that  the  very  moment 
a  man  begins  to  draw  the  world  into  himself  he  begins  to  be 
crashed  out  of  sight.  The  very  moment  he  begins  to  pour  him- 
self out  upon  the  world  he  begins  to-  grow,  and  the  world  to 
brighten.  This  "  fool "  did  not  know  the  meaning  of  the  words 
he  was  employing.  Kothing  is  "fruit"  that  is  not  enjoyable. 
Nothing  that  brings  troubles  and  perplexities  should  be  called 
"goods."  And  this  man  had  burdened  himself  with  what  he 
could  not  enjoy. 

Thirdly^  He  did  not  know  the  difference  between  his  body  and 
his  soul.  "  The  life  (or  soul)  is  more  than  meat."  He  thought 
he  could  feed  his  soid  on  corn !  And  so  he  put  all  he  had  of 
capital  and  brain  into  the  production  of  corn.     "  All  my  goods," 


340         SECOND    AND    THIRD    PASSOVER    IN    THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

he  says.     Wlien  a  man  has  invested  his  "  all "  in  perishable  ob- 
.3.  Did  no  know  the  jef'^s.   and  thov   aro   swept  away,   he  is   totally 
diffiTt-nce  bt-twecn  soul  poverty-strickeii.     This  man  acknowledged  that 
""       ^'  he  had  taken  such  a  fearfnl  risk. 

Foui'thlij,  lie  had  postponed  his  enjoyments.    There  is  a  sense 
in  which  the  old  Epicurean  precept,  "  Carpe  diem,"  holds  good. 
4.  Postponed  hLs  en-  If  tlicrc  bc  aiiy  real  happiness  to  be  had  now, 
joyments.  (_,jjg  sliould  Hot  let  it  slip  by  postponing  it  to  the 

uncertainties  of  the  future.  What  pleasure  we  have  ever  had  we 
still  have,  in  the  knowledge  and  memory  of  it.  What  we  have 
not  we  may  never  have.  The  past  and  the  future  lie  equally  be- 
yond our  control.  Narrow  as  is  the  Xow,  it  is  the  field  for  our 
action  and  the  season  for  our  enjoyment.  It  must  be  packed  full 
and  close, — pressed  down  with  hearty  effort  and  hearty  delight. 
Many  a  man  is  like  this  fool  in  the  parable.  Many  a  man  says, 
"Wlien  I  have  accumulated  a  fortune,  and  built  a  house,  and 
established  my  family,  I  will  settle  down  and  have  a  good  time." 
Wliy  not  have  a  good  time  now,  ■while  one  is  accunnilating  one's 
fortune  and  building  one's  house  ?     AVliy  wait  ? 

F'lfthly^  lie  relied  upon  a  known  uncertainty.     All  that  he  pro- 
jected required  time,  and  was  environed  with  insecurity.     As  the 
B.  Reuedonaknown  timbei-s  of  the  old  bams  wcrc  coming  down,  or 
nncL'rtainty.  tliosc  of  tlic  HOW  wcrc  going  up,  they  might  fall 

on  him  or  strike  him,  and  thus  kill  him  or  leave  him  a  mangled 
cripple,  wretched  for  all  life,  quite  beyond  the  anodynes  that 
wealth  can  bring  to  pain.  ^'■Much  goods — laid  ?(/) — for  many 
yeai-s."  Here  is  a  triple  uncertainty.  And  yet  on  this  uncertainty 
he  was  going  to  settle  down  at  his  ease,  and  eat  and  cb-ink  and  be 
merry,  forgetting  that  in  eating  and  in  drinking  men  sometimes 
choke  or  go  into  manifold  diseases  that  danq)en  all  merriment. 

Sixthly,  He  omitted  prei)arations  for  a  future  certainty.     He 

could  not  tell  when  he  should  die,  but  he  certainly  knew  that 

whatever  wealth  men  may  accumulate  thev  miist 

6.    Made   no   provl-  "^ 

■ion  for  a  known  cer-  die.  IIc  had  madc  iio  arrangement  for  his  fortune 
**'"*^"  when  he  should  be  dead.     To  whom  should  belong 

the  things  which  he  had  prepared?  In  this  day  it  is  sometimes 
announced  that  a  man  has  died  and  "  left  a  fortune  of  many  mil- 
lions of  dollare."  He  "  left "  it,  did  he?  "Wliy  not  stay  with  it? 
What  a  palace,  what  parks,  wluit  ocpiipagcs,  what  delicious  food, 
what  sumptuous  furniture  of  books  and  statues  and  pictures  and 


THE   SECOND   TOTJB   OF   GALILEE.  341 

articles  of  virtu  would  not  those  millions  bu}^ !  Alas !  he  could 
not  stay  with  it.  The  gate  of  the  grave  is  so  narrow  that  slender 
ghosts  do  barely  struggle  through,  and  houses  and  lands,  and  cof- 
fins and  shrouds  and  bodies  are  all  torn  off,  and  the  soul  stands 
naked  on  the  other  side.  And  a  man  cannot  tell  to  whom  he 
shall  leave  his  riches.  Take  what  precaution  he  may,  his  will  may 
1)0  broken,  after  much  of  the  estate  is  squandered  in  litigation. 
If  it  go  to  the  designated  heir,  he  may  squander  it  on  swindlers 
and  harlots,  or  the  heir  may  die  and  leave  it  to  his  father's  dead- 
liest foe.  It  is  folly  to  be  all  one's  lifetime  laboring  to  acquire  a 
fortune  one  must  leave  to  one  knows  not  whom. 

"  So  is  he  that  layeth  up  treasure  for  himself,  and  is  not  rich 
toward  God."  This  is  transcendent  folly.  The  man  has  so  buried 
himself  in  the  perishable  that  when  that  goes  he 

.  -TT       1  1       ,     ^  •  IP'  1  •    1      Not  rich  toward  God. 

is  gone,  lie  has  lost  himself  m  the  material. 
Abstracted  his  inmost,  highmost  nature,  and  emptied  it,  as  one 
should  spill  upon  the  sands  of  the  desert  his  only  bottle  of  water, 
when  he  knows  that  thence  it  can  never  be  gathered  up  again,  and 
that  there  is  not  another  drop  within  reach.  He  passes  into  eter- 
nity with  nothing,  as  if  one  should  go  into  a  foreign  land,  a  laud 
of  strangers,  with  none  of  their  current  money,  and  with  nothing 
that  could  be  converted  into  curreucy.  On  this  side  rich,  on  that 
poor.  Here  the  papers  are  full  of  accounts  of  his  iuimense  estate, 
where  it  lies,  and  how  it  goes,  while  he  stands  a  pale  and  shivering 
spirit  on  the  inside  of  the  gate  of  death,  with  nothing.  He  is  not 
rich  toward  God,  nor  rich  in  God.  He  hath  not  used  the  means 
at  his  control  to  please  the  owner  thereof,  and  now  he  comes  to 
the  judgment  a  defaulter.  He  had  not  learned  the  blessed  alche- 
my by  which  Love  and  Faith  do  change  the  baser  metals  of  this 
world  to  gold  which  endures  forever.* 

Such  seem  to  be  the  lessons  of  this  striking  parable.  Jesus  fol- 
lowed it  with  a  repetition  and  enlargement  of  much  that  he  had 
spoken  against  covetousness  and  excessive  carefulness  in  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount. 

In  the  crowd  of  hearers  were  some  who  took  occasion  to  speak 
to  him  of   certain  Galilaeans  whom    Pilate  had     one  of  piiate's  ont- 
slain  while  they  were  engaged  in  worship,  min-  ^^^ 
gling  their  blood  with  their  sacrifices.     We  cannot  now  ascertain 

*  In  this  exposition  I   have    drawn  I  ^'' A  Prophylactic  of  Covetousness." 
largely  ou  my  published  sermou  entitled  I 


342         SECOND   AND   TIIIKD   PA660VEK   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

what  was  the  i)articuhir  atrocity  to  which  they  alhided.  The  Gall 
kiiuns,  according  to  Josephus,*  were  prone  to  insurrection.  They 
were  ignorant,  rude,  and  tumultuous,  and  made  frequent  disturb- 
ances in  Jerusalem  ou  the  occasions  of  the  feasts.  And  Pilate 
not  infrequently  was  grossly  violent  in  the  government  of  his  peo- 
ple.f  AHiy  these  informants  should  have  brought  this  subject  to 
the  attention  of  Jesus  at  this  particular  time  it  is  difficult  to  decide. 
Perhaps  it  was  a  challenge  to  him,  as  he  was  putting  forth  claims 
to  the  Messiahship,  to  stretch  forth  his  arm  against  the  Pomau 
governor  who  had  violated  the  Temple  by  the  introduction  of 
soldiers  and  by  mingling  human  bl(X)d  with  the  blood  of  sacri- 
fices. Perhaps  it  was  a  sluj'  on  Jesus  as  a  GaliUean.  Perha[)s  it 
intimated  that  he  was  creating  trouble  for  the  people,  as  these 
GahlcEans  had  met  their  death  as  his  partisans.  They  may  have 
done  so.  Going  up  to  Jerusalem  to  present  their  sacrifices,  they 
may  have  found  a  test  presented  to  them,  involving  the  rejection 
of  Jesus,  or  may  have  heard  him  violently  denounced  by  the 
priests ;  and  although  they  themselves  were  not  good,  they  had  an 
enthusiasm  for  the  young  Rabbi,  and  resented  the  insults  of  the 
priests,  who  may  have  called  in  the  aid  of  the  governor  and  the 
unscrupulous  Poman  soldiery;  or,  most  probably,  to  divert  the 
searching  address  of  Jesus  from  themselves,  they  spoke  of  this 
gi-eat  catastrophe  in  reprehension  of  the  Galilasans  who  had  been 
slain. 

Jesus  takes  occasion  to  rebuke  the  spirit  which  was  rife  among 

the  Jews,  and  which  can  be  found  in  this  day,  leading  men  to 

adjudge  the  unfortunate  as  wicked,  and  to  regard 

A  false  judgment  .  ,■"  ,  «  «      .  ,  . 

smgular  catastrophes  as  proofs  of  singular  crim- 
inality. "  Suppose  you  that  these  Galila^ans  were  8innei*8  al)ove 
all  the  Galilceans,  because  they  have  suffered  such  things?  I  tell 
you.  No ;  but  except  you  repent,  you  shall  all  jterish  in  like  man- 
ner.:}:    Or  those  eighteen,  upon  whom  the  tower  of  Siloamg  fell 


*  Vit.,  17,  and  Antig.,  17,  9,  3 ;  10,  2. 

f  See  Josephus,  Antiq.^  18,3,  1;  De 
Bt'U.  Jud. ,  2,  y,  2 ;  also  Winer,  the  arti- 
cle Pilate. 

X  "  Likewise  "  does  not  translate  the 


the  incident  here  mentioned.  Winer 
refers  to  Josephus,  Bell.  Jud.,  6,  7,  2. 
from  which  pa-ssage  it  would  seem  that 
the  lower  town  extended  as  far  a4 
this  district  of  Siloam,  which  Josephus 


word.     It  means  that  their  punishment ;  dLsting^uishos  from  a  well  of  tlie  same 


should  be  of  the  same  kind  as  that  uf 
those  who  ha<l  been  spoken  of. 

§  History  has  preserved  no  record  of 


name,  nud  that  the  district  was  enclosed 
by  the  city  walla. 


THE   SECOND   TOTJR   OF   GALILEE. 


343 


and  killed  them,  think  ye  that  they  were  sinners  above  all  men 
who  dwelt  in  Jerusalem  ?  I  tell  yon,  No ;  but  except  yon  repent, 
vou  shall  all  (Galiteans  and  Judoeans)  perish  in  like  manner." 
He  tauo-ht  that  these  unfortunates  who  fell  by  Pilate's  hand  weic 
not  therefore  to  be  accounted  worse  than  their  countrymen  ;  nor 
the  Galilceans  in  geneial  to  be  disparaged  on  this  account,  for  in 
Judeea,  nay,  in  Jerusalem  itself,  a  tower  had  fallen  upon  eighteen 
people  who  were  not  Galilseans,  and  they  perished  ;  but  they  were 
not  therefore  to  be  accounted  worse  than  other  Juda^ans. 

He  then  gave  his  discourse  a  turn  which  his  hearers  little  ex- 
pected. He  led  them  from  thinking  of  othei-s  to  think  of  them- 
selves. Repentance  and  not  judgment  was  the  Repentance,  not 
proper  occupation  of  their  lives.  Unless  the  Judgment, 
whole  people  of  the  Jews  repented,  the  nation  should  be  slain 
and  crushed  out.  God's  hand  flings  down  Siloam-towers  and  un- 
sheathes Pilate-swords,  and  these  are  but  types  of  what  He  will 
do  to  the  whole  nation,  if  they  do  not  repent.  This  was  a  predic- 
tion which  was  literally  fulfilled  at  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem, 
when  multitudes  of  the  inhabitants  were  crushed  beneath  the 
ruins  of  the  Temple  and  the  city,  and  multitudes,  while  engaged 
in  offering  their  sacrifices,  were  slain  by  the  Roman  army. 

The  forbearance  and  the  justice  of  God  towards  the  Jewish 
nation  are  then  set  forth  in  a  warning  parable.  "A  certain  one 
had  a  fig-tree  planted  in  his  vineyard,  and  he  came 
seeking  fruit  on  it,  and  did  not  find  it.  Then  he 
said  to  his  vine-dresser,  '  See,  three  years  *  I  come  seeking  fruit 
on  this  fig-tree,  and  I  do  not  find.     Cut  it  down :  why  does  it  also  f 


rarable  of  the  Fig-tree. 


*  It  may  be  instructive  to  the  reader 
to  see  a  statement  of  the  fantastic  deal- 
ings with  the  words  of  Jesus  by  com- 
mentators. Take  the  "three  years" 
which  are  named  in  this  passage.  Au- 
gustine uuderstimds  them  to  mean 
the  law  of  nature  and  the  ^vTitten  law 
and  the  law  of  grace  !  Theophylact  in- 
terprets them  to  signify  Moses  and  the 
prophets  and  Christ ;  and  also,  when  ap- 
pUed  to  the  individual  imder  moral  cul- 
ture, childhood  and  manhood  and  old 
age.  Olshausen,  the  three  years  of  the 
ministry  of  Jesus.  WTiereas  the  plain 
meaning  is  simply  the  space  required  for 


the  bearing  of  fruit.  His  hearers  could 
not  possibly  have  understood  anything 
else,  nor  could  others,  except  as  they 
set  themselves  to  exercise  their  inge- 
nuity and  to  make  "heads"  for  a  ser- 
mon. 

f  The  whole  force  of  the  most  impor- 
tant word  in  the  sentence  is  lost  in  the 
common  version.  "  In  addition  to  occu- 
pjing  space,  it  exhausts  the  ground." 
■\\Tiy  should  it  ?  That  is  the  real  mean- 
ing of  the  text,  which,  in  our  transla- 
tion above,  is  sought  to  be  brought  out 
suggestively  by  the  world  "  also." 


34-i         SECOND    ANT)   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

injure  the  ground?'  But  the  vine-dresser  replied,  '  Master,  let  it 
alone  this  year  also,  until  I  shall  dig  and  cast  manure  about  it; 
and  then,  if  it  i)roduce  fruit, — hut  if  not,  then  thou  shalt  cut  it 
down."  * 

It  was  a  plain  and  pungent  lesson.  The  fig-tree  was  the  Jew- 
ish people,  who  had  received  all  kinds  of  protection  and  culture 
from  God,  who  had  been  expected  to  Ijcar  fruit  for  the  good  of 
the  world,  who  had  had  time  granted  for  that  purpose,  l)ut  who 
had  not  only  been  barren,  but  had  kej»t  the  world  back  in  the 
growth  of  improvement.  It  was  like  a  tree  drawing  from  the 
ground  tlie  nourishment  which,  if  other  trees  had,  they  would 
produce  fruit.  It  must  be  cut  down.  But  a  merciful  space  is 
left.  If  it  begin  to  be  productive,  it  shall  be  spared;  if  not.  it 
shall  be  cut  out  from  among  all  the  trees  of  the  nations  which 
God  has  planted  in  the  field  of  the  world.  His  hearers  certainly 
must  have  understood  this  to  be  a  prediction  of  the  destruction 
of  their  hierarchy  and  nationality.  The  construction  c»f  the  ])ar- 
able,  and  the  connection  in  which  it  is  uttered,  showed  them  that 
this  was  the  meaning  of  Jesus.     And  he  meant  nothing  else. 

*  The  following  receipt  for  curing  a  down,  and  gives  the  stem  of  the  tree 
fig-tree  of  barrenness  is  quoted  from  three  blows  with  the  back  of  the  hatchet. 
Rosenmiiller  (Alte  vnd  Neue  Morgcn-  But  the  other  restrains  him.  erring.  Nay, 
land,  V.  5,  p.  187) :  "  Thou  must  take  do  it  not;  thou  wilt  certainly  have  fruit 
a  hatchet  and  go  to  the  tree  with  a  from  it  this  year;  only  have  patience 
friend,  unto  whom  thou  sayest,  I  will  I  with  it,  and  be  not  over-hasty  in  cutting 
cut  down  this  tree,  for  it  is  unfruitful,  it  down ;  if  it  still  refuses  to  bear  fruit, 
He  answers,  Do  not  so,  this  year  it  will  |  then  cut  it  down.  Then  will  the  tree 
certainly  bear  fruit.  But  the  other  ]  that  year  be  certainly  fmitful  and  bear 
says.  It  must  needs  be,  it  must  be  hewn  I  abundantly." 


CHAPTER  YIL 


A    CHAPTER   OF    PARABLES. 


In  the  course  of  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  Jesus  left  his 
residence  in  Capernaum  and  went  to  the  shore  of  the  lake  of 
Gennesaret.  Ills  appearance  in  public  would  Lake  oennesaret, 
no^y  immediately  sunnnon  a  concrrci^ation.     To  n^ Capernaum.  Matt 

<■'  »      o  xiu. ;  Mark  iv.  ;  Luke 

the  multitudes  that  had  assembled  from  all  the  viii. 
neighboring  towns  and  cities,  he  presented  his  doctrines  in  the 
form  of  parables,  delivered  while  he  sat  in  a  boat  near  the  shore. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  Jesus  was  more  liberal  of  this  kind  of 
teaching  at  this  period  of  liis  ministi-y  than  ever  before.  In  the 
next  chapter  we  shall  have  occasion  to  consider  the  motive.  We  ai-e 
following  the  order  of  the  original  historians  as  far  as  practicable. 

The  first  in  order  and  in  importance  is  the  Parable  of  the 
Sower.  Jesus  considered  it  the  fundamental  parable.  When  his 
disciples  questioned  him  privately  as  to  its  signifi-  ^    ^,    ^^^  ^ 

t  1  .  Parable  of  the  Sower. 

cance,  he  said,  "  Know  ye  not  this  parable  ?  How 
then  will  ye  know  all  parables  ?  "  (Mark  iv.  13.)  And  this  is 
that  parable  :  "  Behold  the  sower  went  forth  to  sow  ;  and  in  his 
sowing  some  seeds  fell  by  the  wayside,  and  were  trodden  down, 
and  the  birds  came  and  devoured  them.  x\nd  othei-s  fell  u))on 
stony  places,  where  they  had  not  much  earth,  and  mimediately 
sprang  up,  because  they  had  no  depth  of  earth  ;  but  the  sun  having 
risen* they  were  scorched,  and  because  they  had  no  root  they  with- 
ered away.  And  others  fell  among  the  thorns,  and  the  thorns 
grew  up  and  choked  them,  and  they  yielded  no  fruit.  And  others 
fell  on  good  gromid,  and  gave  fruit,  some  an  hundred-fold,  some 
sixty-fold,  some  thirty-fold.     He  who  hath  eai-s  let  him  hear.'' 


*  ' '  There  is  a  peculiar  beauty  iu  the 
Greek  here,  which  cannot  be  retained 
in  a  translation,  arising  from  the  use  of 
the  same  verb  (but  in  a  less  emphatic 
form)  to  signify  the  rising  of  the  plant 


and  of  the  sim,  as  both  are  said  in  Eng- 
lish to  be  up,  when  one  is  above  the 
surface  of  the  earth  and  the  other  above 
the  horizon." — Jos.  Addison  Alexander. 


34G 


SECOND   AND   TIIIED   PASSOVKR   IN   THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 


The  next  parahle  is  that  of  the  Tares.     He  said  to  them,  "  The 

kinirdoin  of  the  heavens  was  likened  to  a  man  who  sowed  tfood 

seed   in    his  field,  but    while    men    slept*    his 

Of  the  Tares.  '  '■ 

enemy  came  and  o\ers(;wed  tares  f  in  the  midst 
of  the  wheat,  and  went  away.  And  M-hen  the  blade  sprang  up 
and  made  fi-uit,  then  appeared  also  the  tares.  And  the  slaves  of 
the  master  of  the  house  coming  said  to  him  :  '  Sir,  didst  thou  not 
SOAV  good  seed  in  thy  field  ?  A\nience  then  has  it  tares  ? '  He  said 
to  them, '  An  enemy  man  has  done  this.'  And  the  slaves  said 
to  him,  '  "Wilt  thou  then  that  we  go  and  gather  them  ? '  But  he 
said,  '  No  :  lest  gathering  together  the  tares  ye  root  up  the  wheat 
with  them.  Permit  both  to  grow  together  until  the  harvest ;  and 
in  time  of  harvest  T  will  say  to  the  reai)ei-s.  Gather  fii-st  the  tares, 
and  bind  them  in  bundles  for  to  burn  them  :  but  the  wheat  irather 
into  my  barn.' " 

And  he  said,  "  So  is  the  kingdom  of  God,  like  as  if  a  man 
should  cast  the  seed  into  the  ground,  and  should  sleep,  and  rise 

night  and  day,  and  the  seed  should  sprinc:  and 

Of  the  Patient  Farmer.  ,       ,  1         G 

grow  up,  he  knoweth  not  how.  The  earth  bring- 
ing forth  fruit  of  hei-self ;  first  the  blade,  then  the  ear,  after  that 
the  full  corn  in  the  ear :  but  when  the  fruit  is  ripe,  immediately 
he  putteth  in  the  sickle,  because  the  harvest  has  come." 

Then  he  set  before  them  the  Parable  of  the  Mustaixl-seed. 
"  The  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is  like  a  grain  of  mustard,:}:  which 
a  man  took  and  sowed  in  his  field,  which  indeed 
is  the  least  of  all  the  seeds,  but  when  grown  it  is 
the  greatest  of  the  herbs,  and  becomes  a  tree,  so  that  the  birds  of 
heaven  come  and  roost  in  its  branches  and  under  the  shadow 
thereof." 

Then  another  parable.     "  The  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is  like 


Of  the  Mustard-aeed. 


*  Simply  signifying  "  at  night," — the 
time  when  men  usually  sleep, — and  not 
at  all  intimating  any  blame  of  the  ser- 
vants, tus  Chrj'sostom  and  Augustine  have 
taught. 

f  The  botanical  question  is  a  matter 
of  no  importance  whatever  in  the  inter- 
pretation of  a  parable.  The  tares  here 
are  probably  the  Lalium  tanuUntum, 
darnel,  which  resembles  wheat  when 
it  firtit  corao.s,  but  the  seed  is  black  and 
has  an  intoxicating  effect.     It  is  exceed- 


ingly difficult  to  extirpate  it  when  it  has 
once  begun  to  grow  in  a  field,  and  it  is 
almost  impossible  to  discriminate  be- 
tween tares  and  wheat.  Sec  averj'  full 
description  (with  pictorial  illustration) 
in  Thompson's /xind  o/id  £lt»A,  voL  ii 
pp.  111-114. 

X  Another  botanical  question,  not  very 
imjiortant  in  a  parable.  Of  all  the  seed 
com  used  in  Jewish  husbandrj'  the  mus- 
tard-seed waa  probably  the  very  small- 
est. 


A   CHAPTER   OF   PAKABLES. 


347 


Of  Leaven. 


yeast,*  wliich  a  woman  having  taken  liid  in  three  measures f  of 
meal,  mitil  the  whole  was  leavened." 

When  he  left  the  lake  and  retired  to  his  house 
his  disciples  sought  him,  and  asked  the  reason  for  the  great  cliange 
which  was  now  comiug  over  his  manner  of  dis- 
course. They  could  not  have  failed  to  notice  pj^f^^^^""  ^^^^  "* 
that  thitherto  he  had  spoken  with  great  direct- 
ness, in  a  didactic  style,  when  he  wished  to  teach  doctrine  or  incul- 
cate dut}^,  and  that  when  his  enemies  sought  to  entrap  him  he 
had  dealt  with  them  in  questions  wliich  greatly  entangled  them. 
Now  he  was  filling  his  speech  with  parables.  There  must  be 
some  reason  for  this  great  change.  So  they  put  the  question  to 
him  directly:  "Why  speakest  thou  unto  them  in  parables?" 
His  answer  was  this  :  "  Because  it  has  been  given  to  you  to  know 
the  mysteries  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  but  to  them  it  has 
not  been  given.  For  whosoever  has,  to  him  shall  be  given,  and 
he  shall  have  abundance  :  but  whosoever  has  not,  from  him  shall 
be  taken  even  what  he  hath.  On  this  account  I  speak  to  them  in 
parables  :  because  seeing  they  do  not  see,  and  hearing  they  do  not 
hear,  nor  understand.  And  to  them  is  fulfilled  the  prophecy  of 
Isaiah,  wliich  saith.  By  hearing  ye  shall  hear,  and  shall  not  un- 
derstand :  and  seeing  ye  shall  see,  and  not  perceive  :  for  the 
heart  of  this  people  is  become  gross,  and  they  heard  with  their 
ears  heavily,  and  their  eyes  they  closed ;  lest  they  should  see  vnth 
their  eyes,  and  hear  with  their  ears,  and  understand  with  their 


*  In  the  Greek  C"f 'Ji  leaven  or  yeast, 
the  soxir  dough  used  in  all  countries  to 
produce  fermentation,  and  thus  make 
the  bread  light  and  puffy. 

j[  This  measure,  called  Saroi',  saton, 
in  the  Greek,  was,  according  to  Joscphus, 
equal  to  one  and  a  half  Roman  meas- 
ures, each  of  which  was  equal  to  about 
a  peck,  so  that  all  this  meal  was  perhaps 
(for  there  is  no  absolute  certainty  as  to 
these  ancient  measures)  about  an  Eng- 
lish bushel.  But  it  makes  little  differ- 
ence whether  the  Roman  modius  was 
nearer  our  peck  than  our  bushel,  no 
definite  quantity  being  intended.  So 
the  number  three  can  be  of  no  impoi't- 
auce  in  a  parable,  and  yet  the  student 


may  be  amused  to  bear  the  fantasies  it 
has  suggested  to  worthy  and  learned 
men.  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia,  in  the 
fifth  century,  referred  it  to  the  Jews, 
the  Samaritans,  and  the  Greeks.  Au- 
gnstiue  in  the  fourth  century,  and  Stier 
of  the  present  day,  refer  it  to  Shem, 
Ham,  and  Japheth  !  Olshausen  favors 
a  reference  of  this  particular  number  to 
the  effect  of  the  gospel  on  the  three 
departments  of  human  nature — body, 
soul,  and  spirit.  This  special  number 
was  used  probably  because  it  was  com- 
mon to  mix  about  that  much  dough  for 
a  baking.  See  Gen.  xviii.  6  ;  Judges  vL 
19 ;  1  Samuel  L  24.  In  the  last  two 
passages  the  Septuagint  has  -/la  /'*Tf-o. 


3-iS  SECOND    AND    THIRD    PASSOVER    IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

heart,  and  iniirht  turn,  and  I  should  heal  them.  But  blessed  are 
your  eyes,  for  they  see:  and  your  ears,  for  they  hear.  Vei-ily  I 
say  to  you,  That  many  prophets  and  righteous  men  ha\e  desirL'<l 
to  see  what  ye  see,  and  have  not  seen  ;  and  to  hear  what  ye  hear, 
and  have  not  heard." 

All  this  seems  simply  to  mean  that  whenever  any  man  uses  his 

faculties  aright  and  cultivates  his  moral  character,  he  shall  have 

constant  growth  and  spiritual  help,  and  that  who- 

Meaning  of  hLs  reply.  >"  ^         i      ^    i  •  ^r  •      i.    j.1. 

soever  chooses  to  shut  himseli  up  aganist  tne 
truth  shall  constantly  shrink.  God  gives  to  those  who  desire  to 
have,  whatever  may  have  been  their  personal  faidts,  and  withholds 
from  all  othei-s.  These  humble  disciples  lay  with  their  souls 
to  the  sun,  and  consequently  had  its  warming  and  brightening  in- 
fluence. The  "  mysteries  of  the  kingdom,"  what  apjjeared  mys- 
terious to  others,  began  to  become  comprehensible  to  them.  The 
Jewish  people  could  not  understand  the  present  revelation,  because 
they  had  closed  their  eai-s  to  former  revelations.  Jesus  felt  the 
truth  that  was  in  him,  and  set  it  forth  in  such  a  style  that,  if  their 
Bonis  would,  they  could  receive  the  ti-uth  ;  but  if  they  preferred 
darkness  the  parable  Avould  be  unintelligible.  The  parable  covei-s 
and  discovers,  conceals  and  reveals.  It  is  the  temper  and  previ- 
ous culture  of  the  hearer  which  determine  the  effect  of  the  speech, 
whether  he  listen  to  Jesus  or  any  other  teacher.  The  power  of 
closine:  the  eai-s  while  one  seems  to  hear  is  well  known.  If  this 
be  practised  toward  the  truth,  a  man  may  come  into  such  a  state 
that  when  he  desires  to  know  and  understand  he  cannot.  In  that 
case  the  fault  is  not  in  the  truth  nor  in  the  teacher :  a  law  of 
human  nature  has  been  violated. 

There  are  special  seasons  of  great  advantage  to  the  hearer,  as 
when  a  peculiarly  gifted  teacher  comes  into  the  world  or  into  a 
community.  It  is  a  blessed  thing  for  any  man  to  be  in  a  recep- 
tive condition  at  such  a  time.  Many  an  ancient  prophet,  saint, 
and  prince  had  longed  to  know  what  those  who  listened  to  .lesus 
could  learn.  IMessed  were  the  men  who  were  ready  to  hear  when 
Jesus  began  to  speak.  In  saying  so,  Jesus  assumed  to  be  able  to 
make  revelation  of  great  truths  ;  to  be,  indeed,  such  a  teacher  as 
these  prophets  and  kings  had  longed  to  hear,  surj^assing,  in  a 
word,  all  former  teachei-s  of  mankind. 

He  then  began  to  unfold  the  j^arablcs  in  a  stylo  which  should 
be  a  guide  to  all  succeeding  commentators,  presenting  the  essence 


A   CHAPTER   OF   PAKABLK3 


349 


of  doctrine  contained  in  the  parable,  and  intended  to  be  taught 
by  it,  without  those  conceits  where,  with  a  lively  fancy,  one  ma^? 
embroider  a  solid  thonght.* 

In  the  Parable  of  the  Sower,  the  seed  represents  the  word  of 
God,  and  the  places  where  it  fell  the  condition  of  the  several  por- 
tions of  the  human  race,  and  tlie  several  kinds  of 
human  character  upon  which  this  seed  falls,  for  ^^'T,"'^.**?  f  '**' 

-■■  '  Parable  of  the  Sower. 

humanity  is  God's  Made  field  of  husbandry.  The 
word  or  truth  of  God  is  like  seed  in  that  it  grows  when  planted, 
and  that  it  is  of  its  nature  to  grow  when  put  into  the  human 
heart,  if  that  heart  be  kindly  turned  toward  the  truth.  Moreover, 
it  produces  the  bread  of  the  soul,  and  is  self-propagative.  It  has 
been  observed  in  this  parable  that  the  seed  represents  at  one  time 
the  word  of  God,  and  at  another  the  heart  of  man.  But  no  one 
has  ever  been  perplexed  by  this  free  motion  of  thought  and 
speech.  The  illustrations  are  as  clear  as  if  every  rule  of  the  most 
artificial  rhetoric  had  been  observed,  while  Jesus  used  "  that  dis- 
cretionary license  which  distinguishes  original  and  independent 
thinkers  from  the  mere  grammarians  and  rhetoricians." 

And  perhaps  this  matchless  Teacher  had  a  meaning  in  the  very 
change  from  seed  to  soil.  The  loss  of  the  seed  is  the  loss  of  the 
soil,  as  the  good  seed  on  good  soil  becomes  incorporated  therewith. 
A  man  who  loses  the  truth  loses  himself ;  he  who  receives  the 
truth  enriches  his  own  personality. 

The  difference  in  the  reception  by  different  classes  of  hearers 
is  thus  explained  : — 

(1.)  The  wayside  hearers  are  those  who  hear  the  word  of  tlie 
kingdom  so  far  as  outward  reception  of  the  mere  word  is  con- 
cerned, the  mere  listening  to  the  statement  of  propositions,  with- 
out an  active  apprehension  and  personal  application.  The  word 
lies  on  their  souls  as  seed  does  on  a  paved  and  much-trodden 
road.  It  is  fhe^'e  :  but  it  has  not  entered.  It  has  not  been 
received.     The  hungry  mouth  of  the  ploughed  furrow. is  not 


*  Of  which  a  specimen  is  Lange's  in- 
terpretation, of  the  parable  of  the  sower, 
when  he  says  that  the  stony  ground  is 
exhibited  in  ' '  corrupted  Judaism  ;  the 
ground  where  the  good  seed  is  choked 
by  thorns  of  worldly  lust  is  the  Moham- 
medan world  ;  the  good  ground  is  Chris- 
tendom!"    {Life  of  Jesus,  \ol   ii.,  p. 


194. )  Really  the  common  justice  which 
allows  an  intelligent  man  to  know  what 
he  meant  to  say,  ought  to  be  accorded 
to  Jesus.  After  he  has  given  his  own 
interpretation  of  one  of  his  own  para- 
bles, surely  it  is  most  unfair  to  repre- 
sent him  as  meaning  something  else 
thereby. 


350         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LITE   OF   JESLS. 

there  to  take  it  in,  nor  is  the  liarrow  ready  to  put  it  under.  It  is 
obvious  to  the  e^'es  of  the  birds,  who  see  it  and  take  it  ofiF.  The 
Evil  One  does  that  for  the  way-side  hearers  of  the  truths  of  "  the 
kinj^doni  "  which  Jesus  was  preaching.  The  grammatical  con- 
struction of  the  sentence  shows  that  this  loss  of  the  word  occui*s 
"  almost  during  the  act  of  hearing.'.' 

(2.)  "  But  what  was  so^ni  among  the  stones,  this  is  he  who  licareth 
the  word,  and  immediately  with  joy  receiveth  it ;  yet  hath  he  no 
root  in  himself,  but  is  for  a  time,  temporary  ;  and  when  tribula- 
lation  or  pursuit  ariseth  because  of  the  word,  immediately  he  is 
caused  to  stumble."  Here  is  a  different  class  of  hearers.  They 
not  only  listen  to  the  word,  and  receive  it  into  their  ears,  but  they 
have  joyful  emotions.  They  receive  it  enthusiastically.  But  so 
soon  as  a  severe  trial  of  their  faith  comes,  they  fall  away  from 
the  gospel.  They  liave  not  root.  They  have  not  taken  it  into 
their  souls  and  made  it  part  of  their  lives.  They  love  the  truth 
only  so  long  as  the  truth  is  to  them  an  occasion  of  pleasurable 
emotions.  In  other  words,  they  love  pleasure  more  than  they 
love  tnith,  and  when  pressure  or  pursuit,  tribulation  or  pei*secU' 
tion,  presents  to  them  for  immediate  decision  the  choice  between 
pleasure  and  truth,  their  decision  shows  how  little  root  the  truth 
had  been  able  to  strike  in  their  souls. 

(3.)  "  And  what  was  sown  amc)ng  the  thorns,  this  is  he  who 
heareth  the  word,  and  the  anxious  care  of  the  world  and  the  de- 
ceitfulness  of  wealth  choke  the  word,  and  it  becometh  unfruit- 
ful.'' Ilere  is  another  mixture  of  the  sign  and  the  thing  signified, 
makinir  "the  word"  mean  in  the  same  breath  both  seed  and  soil; 
but  the  sense  is  very  open.  'Wliile  in  the  second  case  the  rootless- 
ness  of  the  man,  or  the  rootlessncss  of  the  word  in  the  man,  is 
demonstrated  by  what  comes  to  him,  here  the  same  thing  is  de- 
monstrated by  what  the  man  himself  pureues.  In  the  fonner 
case,  if  no  tribulation  or  pei-secution  had  come,  the  man  would 
have  gone  on  quite  happy,  but  here  his  coiu*se  of  daily  life  shows 
how  little  the  truth  has  dominion  over  his  soul.  Anxious  care, 
an  elevation  of  the  present  over  the  future,  a  ]>reference  f<»r  tem- 
porary visible  things  rather  than  for  permanent,  etenial,  invisible 
things,  and  then  the  deccitfulness  of  wealth,  luring  men  to  its 
pursuit  by  })romises  of  enjoyments  it  never  affords — these  sjiring 
up  about  the  word,  and  the  truth  fails  to  have  the  ha])py  effect 
upon  the  character  of  the  hearer  which  it  would  otherwise  have. 


A    CIIAlTEli    OF    PARABLES. 


351 


(4.)  "  But  what  was  sown  on  the  good  ground,  this  is  he  who 
heareth  and  understandeth  the  word,  who  indeed  beareth  fruit, 
some  a  hundred,  some  sixty,  some  thirty."  That  which  "  wag 
sown  on  good  ground,"  so  says  the  originaL  The  way-side,  the 
Btony  places,  the  thorny  places,  are  all  bad  for  the  seed.  "  Ground," 
with  nothing  else,  is  "  good."  A  soul  without  prepossessions  and 
anxious  cares,  lying  ready  for  the  truth,  is  the  soil  in  which  this 
seed  will  grow.  That  is  the  reason  why  childlikeness  and  sim- 
plicity of  spirit,  with  desire  for  the  truth,  are  so  much  commended 
by  Jesus,  and  have  in  all  ages  been  favorable  to  the  cultivation 
of  the  character  and  the  acquisition  of  true  wisdom.  In  such  a 
man  plant  the  truth,  and  it  will  certainly  be  fruitful.  But  as  in 
evil  hearers  there  are  three  classes,  so  the  Teacher  instructs  us 
that  there  will  be  varieties  of  good  bearers,  but  that  this  variety 
will  be  rather  in  degree  than  in  kind.  Some  will  be  more  fruit- 
ful than  others,  but  all  will  bear  fruit,  not  perhaps  in  exact  arith- 
metically expressed  ratios,  but  certainly  in  a  proportional  diversity. 

Then  followed  his  own  exposition  of  the  Parable  of  the  Tares. 
"  He  who  soweth  the  good  seed  is  the  Son  of  Man.  The  field  is 
the  world.  The  good  seed,  these  are  the  sons  of 
the  kingdom.  The  tares  are  the  sons  of  the  Evil 
One.  Tlie  enemy  that  sowed  them  is  the  De^'il. 
The  harvest  is  the  end  of  the  age.  The  reapere  are  the  angels. 
As  therefore  the  tares  are  assorted  and  burned  in  the  fire,  so  shall 
it  be  at  the  end  of  this  age ;  the  Son  of  Man  shall  send  angels, 
and  they  shall  gather  out  of  his  kingdom  all  who  are  snares,* 
and  those  who  make  lawlessness,  and  shall  cast  them  into  a  fur- 
nace of  fire  :  there  shall  be  wailinc^  and  o-i'indino;  of  teeth.  Then 
the  righteous  shall  shine  out  as  the  sun  in  the  kingdom  of  their 
Father.     He  that  has  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear  ! " 

It  would  seem  imj^ossible  to  make  anything  clearer  than  this, 
and  yet  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  in  the  history  of  human  thought 
that  there  is  only  one  other  speech  of  Jesus  which  has  caused  so 
much  perplexity  to  the  church  as  this.f     A  volume  as  large  as 


Explication    of    the 
Tares. 


*  The  word  translated  "  all  things 
that  offend,"  means  that  portion  of  a 
trap  where  the  bait  is  suspended,  which, 
being  touched,  causes  the  snare  to  spring 
and  tighten  on  the  unfortunate  animal. 
As  the  word  in  the  oriijinal,  althoug-h 


neuter,  manifestly  refers  to  persons,  the 
translation  I  have  given  above  seems  to 
be  not  only  hteral.  but  exactly  expres* 
sive  of  the  idea  intended. 

f  I  refer  to  his  words  at  the  Supper  : 
' '  This  is  my  body ;  "  * '  this  is  my  blood. " 


S52 


SECOND   AXD   TIIIKD   PASSOVER   IN   TUE   LIFE   OF   JESL'S. 


this  might  be  filled  with  a  history  of  controvei'sies  fought  aroimd 
this  parable  and  its  explanation  by  Jesus.  The  most  perverse  and 
foolish  and  ruinous  interpretations  have  been  given,  mainly  grow- 
ing out  of  the  interpretation  of  the  phrase  "  the  world,"'  which 
men  insist  to  this  day  in  making  to  mean  "  the  church.''  They 
Avill  not  let  Jesus  know  what  he  meant  when  he  spake.  Will  the 
reader  be  good  enough  to  refer  to  the  parable,  and  immediately 
after  reading  it  read  the  exposition  of  Jesus,  and  then  follow  with 
the  next  paragraph  ?  In  that  we  shall  present  what  seems  to  us 
would  be  the  undei*standin2r  of  an  intelliirent  man  who  had  com- 
pared  the  sayings  of  Jesus  with  one  another,  without  any  prepos- 
session of  interpretation. 

Jesus  says  :  "  The  seed  is  the  word  of  God."  (Luke  viii.  11.) 
lie  represents  himself  as  being  the  Sower,  by  which  he  would 
seem  to  mean  that  in  some  way,  excelling  all  others,  he  should 
apply  the  word  of  God  to  the  minds  and  hearts  of  mankind.  lie 
describes  liimself  by  his  favorite  name,  "  Son  of  Man."  "  The 
field  is  the  world^''  not  the  church.  The  field  is  the  whole  commu- 
nity of  human  beings  occupying  this  planet,  in  successive  genera- 
tions, with  their  various  pui-suits  and  developments.  "  The  king- 
dom of  the  heavens  is  like  unto  a  man  who  sowed  good  seed  in 
his  field."  "  The  field  is  the  worlds  "  The  good  seed  are  the 
sons  of  the  kingdom  "  of  the  heavens.  "  The  tares  are  the  chil- 
dren of  the  Devil,"  whose  pei-sonality  and  activity  Jesus  taught 
not  in  parable,  but  in  most  strictly  didactic  and  expository  dis- 
courses to  his  disciples  in  private,  and  in  explication  of  a  parable. 
The  "  Devil,"  the  accuser,  the  slanderer,  is  the  enemy  of  the  Son 
of  Man.  lie  has  sown  evil  in  the  world,  not  specially  in  the 
church.  Because  the  church  nuist  be  part  of  the  world,  it  will 
have  the  characteristics  of  the  world  in  the  particular  of  a  mixed 
population.     "  The  haiwest  is  the  end  of  the  age." 

In  our  common  vei'sion  of  Matthew  xiii.  we  have  in  the  thirty- 
eighth  veree,  "The  field  is  tJieicoi'ld^^  and  in  the  thirty-ninth  verse, 
"  The  harvest  is  the  end  of  tJie  worldP  The  words  in  the  original 
are  totally  different.  In  the  former  passage  it  means  this  orderly 
universe  of  God,  and  the  human  race  occupying  this  planet.  In 
the  latter  it  means  CBon,  age,  oera.    The  whole  phrase*  means  the 


*  The  phrase  here  is  «rvr)rt\«ia  rov 
atuyoi.  In  Hebrews  ix.  20,  Paul  uses 
tlic    pliruso,  avm*\tia    rwy    aiuyuf,    the 


juncture  of  the  ages,  the  moment  of 
passage  from  one  jcra  to  another. 
Trench  thinks  "the  phrase  equivaleni 


A    CHAPTER   OF   PARABLES.  353 

coming  together  of  a3ras,  the  joining  of  their  ends,  the  conehid- 
ing  end  of  one  and  the  opening  end  of  the  other. 

In  this  phrase  there  is  nothing  whatever  which  imphes  or  in- 
8innates  the  destrnction  or  end  of  either  this  planet  or  its  iidiab- 
itants.  There  is  very  plainly  indicated  a  great  transition  epoch, 
when  one  cycle  ends  and  another  begins,  and  this  juncture  of 
the  seras  is  marked  by  an  epoch  of  vast  changes  in  the  constitu- 
tion of  things.  It  will  be  the  harvest-home  of  the  kingdom  of 
the  heavens.  Until  that  time  no  man,  and  no  set  of  men,  must 
undertake  the  Aveeding  process  to  cast  the  evil  out.  It  cannot  be 
done.  "  Lest  gathering  together  the  tares  ye  root  out  the  wheat 
with  them."  Obviously  Jesus  belicN-ed  that  the  world  was  not 
so  much  hurt  by  the  existence  of  evil  men  as  it  was  benefited  by 
the  existence  of  the  good.  It  is  better  to  permit  an  evil  man  to 
reside  in  a  community,  a  church,  a  society,  a  town,  than  by  mis- 
take to  destroy  a  good  man.  The  faith  of  Jesus  in  the  goodness 
of  goodness  is  both  beautiful  and  sublime.  It  rested  upon  an- 
other thought.  The  evil  is  to  be  destroyed  at  the  end  of  this 
seon  and  the  beginning  of  the  next,  whenever  that  shall  be.  The 
destiny  of  the  evil  is  to  be  destroyed.  The  destiny  of  the  good 
is  to  be  preserved. 

At  the  conjunction  of  the  ages  the  Son  of  Man  will  send  his 
reapers  forth  officially,  and  he  will  direct  them  what  to  do.  Here 
Jesus  assumes  to  himself  the  final  supervision,  and  accomplish- 
ment by  the  agency  of  angels,  of  the  destiny  of  the  evil  and  the 
good.     He  will  direct  what  shall  be  done  with  them. 

The  evil  are  to  be  dealt  with  first.  Wherever  in  any  part  of 
his  kingdom,— "  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,"— there  are  any 
who  are  baits  to  others,  enticing  them  to  evil,  or  any  who  make 
lawlessness,  teach  or  practise  disregard  of  the  laws  of  the  kino-- 
doni  of  the  heavens,  they  are  to  be  separated  from  all  the  good. 
That  is  the  firet  process.  Then  these  evils  and  these  evil  people 
will  be  assorted.  All  shall  not  be  destroyed  alike.  Every  man 
is  to  be  judged  and  punished  "  according  to  his  works."  There 
are  "  few  stripes  "  and  "  many  stripes."  There  is  discrimina- 
tion and  assortment.  "  Bind  them  in  bundles  for  their  burninf^" 
Augustine  sees  this,  and  teaches  that  sinners  shall  be  punished 
together.     "  Hoc  est,  rapaces  cum  rapacibus,  adulteros  cum  adul- 

to  the  T«\T/  Tu>v  auivuv  of  1  Cor.  x.  11,  the  I  the  one  and  the  commencement  of  the 
extremities  of  the  two  seras,  the  end  of  I  other." 
23 


354 


SECOND   AND   THIRD  PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESTTS. 


teris,  homicidaes  cum  homocidis,  fiires  cum  furibus,  derisorea 
cum  derisoribus,  similes  cum  similibus ;  "  that  is,  robbers  witli 
robbers,  adulterers  with  adulterers,  murderei*s  with  murderers, 
thieves  with  thieves,  scornei-s  with  scorners,  like  with  like.*  Then 
these  bundles  are  to  be  thrown  into  a  furnace  of  fire.  The  weak 
shall  burst  into  wailing,  and  the  fierce  wicked  ones  shall  gnash 
their  teeth  in  rage  ;  but  they  shall  be  destroyed.  This  intimates 
the  most  fearful  anguish  in  the  process  of  destruction.  Then, 
when  whatsoever  and  whosoever  offends,  or  causes  to  offend,  shall 
have  been  destroyed, — shall  have  been  rolled  away  like  a  dark 
cloud, — the  righteous  shall  blaze  forth  gloriously  in  the  kingdom 
of  their  Father.  Until  which  time  let  no  man  undertake  the 
work  of  excision  and  destruction.  It  is  the  prerogative  of  the 
Son  of  Man,  and  shall  be  accomplished  at  the  juncture  of  the 
airas,  when  "  this  age  "  shall  end  and  "  the  age  to  come  "  begin. 
And  }et,  with  such  plain  teaching  set  before  the  world  l)y  Jesus, 
and  in  face  of  the  corroboration,  by  the  history  of  the  whole 
world,  of  the  utter  impracticability  of  infallible  judgment  as  to 
the  character  of  men,  some  called  Christians  have  insisted  upon 
persecution  for  opinion's  sake,  making  a  man  an  offender  for  a 
word,  until  at  some  period  of  the  church's  liistory  ecclesiastics 
have  become  morbid  heresy-hunters.  For  instance,  Aquinas,  who 
in  the  thirteenth  century  won  the  name  of  the  xingdic  Ductoi\ 
taught  that  the  prohibition  is  binding  only  when  there  is  danger 
of  plucking  up  the  wheat  while  extirpating  the  tares,  as  if  Jesus 
had  not  expressly  taught  that  that  danger  is  always  and  will  be, 
while  this  sera  lasts.  John  Maldonatus,  a  Spanish  Jesuit  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  taught  that  the  householder  was  to  determine 
whether  such  danger  existed,  and  he  added,  that  as  the  Pope  is 
the  representative  of  that  householder,  he  must  be  asked  whether 
01'  not  the  tares  shall  be  removed.  Upon  which  he  addresses  to 
all  Catholic  princes  an  exhortation  to  imitate  these  slaves  of  the 
householder,  so  that  instead  of  having  to  be  urged  to  the  work  of 
rooting  out  heresies  and  heretics,  they  will  rather  need  to  have 


*  Dante,  "the  dark  Italian  hiero- 
phant,"  represents  that  among  other 
Bpcctacles  in  hell  he  saw  one  moving 
flame,  divided  at  the  top,  and  was  told 
that  it  contained  Diomcd  and  Ulysses, 
* '  who  speed  together  now  to  their  own 


misery,  as  formerly  they  used  to  do  to 
that  of  others."  The  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  give  this  intimation  repeat- 
edly. "  That  man  perwhcd  not  alons  in 
his  iniquity."  "The  deceiver  and  the 
deceived  are  His."    Job  xii  IG. 


A   CnAPTER   OF   PARABLES.  355 

their  zeal  restrained !    So  totally  has  what  is  called  "  The  Church" 
misrepresented  the  teaching  of  Jesus. 

Having  now  the  invaluable  help  of  the  Great  Teacher's  method 
of  exi^lainiug  his  own  parables,  let  us  apply  it  to  all  that  folLjws. 

The  next  is  the  Parable  of  the  Seed  growing  in  secret.  In  that 
the  commentators  have  found  great  difficulties.  They  say  that  if 
the  man  who  sows  the  seed  is  Jesus,  then  the  par-  Expii«ation  of  the 
able  seems  to  disparage  him, — "  something  is  at-  Patient  Husbandman, 
tributed  to  him  which  seems  iniworthy  of  him,  less  than  to  him 
rightly  appertains, — while  if,  on  the  other  hand,  we  take  him  to 
mean  those  that  in  subordination  to  himself  are  bearers  of  his 
word,  then  something  more,  a  higher  prerogative,  as  it  would 
seem,  is  attriljuted  than  can  be  admitted  to  belong  rightly  to  any 
save  only  to  him."  *  Another f  says  that  this  parable  "is  another 
and  imperfect  version  of  that  of  the  tares,  only  with  the  circum- 
stance of  the  tares  left  out !  "  As  to  the  first,  the  question  is  set- 
tled. Jesus  says  that  he  is  the  Sower.  If  that  distinct  declara- 
tion of  his  cannot  be  made  to  consort  with  his  pictorial  represen- 
tations of  truth,  it  cannot  be  helped  by  even  an  archbishop.  He 
was  not  careful  to  preserve  the  unities,  and  a  German  doctor 
nnist  bear  it.  He  spoke  with  the  freedom  of  a  soul  too  large  fo)* 
mere  rhetorical  rules.  Why  should  commentators  be  so  careful 
for  the  reputation  of  Jesus  ?  As  ,to  the  second,  the  slightest  ex- 
amination would  have  shown  the  learned  author  that  this  is  an- 
other version  of  the  parable  of  the  tares,  as  Othello  is  another 
version  of  Hamlet,  when,  of  coui-se,  "  the  circumstance  "  of  Ham- 
let is  "  left  out."  That  of  the  tares  teaches  one  thin<r,  this  an- 
other. 

This  parable  sets  forth  that  the  seed  of  the  kingdom,  the  W(.ird 
of  God,  the  germ  of  truth,  is  under  the  great  system  of  law  per- 
vading the  universe.  The  truth  grows  of  itself.  All  a  man  can 
do  is  to  plant  it.  He  need  have  no  worry,  no  excessive  anxiety. 
It  will  grow.  The  Son  of  Man,  Jesus,  has  cast  seed  into  the 
ground,  and  whatever  he  may  know  of  all  the  secret  processes  of 
nature  beyond  what  men  know,  the  seed  he  plants  can  grow  no 
otherwise  than,  and  will  certainly  grow  just  as,  the  seed  of  the 
most  unlearned  farmer  grows.  That  is  to  say,  it  is  part  of  the 
universal  plan,  and  obeys  the  univei-sal  law.     Jesus  does  not  pro- 

*  Trench,  in  his  treatise  on  the  Para- I  f  Strauss,  Leben  Jesv.,  voL  L,  p. 
bles.  I  6G4. 


356         SECOND   AND   TnmD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESL'S. 

fess  to  irive  his  words  an  imnatiu-al  element,  lie  will  wait.  The 
seed  of  God  will  surely  <^row  day  and  night.  Evej-y  part  of  its 
development  is  beautiful  in  its  season,  the  blade,  the  ear,  and  the 
full  corn  at  last.    It  is  an  impressive  lesson  of  faith  and  patience. 

Then  we  have  the  Parable  of  the  Mustard-seed.  We  need  no 
fanciful  interpretation  of  this  paiable.  It  plainly  means  the  ex- 
ExpUcation  of  the  tciisivc  growth  of  tlic  priiicii)les  of  the  kingdom 
MuBtard-seed.  q£  ^j^g  lieavcus  froiii  tlic  Small  beginnings  of  the 

obscure  life  of  Jesus.  He  professed  to  plant  that  little  seed  in 
the  field  of  the  world.  The  ])lanting  took  ]«lace  in  one  of  the 
most  obscure  cornel's  of  the  field.  It  consisted  of  some  spoken, 
not  written,  words,  uttered  to  a  few  ordinary  people,  and  coming 
out  of  a  life  of  moderate  length,  only  one-eleventh  of  which  was 
spent  in  public.  He  had  such  faith  in  the  power  of  his  own 
words  that  he  predicted  the  time  when  they  should  be  bo  exten- 
sive in  their  influence  that  the  utterances  of  no  other  inan  should 
be  as  potential.  And  that  prediction  is  this  day  fulfilled.  The 
parable  and  its  fulfilment  shows  what  prodigious  results  God  ac- 
complishes with  what  apparently  slender  resources. 

From  setting  forth  the  extensive  growth  of  the  kingdom  of  the 

heavens  by  the  proi)agation  of  truth,  Jesus  proceeds  to  conclude 

this  series  of  parables  by  teaching  the  intensive 

ETpUcation  of  the        q^^^j^  of  truth.     This  kingdom  is  like  hidden 

Leaven.  O  o 

leaven.  It  is  a  small  body  when  compared  with 
the  three  measures  of  meal,  but  it  is  more  than  a  match  for  the 
mass  of  inert  substance  in  which  it  is  hidden.  The  meal  has  no 
effect  on  the  leaven.  The  leaven  instantly  attacks  the  meal.  It  is 
a  \ivid,  restless,  transforming  agency.  It  seizes  the  particles  of 
meal  next  to  it  and  changes  them  to  leaven.  It  converts  the  use- 
less into  an  ally.  There  is  now  more  leaven  and  less  unleavened 
meal.  This  process  goes  forwaid  mitil  the  whole  mass  is  leavened. 
It  is  a  noiseless  process.  No  one  sees  it,  no  one  hears  it ;  but  just 
as  certainly  as  if  the  work  were  performed  in  the  sight  of  all  men, 
and  with  blare  of  trumpets,  the  great  change  goes  steadily  forward, 
riaced  in  contact  with  humanity,  the  truths  of  the  kingdom  will 
go  forward  changing  that  hunianity  by  a  ])otency  peculiar  to  it.-^elf. 
It  will  cover  humanity  and  take  the  whole  world,  not  by  over- 
powering, or  con<incring,  or  sui)jugation,  but  by  tnmsforming  the 
woild,  and  converting  the  mass  of  inert  humanity  into  a  vigorous 
ngency. 


A   CTIAPTER   OF   P^VKABLES.  357 

Thus  did  Jesus  set  forth  his  ideas  of  the  nature  of  the  kingdom 
of  the  heavens  when  addressing  multitudes,  and  thus  did  he  ex 
plain  his  teaching  to  his  disciples  in  private  when 
thej  sought  an  explication  of  his  dark  sayings.         ^^*^<'^- 
And  teaching  his  immediate  followers  he  adds  these  other  pai-a- 
bles,  or  "  similitudes,"  as  Origen  says  they  should  be  called.     (1) 
"  The  kingdom  of  the  hea\ens  is  like  to  a  treasure  hidden  in  the 
field,  which  a  man  having  found  he  hid,  and  from  the  joy  of  it 
goeth  and  selleth  all  that  he  hath  and  buyeth  that  field."     (2) 
"  Again  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is  like  to  a  merchant  seeking 
good  pearls,  and  having  found  one  pearl  of  great  value,  he  wenl 
and  sold  all  that  he  had  and  bought  it."     (3)  "  Again  the  king- 
dom of  the  heavens  is  like  to  a  drag-net,  cast  into  the  sea,  and 
gathering  of  every  kind,  which  Avhen  it  was  full  they  drew  upon 
the  shore,  and  having  sat  down,  they  gathered  the  good  into  ves- 
sels, but  cast  the  bad  away.     So  shall  it  be  in  the  end  of  the  age : 
the  angels  shall  come  forth  and  separate  the  bad  from  the  midst 
of  the  righteous,  and  shall  cast  them  into  the  f  urnance  of  fire. 
There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth." 

After  the  method  of  Jesus  in  explaining  his  parables,  it  would 
seem  that  these  similitudes  should  contain  no  difficulties.  And 
they  do  not,  to  simple  minds.  There  is  not  a  particle  of  difficulty 
except  to  such  as  have  the  old  barren  idea  of  churchism,  to  M-hicii 
all  things  must  bend.  Jesus  is  talking  about  something  much 
higher  and  deeper  than  church ;  he  is  talking  about  the  Idngdoni 
of  all  ages  and  all  heavens.     He  presents  it  again  in  three  wavs. 

1.  In  the  Parable  of  the  Treasui-e,  it  is  as  if  a  man  walking 
over  the  field,  which  may  seem  to  him  barren  and  worthless,  all 
at  once  comes  unexpectedly  upon  a  treasui-e,  M-hicIi 
so  enhances  the  value  of  the  field  that  evervthiuo-     The  Treasure  in  the 

1         •  .  .   ,     .  "  iD    Field. 

else  in  comparison  with  it  seems  worthless.  "  The 
field  is  the  world."  The  Ungdom  of  the  heavens  is  the  treasure. 
It  is  this  which  makes  the  world  so  valuable.  It  is  in  the  world. 
Men  do  not  see  it.  They  are  like  unlettered  rustics  who  walk 
over  a  field  and  perceive  nothing.  The  chemist,  the  botanist,  the 
geologist,  the  mining  engineer,  come  into  the  same  field,  and  they 
see  a  thousand  beantif  ul  and  valuable  things ;  and  the  geologist 
and  engineer  perceive  traces  of  coal  or  copper,  or  silver  or  gold, 
exhibitions  or  promises  of  riches  such  as  Australia  and  California 
never  presented.     How  rapidly  the  field  appreciates !     Just  so  ig 


358         SECOND   AITD   THIRD   PASSOVER    IX   THE   LIFE    OF   JESU8. 

it  often  with  men  who,  not  expecting  it,  have  such  a  sudden  re\ 
elation  of  the  glory  of  the  reign  of  God  in  the  W(»i'ld.     Then  the 
world  becomes  vastly  precious  to  them. 

The  basis  of  this  parable  was  a  fact  common  to  society  in  the 
East,  not  only  in  the  days  of  Jesus,  but  in  this  day.  Curious  ex- 
plorers of  oriental  ruins  have  obstructions  in  their  work  created 
by  the  belief  of  the  natives  that  they  come  to  carry  away  vast 
treasures  from  the  country,  the  existence  of  which  had  somehow 
become  known  to  these  travellers.  In  ancient  times,  when  there 
were  rapid  changes  of  dynasties,  men  adopted  methods  of  invest- 
ment unknown  to  modern  times.  It  is  said  that  they  divided 
their  estates  into  three  parts,  one  of  which  was  put  into  commerce 
for  current  use ;  another  converted  into  costly  articles,  which  were 
easily  portable  and  salable  in  all  countries,  so  that,  if  obliged  to 
fly,  these  would  be  tlieir  means  of  support ;  and  the  third  they 
buried,  so  that  if  they  returned  to  their  own  land  they  might  lind 
their  riches  again.  As  in  the  changes  of  this  mortal  life  many  a 
man  did  not  return,  there  were  frequent  occasions  when  treasure 
would  be  found.  Idling  peasants  often  sighed  for  the  discovery 
of  great  riches,  and  so  many  romantic  incidents  would  necessarily 
be  connected  with  the  burying  and  the  finding  of  these  treasures, 
that  they  occupy  no  inconsiderable  space  in  oriental  literature. 

Jesus  meant  to  teach,  (1)  That  the  reign  of  changeless  principles 
occupying  God's  univei-se  and  pervading  God's  eternity  is  incom- 
paral)ly  valuable.  (2)  That  its  existence  is  what  gives  value  to 
the  world,  which  would  otherwise  be  worthless.  (3)  That  men 
ponietimes  have  these  ffreat  truths  revealed  to  them  as  l)v  an 
inspiration,  and  all  true  men  are  excited  with  gladness  thereat. 

2.  I3ut  there  are  men  who  are  seeking  the  valuable,  the  most 

^precious,  and  they  find  it  in  this  kingdom.    This  truth  is  set  forth 

in  the  Parable  of  the  Pearl-buyer.    It  is  necessary 

The  Poarlbuyor.  •  i  •    i    ii  •       i 

to  recollect  the  great  esteem  in  which  tJie  ancients 
held  the  jwarl,  and  the  groat  sums  often  given  for  a  single  perfect 
pearl.  The  two  pearls  which  Cleopatra  proposed  to  dissolve  in 
acid,  in  honor  of  Mark  Anthony,  were  valued  at  10,000,000  ses- 
terces, or  about  §390,000  in  gold.  Put  the  value  dc]ieud('d  upon 
several  things,  such  as  size,  form,  color,  and  purity  of  lu>tre.  It 
was  rare  to  find  a  pearl  that  united  all  the  good  qualities,  and 
when  found  it  was  of  great  price,  of  so  groat  price  as  t(t  stimulate 
elaborate  counterfeiting.     It  was  worth  while  sometimes  to  invest 


A    CHAPTER   OF    PARABLES.  359 

all  one  possessed  in  a  single  pearl.  There  was  less  fluctuation  ic 
its  value  than  in  that  of  other  commodities  in  the  world's  markets. 
So  Jesus  likens  the  earnest  truth-seeker  to  the  pearl-merchant, 
lie  finds  the  most  costly  truth  in  the  kingdom  which  Jesus  was 
preaching.  As  men  come  to  see  and  know  the  value  of  these 
truths,  all  other  things  will  become  comparatively  valueless.  They 
will  seek  this.  They  will  give  up  everything  else  for  this.  The 
possession  of  this  truth  is  the  gaining  of  an  everlasting  fortune. 

3.  Again,  this  kingdom  is  likened  unto  a  drag-net.     Such  a  net 
is  loaded  with  lead  at  the  bottom,  to  sink  it  into  the  sea,  and  fur- 
nished with  cork  at  the  top,  which  floats  it,  and 
then  carried  far  out,  as  on  the  English  coast  some-  ^    ™^  °^ 

times  half  a  mile,  and  brought  round  with  a  sweep  that  takes  all 
in  and  pulls  all  to  the  shore.  Such  a  drag-net  is  the  kingdom 
of  the  heavens,  not  the  church.  It  sweeps  the  sea  of  life.  It 
gathers  in  all  the  good  fish  and  all  the  bad.  It  might  be  likened 
to  the  sea  itself,  but  that  Jesus  desired  to  convey  again  a  very 
deep,  important  lesson  of  this  kingdom,  namely,  that  at  the  end  of 
the  current  age,  at  the  period  when  this  cycle  shall  come  to  its 
conclusion,  at  the  moment  when  another  cycle  shall  be  at  its  be- 
ginning, then  there  is  a  discrimination,.judgm€nt,.  separation  crisis^ 
and  that  this  separation  shall  be  followed  by  the  destruction  of 
the  wicked.  Fishermen  sit  on  the  shore  and  throw  away  upon  the 
sand  all  fish  that  cannot  be  sold  in  the  market.  And  the  fish  die, 
rot,  disappear.  Now  it  is  to  be  remarked  that  Jesus  teaches  the 
doctrine  of  the  final  destruction  of  the  wicked  at  the  end  of  this 
seon,  but  connects  with  it  the  idea  of  suffering,  teacliing  us  that  the 
wicked  shall  not  rot  away  out  of  the  universe  painlessly,  but  shall 
be  as  if  a  man  were  cast  into  a  furnace,  when  there  should  be  pain 
in  the  process  of  destruction,  pain  which  should  vent  its  expres- 
sion, according  to  the  character  of  the  sufferer,  in  weak  wailing  or 
in  terrific  grinding  of  teeth. 

When  Jesus  had  said  these  things  he  asked  his  disciples  if  they 
understood  them,  and  when  they  said  "yes,"  he  added,  "On  this 
account  every  scril)e  disciplined  for  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens, 
is  like  to  a  man,  a  housemaster,  who  throws  forth  from  his  treasury 
new  things  and  old."  That  is  to  say,  that  all  who  are  to  be  ex- 
pounders of  the  truth  must  be  themselves  trained  to  it,  and  then 
must  be,  like  householders,  bringing  forth  whatever  those  who  are 
the  taught  need,  old  things  and  new  things.     The  truths  of  the 


360         SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

kingdom  will  pei-])etually  expand  to  the  soul's  vision  as  they  are 
studied.  The  truth  is  no  worse  for  being  old  ;  but  if  a  man  sup- 
poses that  there  will  never  be  new  revelations  of  truth  he  is 
sadly  mistaken.  It  has  always  been  a  part  of  the  injury  which 
the  race  has  suffered  from  churchism,  that  it  has  been  taught  that 
the  limit  of  the  knowledge  of  truth  can  be  definitely  fixed  by  one 
set  of  men  for  all  men,  and  by  one  generation  for  all  succeeding 
generations,  so  that  a  church  may  say  in  a  council  that  such  and 
such  a  thing  is  semjyer  et  uhique^  always  and  e\ery where  the  truth, 
and  whosoever  does  not  see  it  and  acknowledge  it  to  l)e  truth, 
"  let  him  be  accursed." 

Every  man  disciplined  for  the  kingdom  pours  out,  to  those 
whom  he  is  in  turn  disciplining,  all  things  new  and  old  ;  old  truths 
in  new  developments  of  science  and  human  experience ;  and  thus 
the  truth,  to  the  teacher's  mind,  is  as  old  as  the  hills  and  as  fresh 
as  the  flowere  that  grow  thereon.  And  thus  the  word  ''ortho- 
doxy" comes  to  be  the  contempt  of  the  wise  and  the  horror  of  the 
good,  for  it  no  longer  means  "  right  thought,"  but  the  edict  of  an 
overbearing  and  dogmatic  and  narrow  self-conceit.  The  ortho- 
doxy of  to-day  may  be  the  heterodoxy  of  to-morrow.  Thinking 
which  is  right  on  the  plane  of  the  discoveries  of  to-day  may  be 
most  wrong  on  the  plane  of  the  discoveries  of  to-morrow.  A  wise 
man  holds  on  to  all  valuable  truth  bequeathed  him  by  the  ages, 
and  seeks  to  gather  something  new  to  add  thereto  for  the  benefit 
of  those  who  shall  succeed  him.  Research  into  the  laws  of  the 
whole  expanse  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is  as  much  taught 
as  research  into  that  small  section  we  call  the  animal  kingdom, 
the  vegeta1)le  kingdom,  or  the  mineral  kingdom.  New  tilings  are 
useful ;  and  so  are  old  things. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 


A    CHAPTER   OF   MIRACLES. 


About  this  time  occurred  one  of  those  seasons  of  excitement  in 
whicli  the  populace  showed  a  disposition  to  make  Jesus  king,  and 
hasten  his  revelation  of   his  Messianic  powers.    „  ^   .„    ^,  , , 

i  Matt.  nil. ;  Mark  Iv. ; 

These  popular  paroxysms  were  always  so  man-  Luke  viu.,  lx.  jcbus 
aged  by  Jesus  that  they  should  create  no  outbreak,  ^'^^  ^°  poiiticB. 
and  thus  connect  his  name  and  mission  with  the  ephemeral  poli- 
tics of  his  nation.  No  man  can  be  a  great  moral  teacher  and  a 
politician.  Politics  are  for  a  day ;  morality  for  eternity'.  It 
seems  utterly  impracticable  to  make  any  satisfactory  conjecture 
as  to  the  political  opinions  of  Jesus,  whether  he  was  Ilerodian  or 
anti-Ilerodian.  lie  would  have  absolutely  nothing  to  do  wixh 
these  questions.  So,  when  another  burst  of  excitement  came,  he 
directed  his  disciples  to  accompany  him  to  the  other  side  of  the 
lake.* 

A  certain  scribe,  an  official  expounder  of  the  moral  law,  came 
to  him  and  said,  "  Teacher,  I  will  follow  you  wherever  you  go." 
He  may  have  amplified  this  short  speech  into  a 

"^  .         ,  .    .  A  political  follower. 

statement  of  his  views  of  the  position  and  pros- 
pects of  Jesus,  or  there  may  have  been  something  in  his  manner 
which  showed  that  he  had  idterior  designs,  or  else  Jesus  read  his 
character  at  a  glance.  The  reply  shows  that  the  Teacher  under- 
stood precisely  the  spirit  in  which  the  statement  was  made  by  this 
new  disciple.  "  Tlie  foxes  have  lairs,  and  the  birds  of  the  heaven 
have  places  of  shelter ;  but  the  Son  of  Man  hath  not  where  he 
may  lay  his  head." 

It  is  supposed  that  Jesus  adopted  the  name  The  So?i  of  Man 
with  reference  to  the  prophetic  ^^sion  of  Daniel  (vii.  13),  and 
because  all  other  titles  of  the  Messiah  had  been  perverted  to  fos- 


*  Into  Perea.  The  eastern  side  of 
the  lake  of  Gennesaret  and  of  the 
rirer   Jordan    was    called    "beyond." 


Hence  its  Greek  name  "  Perea,"  which 
means  "beyond." 


362         SECOND   AND   TITTRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

ter  tlie  wtn-ldly  expectations  of  the  Jewish  people,  and  because  it 
comported  at  once  with  the  humility  of  his  position  and  the  dig- 
nity of  his  character.  The  scribe  was  willing  to  endure  for  a  few 
days,  or  even  a  few  months,  the  roving  life  which  Jesus  had 
adopted,  expecting  that  the  great  Leader  would  scnin  ascend 
the  throne  of  David,  and  then  those  who  had  shared  his  poverty 
would  share  his  glorious  fortunes.  He  was  as  cunning  as  a  fox, 
and  doubtless  felicitated  himself  on  his  sharpness  of  calculation 
and  superior  skill  in  reading  the  signs  of  the  times. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  is  graphic  and  touching,  and  perhaps  by  its 

figures  had  reference  to  the  cunning  and  the  "  fugitive  character  " 

of  the  scribe's  enthusiasm.     He  did  not  mean  to 

Jesns  dlsoonrages  him. 

say  strictly  that  the  Son  of  Man  had  no  sleeping- 
place,  for  he  had  at  this  very  time  some  friends  who  devoted 
themselves  to  looking  after  his  pei-sonal  comfort,  and,  so  far  as  we 
know,  he  was  never  without  a  night's  lodging,  except  when  he 
voluntarily  set  apart  a  night  to  devotional  vigils.  He  simply 
meant  that  he  had  no  fixed  place  of  residence,  a  comfort  enjoyed 
by  even  the  lower  order  of  animals.  It  was  a  solemn  warning  to 
the  scribe,  that  if  he  joined  his  fortunes  to  those  of  Jesus  he 
would  become  a  homeless  wanderer,  as  the  Son  of  ^lan  had  given 
himself  to  a  life  of  perpetual  voluntary  poverty.  Whether  the 
scribe  became  a  "  disciple,"  in  the  sti-icter  sense,  we  have  no 
means  of  knowino:.  Laufje  sufjocests  that  this  was  Judas  Iscariot. 
But  it  is  a  mere  hypothesis,  suggested  by  the  characteristics  of 
Judas  displayed  by  this  scribe. 

Another  of  the  followers  of  Jesus,  called  quite  generally  "  dis- 
ciples," said  to  him,  "  Sir,  permit  me  fii*st  to  go  and  bury  my 

father."     Jesus  replied,  "  Follow  me,  and  leave 

A  hard  saying.  ^  ^  '  ' 

the  dead  to  bury  their  own  dead  :  but  go  thou  and 
preach  the  kingdom  of  God."  It  is  not  said  who  this  person  was. 
A  church  tradition,  which  can  be  traced  to  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, in  the  third  century,  says  it  was  Philip,  which  cannot  be  cor- 
rect, as  he  had  already  been  called.  Lange  suggests  Thomas,  but 
this  is  only  conjectural.  It  is  not  important.  But  the  lesson  of 
Jesus  is.  What  did  he  mean  ?  The  request  of  the  follower  seems 
natural,  and  even  dutiful.  The  Jews  buried  their  dead.*  Great 
stress  was  laid  on  this.     The  interment  was  conducted  with  mi- 

*  The  Greeks  burned  the  corpses  of  I  Pliny  (vii.  55)  say  that  burial  rraa  the 
their  fricndB.     Cicero  {Legg. ,  ii.  22)  and  I  ancient  mode  of  disposing  of  the  dead. 


A    CHAPTER   OF    >nRACLES.  363 

nuteness  of  ceremonial.  It  was  considered  one  of  tlie  most  sacred 
dutie>  of  a  son  to  bury  his  parents  when  they  deceased.*  The 
disciple  in  this  case  seemed  to  desire  to  follow  Jesus.  He  did 
not  make  an  excuse  that  he  might  go  seeking  his  own  pleasure  or 
his  OW71  gain.  It  was  to  perform  what  all  his  n&tion  regarded  as 
a  son's  imperative  duty.  Celsus,  early  in  the  third  century,  hrouglit 
the  reply  of  Jesus  as  objection  to  him,  because  he  demanded  what 
was  opposed  to  duty  to  parents. 

This  saying  of  Jesus  does  present  grave  difficulties.  We  must 
interpret  the  word  "  dead  "  in  both  places  in  the  sentence  as  mean- 
in<>:  the  same  or  different  things.     If  the  same, 

.      .  °  ,  Ita  difflcnlty. 

then  what  is  it?  The  plain  sense  is  usually  ac- 
cepted, namely,  naturally  dead.  But  this  seems  unintelligible, 
because  corpses  cannot  inter  corpses.  If  different,  then  we  may 
attach  to  the  former  the  sense  of  spiritually  dead — those  described 
by  Paul  as  dead  in  trespasses  and  in  sins — and  to  the  latter  the 
natural  meaning ;  and  then  the  passage  would  signify,  "  Let  the 
work  of  interment  be  committed  to  sinners."  But  that  is  a  most 
harsh  interpretation,  and  not  consistent  with  the  temper  of  Jesus 
and  the  general  spirit  of  his  teachings. 

If  the  whole  expression  be  taken  as  hyperbolical  and  paradoxi- 
cal, it  will  give  us  this  sense :  Jesus  thus  teaches  in  the  most  strik- 
ing and  impressive  manner  the  lesson  that  the 

PI  (•  I'll  ^'•*  ''^*®°"- 

interests  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  which  he 

was  preaching,  are  paramount,  so  that  if  there  seem  to  be  even  a 
natural  duty,  the  performance  of  which  will  draw  a  disciple  of 
the  Messiah  from  obeying  some  express  command  of  his,  then  that 
apparent  duty,  even  if  it  be  that  of  burying  a  parent,  is  in  reality 
not  a  duty.  Let  the  dead  go  unburied  rather  than  Jesus  be  dis- 
obeyed. It  certainly  is  a  claim  on  the  part  of  Jesus  to  supremacy 
over  the  hearts  and  lives  of  his  disciples.  It  is  a  claim  to  be  more 
than  teacher.  It  is  a  peremptory  demand  for  the  total  surrender 
of  the  whole  man  to  Jesus  and  the  interests  of  his  kingdom.  It 
is  the  voice  of  a  spiritual  autocrat.  Jesus  must  have  felt  that  he 
had  a  right  to  all  this,  or  he  must  have  been  conscious  tliat  lie  was 
putting  forward  a  claim  which  he  had  no  right  to  make.  His 
consciousness  at  tlie  iiK^neut  this  speech  was  made  was  either  that 
of  the  Supreme  Spiritual  Ruler  of  the  world  or  that  of  the  most 

*  Honorable  mention  is  made  of  those  I  Gen.  xxv.  9 ;  xkxv.  29,  etc. ;  Tobit  iv. 
who  discharged  this  filial  duty.      See  I  3. 


364         SECOND   AXD   TIHRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

daring  impostor.  But  he  speaks  unwaveringly,  and  died  with  thia 
claim  upon  his  lips,  having  never  for  a  moment  abated  a  jot  there- 
of. There  never  was  a  teacher  or  leader,  before  the  time  of  Jesus 
or  after,  who  went  so  far  as  this.     He  stands  alone  in  this  claim. 

In  immediate  connection  with  this  circumstance  there  occurred 

a  similar  occasion  for  a  similar  lesson.     Another  of  his  mere  fol- 

lowei-s  said,  "  Lord,  I  will  follow  thee,  but  let  me 

Another  leseon.  ^  •  i     r 

go  to  bid  farewell  to  those  in  my  house."  But 
Jesus  said  to  him,  "  No  man  putting  his  hand  to  the  plough,  and 
looking  at  the  things  behind,  is  rightly  disposed  for  the  kingdom 
of  God."  Here  again  is  brought  out  the  paramount  importance 
of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  The  mind  must  have  no  inde- 
cision. A  man  who  wavers  so  is  as  unfit  for  the  great  work  of 
teaching  the  doctrine  of  the  universal  kingdom  as  one  is  unfit  for 
agriculture  who  holds  the  handle  of  a  plough  and  gazes  back  at 
the  furrow. 

Upon  dismissing  the  multitude  who  had  waited  uj)on  his  min- 
istry, Jesus  went  down  to  the  shore  of  the  lake  and  entered  into 

a  shii)  with  his  disciples.     Accompanied  bv  other 

storm  on  the  lake.  ^  ^  ^  •■ 

and  smaller  vessels,  they  started  for  the  other 
side.  "Worn  M'ith  the  fatigue  of  teaching,  Jesus  fell  asleep  on  a 
pillow  in  the  hinder  part  of  the  ship.  It  was  probably  evening. 
There  fell  upon  the  lake  one  of  those  storms  to  which  the  pecu- 
liar position  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee  exposes  it.  Thompson  (ii.  32) 
was  for  several  days  in  one  of  those  storms,  which  he  thus  de- 
scribes : — 

"  To  understand  the  causes  of  these  sudden  and  violent  tempests,  we  must 
remember  that  the  lake  lies  low,  si.x  hundred  feet  lower  tlian  the  ocean  ;  that 
the  vast  and  naked  plateaus  of  the  Jordan  rise  to  a  great  height,  spreading 
backward  to  the  wilds  of  the  Ilauran  and  upward  to  snowy  Hcrmon;  that  the 
water-courses  have  cut  out  profound  ravines  and  wild  gorges,  converging  to 
the  head  of  the  lake,  and  that  these  act  like  gigantic  funnels  to  draw  down 
the  cold  winds  from  the  mountains.  And,  moreover,  these  ^^^nds  are  not  only 
violent,  but  they  come  down  suddenly,  and  often  when  the  sky  is  perfectly 
clear.  I  once  went  in  to  swim  near  the  hot-baths,  and  before  I  was  aware  a 
wind  came  rusliing  over  the  cliffs  with  such  force  that  it  was  with  great  diffi- 
culty I  could  regain  the  shore." 

Of  another  storm,  when  on  the  eastern  side,  he  says  : — 

"  The  sun  had  scarcely  set  when  the  wind  began  to  rush  down  toward  the 
lake,  and  it  continued  all  night  long  with  constantly  increa-^ing  violence,  bo 


A   CHAPTER   OF   MUJACLES.  365 

that  when  we  reached  the  shore  next  morning  the  face  of  the  lake  was  like  a 
huge  boiling  caldi'on."  ..."  We  had  to  double-pin  all  the  tent-ropes, 
and  frequently  were  obliged  to  hang  with  our  whole  weight  upon  tliem  to  keep 
the  quiveiing  tabernacle  froni  being  carried  off  bodily  in  the  air." 

It  was  such  a  storm  as  tliis  that  was  rocking  the  ship  which 
held  Jesus  and  the  Apostles.  The  Teacher  was  in  tlie  quiet  of 
slumber.     The   disciples   perceived    their    i^reat 

,  f^.  ,   .  .  Jesus  stills  the  storm. 

jeopardy.  Ihey  ran  to  liim  in  terror,  some  cry- 
ing, "Master,  Master,  M'e  are  perishing!"  while  others  cried, 
"  Master,  carest  thou  not  that  we  perish?  "  Their  solicitude  did 
not  seem  to  be  wholly  selfish.  Undoubtedly  some  of  them  in- 
cluded Jesus  in  that  "  we,"  as  the  most  precious  of  all  existences. 
It  must  have  agitated  them  greath*  to  see  a  person  who  had  ex- 
hibited such  power  and  wisdom  now  lying  in  utmost  carelessness 
asleep  amid  such  imminent  peril.  Jesus  arose  and  spoke  unto  the 
wild  whirl  and  storm-fury,  and  said  to  the  winds  and  the  raging 
of  the  sea,  "  Peace  !  be  still !  "  and  the  wind  ceased  at  (mce  and 
tliei-e  was  a  great  calm.  The  stars  shone  in  the  quiet  sky  above 
the  quiet  lake.  And  lie  quietly  said  to  the  men  in  the  ship, 
"  Why  are  ye  so  fearful  ?  Where  is  your  faith  ?  "  The  simple 
exercise  of  such  prodigious  power  oxer  the  forces  of  nature  when 
in  stormy  motion,  produced  in  their  minds  a  sudden  sentiment  of 
awe.  They  were  surprised  and  amazed,  and  filled  with  exceeding 
fear,  and  said  to  one  another,  "  Who  is  tliis,  that  even  the  winds 
and  the  sea  obey  him  ?  " 

It  was  morning  when  Jesus  and  his  disciples  reached  the  south- 
eastern margin  of  the  lake,  in  a  region  into  which  it  was  the 
intent  of  Jesus  to  carry  his  beneficent  ministry,  south-eastem  shore 
This  landino;  was  siij-nalized  by  a  very  remarkable  °^  ^^^  ^""^^  Gennesa- 

11  M         p        1  •    1  1         •       •  ■**•      ^"^^       Gadara. 

miracle,  the  details  of  which  make  it  interesting  Matt,  vui.,  ix. ;  Mark 
to  fix  the  locality,  if  possible.  A  difliculty  meets  ''•''  ^"^'^^• 
us  in  the  names  employed  by  the  historians.  Matthew  calls  it  the 
country  of  the  Gazarenes^  Mark  of  the  Gerasenss,  and  Luke  of 
the  GergesenesJ^  Three  places  are  mentioned  in  the  ancient 
writers,  Gadara,  Gerasa,  and  Gergesa.  The  first  was  ten  miles 
inland,  and  the  approach  to  it  was  by  a  toilsome  way,  which  would 
require  several  hours  to  make  it  o\\  foot.  It  is  represented  by 
Josephus  as  the  capital  of    Perea,  and  by  Polybius  as  a  very 

*  The  reading  of  Codex  Sinaiticus  is  followed,  and  not  the  common  English  version. 


366         6EC0XD    A^"D   THIRD    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

Strongly  fortified  city.  The  rains  to  this  day  give  evidence  oi 
great  former  magnificence.  This  can  hardly  be  accepted  as  the 
place  where  the  miracle  was  performed,  as  we  find  among  its  cir- 
cumstances the  fact  that  a  herd  of  swine  ran  down  a  steep  place 
into  the  sea.  In  order  to  do  so  from  Gadara,  they  must  have  run 
down  a  mountain  in  the  neighborh(X)d  of  the  town,  have  forded 
a  stream  quite  as  formidable  as  the  Jordan,  and  then  crossed  a 
plain  of  several  miles  before  reaching  the  sea.  For  simihir  rea- 
sons we  nmst  reject  Gerasa,  a  city  also  mentioned  by  Josephus  as 
situated  among  the  mountains  of  Gilead,  twenty  miles  cast  <'f  the 


Jordan.  The  highest  probability  is  in  favor  of  a  spot  suggested 
by  Dr.  Thomson.*  On  the  eastern  shore  of  the  lake  he  has  found 
a  pile  of  ruins  still  called  by  tlic  natives  Gersa,  very  nearly  pro 
nounced  Gergcsa,  the  name  in  Luke,  and  that  which  Origen  gives 
as  the  supposed  site  of  the  miracle.  Tiiomson  represents  that  an 
"  immense  mountain  "  stands  above  these  ruins  ;  so  high  and  so 
declivitous  that  a  herd  <»f  swine  rushing  frantically  down  would 
be  carried  by  the  momentum  of  the  descent  over  the  narrow  ledgo 
of  beach  into  the  sea.     Mr.  Tristam  (in  his  Land  <if  Israel)  in- 

*  Land  and  Book,  vol.  ii.  35. 


A   CHAPTER   OF   MIRACLES. 


367 


The  demoniac. 


dorses  this  view  of  the  question.  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  his- 
torians do  not  mention  any  particular  town,  but  call  the  site  of 
the  miracle  "  the  country  of  the  "  Gadarenes  or  Gergesenes,  so 
that  whatever  town  be  selected,  the  miracle  must  have  occurred 
near  the  sea,  and  somewhere  near  the  site  of  the  ancient  city  of 
the  Girgashites.  All  that  region  abounds  in  rock  excavated  for 
purposes  of  sepulture,  and  to  this  day  a  whole  community  in  that 
region  make  their  dwellings  in  the  tombs.  The  testim(jny  of 
Origen,  the  ancient  traditions,  and  the  opinion  of  so  well-informed 
a  traveller  as  Thomson,  concur  to  fix  the  place  at  the  site  of  the 
ancient  Gergesa. 

It  was  at  this  spot,  then,  that  Jesus  landed  early  in  the  morning 
which  followed  the  night  in  which  he  had  calmed  the  storm  on 
the  lake.  Here  a  sight  met  him  more  ap])alling 
than  a  tempest  on  a  lake — the  fury  of  a  man 
lashed  by  the  tortures  of  insanity.  Mark  and  Luke  speak  of  one 
demoniac,  while  Matthew  mentions  two.  It  is  probable  that  there 
were  two,  but  one  was  so  much  fiercer  than  the  other,  and  his  cure 
so  much  more  striking,  and  his  after-life  so  much  better  known  to 
these  historians,  that  they  speak  of  him  alone  in  a  special  man- 
ner.* He  exhibited  all  the  most  shocking  phases  of  that  terrible 
physical,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  insanity  M^iich  manifested 
itself  so  frightfully  in  the  days  of  Jesus.  He  was  so  ungovern- 
ably frantic  that  he  had  abandoned  the  abodes  of  men  and  made 
his  dwelling  among  the  dead.  He  tore  his  clothes  from  his  per- 
son. He  was  a  terror  to  travellers,  so  that  men  might  not  pass  by 
that  way.  lie  had  acquired  that  wonderful  strength  which  some- 
times seems  to  come  to  maniacs.  Men  could  not  keep  him 
bound.  Often  they  had  chained  him,  but  he  burst  the  bonds 
asunder.  Night  and  day  this  unhappy  man,  with  fierce  cries  that 
made  the  rocks  and  seashore  ring  with  the  expression  of  his 
agony,  roved  through  the  wilderness  or  rushed  along  the  beach  of 
the  lake. 

On  this  eventful  mornino-  he  saw  Jesus  from  afar.     "Wliatever 


*  Robinson,  in  his  Harmony,  proposes 
the  following  illustration :  "In  the  year 
1824  Lafayette  \dsited  the  United  States 
and  was  everywhere  welcomed  with 
honors  and  pageants.  Historians  wUl 
describe  these  as  a  noble  incident  in  his 
life.     Other  writers  will  relate  the  same 


visit  as  made,  and  the  same  honors  as  en- 
joyed by  two  persons,  namely,  Lafayette 
and  his  sou.  Will  there  be  any  contra- 
diction between  these  two  classes  of 
writers  ?  Will  not  both  record  the 
truth?"     SeeiZin-,,  195. 


368      SECOND  A^^)  third  passovee  in  the  life  of  jesus. 


may  have  been  the  cause,  there  was  something  in  the  appearance 
of  Jesus  that  arrested  him.  He  paused.  He  gazed.  He  ap- 
proached. He  fell  at  the  feet  of  Jesus.  He  cried, 
appea  esus.  ^^  ^yiiat  to  tlicc  aud  uic,  Jcsus,  Sou  of  God  most 
high  ?  "  Here  is  an  exhibition  of  that  flax  and  reflux  of  passion 
frequently  noticed  in  maniacs.  He  was  alternately  attracted  and 
repelled  by  the  spiritual  magnetism  of  the  pure  Jesus.  Jesus 
commanded  the  unclean  spirit  to  leave  the  unhappy  man,  who 
then  cried  out,  "  Comest  thou  here  to  torment  us  before  the 
time  ? "  As  if  to  steady  the  man's  mind  for  a  moment,  and  re- 
call him  to  a  sense  of  his  personality  and  identity,  Jesus  asked 
him  his  name.  Still  believing  himself  to  be  in  possession  of  the 
departed  spirits  of  wicked  men,  and  recollecting  how  his  whole 
intellectual  and  moral  constitution  had  been  laid  waste,  as  when 
troops  dismantle  a  town,  and  probably  recalling  the  appearance 
of  a  battalion  of  Roman  soldiers,  the  wretched  sufferer  said,  with 
the  confusion  of  ideas  so  natural  to  his  condition,  "  My  name  is 
Legion,  for  we  are  many."  And  he  besought  Jesus  that  he  would 
not  send  them  away  into  "  the  abyss,"  whatever  that  might  mean. 
On  the  adjoining  mountain  was  a  herd  of  about  two  thousand  hogs 
feediner.  The  demons  besought  Jesus  to  allow  them  to  enter  the 
Bwine. 

If  it  were  really  tlie  fact  that  evil  spirits,  whether  sucli  as  had 
inliabited  human  bodies  or  not,  had  the  power  to  seize  and  em- 
ploy the  faculties  of  living  human  beings,  the  narrative  shows 
that  the  powers  of  evil  are  full  of  a  hateful  malignity  which  is 
bent  up«  .n  the  work  of  destruction.  H  they  could  not  occupy 
the  bodily  organs  of  men  they  were  willing  to  use  those  of  beasts. 

Jesus  granted  their  request :  forthwith  they  left  the  man  and 
entered  the  swine  ;  and  the  s^vine  ran  frantically  down  a  steep 
place  and  fell  into  the  lake  and  weie  drowned.* 
The  feeders  of  the  swine  went  qiiickly  to  their 
employers  in  the  city  and  related  these   marvellous  incidents. 


The  Bwine. 


*  It  requires  some  patience  to  give 
the  lea«t  notice  to  such  an  objection  as 
this :  that  it  was  a  lawless  act  in  Jesus 
to  destroy  the  i)roi)crty  of  the  owners 
of  the  hogs,  and  was  cruelty  to  the 
Bwine  themselves  Jesus  did  this  work 
or  he  did  not.  If  he  did  not,  there  is 
no  ground  for  criticism  in  detail.     If  he 


did,  he  had  all  authority  over  hogs, 
devils,  and  men.  As  to  the  cruelty,  the 
same  olijection  would  lie  against  every 
case  of  the  prevalence  of  munain  in  cat- 
tle, or  of  the  disease  known  as  the  hog 
cholera,  which  has  vi.sited  parts  of 
America  in  late  years.  The  only  ques- 
tion is,  Did  such  an  incident  aa  this  oo- 


A    CIIArXER    OF   SnRACLES. 


369 


The  grateful  patient 


The  people  from  the  city  and  the  surroiincling  country  flocked  to 
the  scene.  When  they  beheld  the  placid  face  of  the  man  wlio 
had  been  an  nntaraablo  maniac,  and  saw  him  sitting  clothed  and 
in  his  riglit  mind,  and  heard  the  narrative  of  the  panic  that  had 
SM^ept  the  swine  away,  and  probably  saw  them  floating  in  the  lal^e 
beneath,  the  Gergesenes  were  seized  with  fear,  and  began  to  pray 
Jesus  to  leave  their  coasts.  The  recovery  of  their  fellow-citizen 
was  not  to  them  such  a  matter  of  congratulation  that  they  could 
afford  to  pay  for  it  by  the  loss  of  their  hogs.  Jesus  left  them,  and 
went  down  towards  the  ship. 

The  healed  and  grateful  patient  accompanied  his  benefactor  to 
the  lake  side,  and  solicited  permission  to  follow  him,  which  Jesus 
declined  to  give,  saying  to  him,  "  Go  to  your  home 
and  to  your  friends,  and  tell  them  what  the  Lord 
hath  done  for  you,  and  hath  pitied  you."  If  the  Gergesenes  de- 
clined the  personal  ministry  of  Jesus,  they  should  not  be  without 
a  missionary.  The  restored  demoniac,  not  only  in  his  own  town 
but  throughout  a  district  of  ten  cities,  known  as  Decapolis,  awoke 
the  wonder  of  men  by  describing,  as  only  such  a  man  could,  the 
horrible  abyss  out  of  which  Jesus  had  so  graciously  lifted  him. 

When  elcsus  recrossed  the  lake  he  found  a  crowd  animated  by 
sentiments  the  very  opposite  of  those  that  had  caused  the  Gerge- 
senes to  urge  him  to  depart  from  their  coasts.  The  inhabitants 
of  Capernaum  and  that  region  had  been  longing  for  his  return. 
A  day's  absence  was  intolerable  to  people  so  enthusiastic  in  their 
admiration.  The  storm  of  the  previous  night  had  deepened  their 
anxiety,  so  that  they  watched  with  interest  the  approach  of  the 
boat  which  held  the  great  Teacher.  They  received  him  gladly 
and  escorted  him  to  his  liome  in  Capernaum. 


cur  in  the  history  of  Jesus  ?  The  his- 
torians, who  were  present,  say  it  did. 
If  these  theories  be  rejected  this  nuch 
is  left :  A  man  was  found  exhibiting  the 
phenomena  described.  Jesna  spoke  the 
words  which  are  quoted  as  his.  The 
change  as  described  came  upon  the 
man.  He  was,  or  thought  he  was,  held 
in  the  power  of  the  souls  of  departed 
wicked  men.  They  asked  to  be  per- 
mitted to  go  into  the  swine,  or,  in  his 
disordered  fancy,  he  asked  it  for  them. 
Jesus  gave  assent.     At  that  instant  an 

24 


immense  herd  of  swine  on  the  mountain, 
seized  by  a  sudden  and  unaccountable 
panic,  rushed  over  the  ledge  and  fell  into 
the  sea.  The  man  resumed  his  clothes 
and  his  reason.  The  owners  of  the 
swine  were  incensed,  the  spectators 
filled  with  awe,  and  Jesus  was  requested 
to  leave  their  coasts.  Apart  from  the 
settlement  of  the  precise  nature  of  de- 
moniac possession,  which  must  always 
probably  be  perplexing,  here  is  a  history 
of  extraordinary  spiritual  power. 


370         SECOND    AND   TUIRD   PASSOVER   IN    THE    LIIE   OF   JESUS. 


As  nearly  as  we  can  fix  the  date,  we  must  here  introduce  several 
narratives  of  transactions  which  are  given  with  great  simplicity, 
oapemaam.  Matt.  ^"^  are  Very  affcctiug.  They  present  pleading 
ix. ;  Mark  v.;  Luke  sorrow  iu  aspccts  most  toucliiug,  and  set  forth  the 
"^"*"  charm  which  the  lovingness  of  Jesus,  combined 

with  his  extraordinary  power,  was  exerting  upon  people  of  all 
ranks. 

Tliere  was  a  man  of  distinction,  the  president  of  a  synagogue,* 
whose  name  was  Jairus.  He  had  an  only  daughter,  twelve  years 
of  age,  and  the  girl  was  about  to  die.  In  his  des- 
peration of  grief  the  father  bethought  him  of  Je- 
sus, aiid,  kuo-wing  where  he  was,  ran  to  him  and  fell  at  his  feet,  and 
bescmoht  him  to  come  and  save  the  child.  So  bewildering  was  his 
grief  that  he  gave  a  hurried  and  somewhat  contradictory  report 
of  the  state  of  affairs  at  home.  He  says  she  is  dead.  He  says 
she  is  dying.f  The  facts  seem  to  have  been  these  :  when  he  left 
the  h(juse  she  was  apparently  in  extremis,  she  could  live  but  a 
short  time  ;  he  had  been  absent  about  long  enough  for  the  end  to 
have  come ;  "  she  would  be  dead,"  he  said  ;  but  he  had  not  re- 
ceived distinct  information  of  the  event,  and  therefore  was  not 
prepared  to  affirm  it;  and  so  in  his  agitation  and  hurry  the  father 
says:  "My  daughter  is  dead — she  is  dying — come!  Lay  thy 
hands  on  her,  and  she  shall  be  saved  and  live ! "  He  forgot  the 
formalities  and  dignities  of  his  oflice  in  his  natural  love  for  his 
child.  His  faith  seemed  to  increase  in  his  extremity.  It  touched 
the  heart  of  Jesus,  who  arose  and  went  with  him,  and  all  the 
throng  about  him  followed  the  party  to  see  what  the  end  of  this 
might  be,  as  the  very  going  of  Jesus  seemed  to  promise  that  he 
would  d«j  8omethin<;. 


*  Every  synaj^ogiie  had  its  president, 
who  8U])er  in  tended  and  directed  the 
services,  and  was  at  the  same  time 
president  of  its  college  of  elders. 

f  It  seems  heartless  to  cite  these  sclf- 
contradictioiiH  of  the  poor  man  as  proofs 
of  the  contradictions  of  the  historians 
and  the  unreliability  of  the  narrative. 
It  is  more  than  heartless;  it  is  sense- 
less. Careful  observers  of  the  workings 
of  human  paflsions,  and  close  students 
of  the  poet«,  those  quick  reporters  of 
the  Boul  of    the  humanity,  coimot,   it 


seems  to  me,  fail  to  see  in  these  touches 
proofs  that  the  affair  occurred  as  all 
these  historians  tell  it ;  that  Matthew, 
and  Mark,  and  Luke  are  right,  each 
and  all,  and  that  they  cnuM  not  have 
colluded  here,  and  that  this  little  scene 
could  not  have  been  painted  by  any 
master  of  fiction  not  superior  to  Shake- 
speare. To  my  mind  there  are  few 
stronger  internal  marks  of  the  genuine- 
ness and  truthfulness  of  these  nana 
tives  than  this  particular  passage. 


A   CHAPTER   OF   INHRACLES.  371 

On  the  way  there  was  an  interrnption  and  a  wonrler,  shewing 
again  what  faith  in  Jesns  was  growing  in  the  hearts  of  the  peo- 
ple. There  was  a  woman,  whose  name  is  pru-  The  woman  ^\-ith  the 
flently  withheld,  who  had  had  an  intenial  hem-  ^^emorrhage. 
orrhage  for  twelve  years.  This  tronlilesome  disease  had  been  an 
annoying  and  exhausting  plagne  through  all  that  time.  It  had 
probably  prevented  her  marr}ing.  She  had  expended  her  estate 
on  physicians  and  nostrums.*  She  had  not  been  helped,  but  in- 
jured. Now  she  was  reduced  from  competence  to  poverty,  and 
was  afflicted  Avith  what  seemed  an  incurable  disease.  But  she 
had  not  lost  her  womanly  delicacy.  Ilearing  of  the  wonderful 
things  which  Jesus  was  doing,  she  had  formed  an  incorrect  idea 
of  his  character  and  power.  She  fancied  that  there  was  some- 
thing magical  in  his  person.  She  said  to  herself,  "If  I  touch f 
but  the  hem  of  his  garment  I  shall  be  saved."  As  this  hem,  or 
blue  fi-inge,  was  put  on  the  garment  by  di^nne  command,:}:  perhaps 
she  also  fancied  that  special  virtue  would  come  through  that  part 
of  the  garments  of  the  Great  Healer.  While  the  crowd  thronged 
him  she  quietly  mingled  with  them,  and  at  a  moment  when 
she  thought  she  was  not  perceived,  she  came  up  from  behind  him 
and  touched  the  hem  of  his  garment,  and  instantly  felt  a  thrill 
and  knew  that  she  was  healed  of  her  plague. 

The  loftiness  of  the  character  of  Jesus  now  exhibits  itself  sub- 
limely. He  knew§  what  had  been  done.  He  knew  the  woman's 
mistake  and  the  woman's  faith.  He  intended  to  is  healed  in  touching 
correct  the  one  and  confirm  the  other.  He  would  ■^®'"'- 
not  for  a  moment  consent  to  have  himself  confounded  Avith  jug- 
glers, magicians,  and  miracle-mongers,  even  in  the  simple  mind 
of  a  woman  weakened  by  disease.     He  turned  upon  the  crowd 


*  For  an  extraordinary  list  of  cures 
prescribed  for  this  disorder,  consult 
Lightfoot's  JTor.  Heh.  on  Mark  v.  26. 

f  The  beauty  is  lost  in  our  transla- 
tion, * '  may  but  toiich,"  which  may  im- 
ply permission,  while  the  idea  ^vith  her 
•was  that  if  she  coxild  but  accomplish  of 
herself  mere  contact  with  his  garment, 
it  would  be  enough. 

X  See  Numbers  xv.  37-40 ;  Deut. 
xxii.  12.  Because  it  was  a  badge  to 
the  Jews  of  being  God's  pecuhar  people, 


those  who  desired  to  be  considered  emi- 
nently pious  were  accustomed  to  "  en- 
large the  borders  of  their  garments,"  a 
cu-stom  which  the  simple  Jesus  con- 
demned.    See  Matt,  xxiii.  5. 

§  Not  "perceived,"  as  Luke  viii.  46 
is  rendered  in  our  common  version, 
which  seems  to  favor  the  idea  that  it 
wa.<?  involuntary  upon  the  part  of  Jesus, 
while  his  whole  conduct  ia  quite  the  re- 
verse of  this. 


372         PECOND    AND   TnrRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

and  said  :  " "Who  touched  my  clothes?"  Tliey  all  denied.  Peter, 
always  impetuous,  and  sometimes  impatient  even  with  his  Master, 
said  :  "  You  see  the  throng,  and  you  say,  '  Who  touched  me  ? '  " 
But  he  assured  them  that  some  one  had  touched  him  with  a  pur- 
pose, and  that  he  kiiew  that  that  purpose  had  been  accomplished. 
He  evidently  did  not  ask  the  question  for  his  own  information, 
hut  to  draw  the  woman  into  an  open  confession.  He  would  not 
let  her  go  mistaken,  although  healed.  He  desired  to  put  himself 
right  before  her  mind,  and  to  leave  with  her  an  intellectual  and 
spiritual  blessing  which  should  even  surpass  the  extraordinary 
physical  favor  he  had  conferred  upon  her.  All  the  multitude 
had  come  in  contact  with  him,  probably  each  one  having  touched 
more  of  his  garment  than  this  woman.  She  only  had  received 
any  benefit.  He  determined  to  make  her  know  that  it  was  not  mere 
animal  magnetism,  nor  any  unconscious  magical  influence,  but 
that  it  was  a  voluntary  response  on  his  part  to  the  pleadings  of 
faith  on  hers. 

When  the  woman  saw  that  she  could  not  be  hid,  she  came  for- 

wai-d  with  confusion  and  trembling,  and  fell  down  before  him 

and  told  before  all  the  people  all  the  truth — for 

Her  faith  confiiined.  ,       ,       i  i       i  i  •  i  i  i       i       i 

what  cause  she  had  touched  him,  and  how  she  Jiad 
been  immediately  healed.  This  was  all  that  Jesus  desired.  He 
had  tenderly  abstained  from  extracting  this  confession  until  the 
poor  woman  was  healed.  She  might  not  have  been  able  to  make 
it  in  advance.  Now,  although  a  trial,  she  was  able  to  endure  it. 
Jesus  said  :  "  Daughter,  your  faith  hath  saved  you.  Go  in  peace, 
and  be  well  of  your  plague."  He  caused  her  and  those  who 
were  about  him  to  know  that  no  miracle  of  good  would  ever 
be  wrought  for  men  who  did  not  trust  his  beneficence ;  and  that 
in  every  case  there  must  l)e  desire  and  faith  on  the  part  of  the 
subject,  and  volition  upon  the  part  of  Jesus,  to  make  the  happy 
operation  complete.  This  single  incident  lifts  Jesus  forever  out 
of  the  mass  of  tricksters  and  magicians. 

While  he  was  engaged  in  this  work  of  mercy,  messengers  ar- 
rived from  the  liouse  of  Jairus  informing  him  that  his  daughter 
Death    of    jftinw'B  was  certainly  dead.      He  had  accompanied  Jesus 
daughter.  uncomplaiuingly,  but  doubtlessly  extremely  rest- 

lessly, and  now  it  appeared  that  the  delay  had  blasted  his  hopes. 
He  seems  scarcely  to  have  trusted  that  Jesus  could  raise  her  from 
the  dead,  while  he  believed  that  there  was  such  power  in  him 


A   CHAPTER   OF   MIRACLES.  37S 

that  he  could  pluck  her  back  from  death  even  when  she  was 
almost  in  the  last  gasp.  The  messenger  who  announced  the 
fatal  news  added  :  "  AYhy  troublest  thou  the  Teacher  further?" 
as  though  Jesus  could  nio^v  be  of  no  avail.  But  his  quick  ear 
caught  the  word,  and  before  Jairus  could  sink  away  into  doubts 
Jesus  said  to  him :  "  Be  not  afraid  ;  only  believe  ;  and  she  shall 
be  saved."  Jesus  by  this  word  seemed  to  j)ledge  himself  to  save 
her,  even  if  she  were  really  dead. 

And  so  he  proceeded  towards  the  house  of  Jairus.  And  when 
he  arrived  he  found  that  they  had  already  brought  in  the  profes- 
sional mourners,  who,  after  the  vicious  fashion  jesus  brings  her  tack 
of  the  Jews,  were  making  loud  lamentations,  ***"**• 
howling  dirges  amid  the  din  of  musical  instruments,  and  beating 
themselves  in  token  of  grief.  Jesus  said  to  them  :  ''  Give  place ; 
why  make  ye  this  ado?  The  child  is  not  dead,  but  is  sleeping." 
They  took  these  words  in  their  literal  sense,  and  laughed  Jesus 
to  scorn.  They  hne\o  that  she  was  dead.  She  was,  undoubtedly.* 
But  Jesus  taught  the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  On  another  occa- 
sion he  called  himself  "  The  Besurrection."  Since  he  has  taught 
the  world,  those  who  beheve  his  teachings  do  not  sorrow  for  the 
dead  as  those  who  have  no  hope.  Death  is  not  destruction,  nor 
annihilation — it  is  sleep.  Sleep  implies  waking.  So  to  the 
thought  of  Jesus,  and  of  all  who  believe  in  his  teaching,  sleep  is 
the  most  appropriate  possible  representation  of  death.  When 
men  die  we  see  them  fall  asleep.  We  do  not  see  them  awake. 
But  Jesus,  this  wise  Teacher,  assures  us  that  they  do,  and  here  he 
exerted  his  power  to  give  men  a  visible  and  tangible  example  of 


*  The  attempt  to  put  away  all  mira- 
cle out  of  this  transaction,  by  taking  the 
words  of  Jesus  literally,  "  She  is  not 
dead,  but  sleeping,"  cannot  succeed. 
For  suppose  we  grant  that  this  was  a 
mere  case  of  syncope,  and  that  the  girl 
was  still  alive,  there  will  yet  remain 
these  miraculous  facts  :  1.  That  before 
Jesus  reached  the  house  or  saw  the 
girl,  he  knew  that  she  was  not  totally 
dead,  although  he  had  not  seen  her,  and 
her  father  had  represented  her  as  dying, 
if  not  dead,  and  messengers  direct  from 
the  house   had   proclaimed  her  dead ; 


stopped  to  cure  the  woman  with  the 
hemorrhage,  he  reached  the  house,  the 
mourners  and  assembled  friends  stiU 
.saying  she  was  dead,  and  laughing  to 
scorn  his  literal  or  figurative  saying, 
"  She  is  not  dead,  but  sleeping,"  he  pro- 
ceeded to  her  chamber,  accompanied 
by  her  parents  and  three  other  persons, 
and  by  two  words  and  a  single  touch  he 
brought  her  instantly  to  her  feet,  and  to 
perfect  health,  after  all  the  efforts 
which  the  skill  of  the  phy.sicians  could 
devise  had  utterly  failed.  We  mu.st  put 
the  whole   of   Jesus  out  of   history  oi 


and,  2.  When,  having  not  hurried,  but  I  accept  the  miraculous. 


37:1-         SECOND    AND   THIKD    PASSOVER    IN    THE    LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

this  great  awakening.  He  entered  the  chamber  of  the  dead,  ac- 
companied by  the  father  and  mother,  and  by  the  three  disciples, 
Peter,  and  James,  and  Jolin,  whom  now  for  tlie  first  time  we  see 
elected  from  among  the  elect  friends  of  Jesus,  that  they  might 
be  special  witnesses  of  his  greatest  and  most  sacred  doings.  He 
approached  the  bed,  took  the  girl  by  the  hand,  and  said  to  her  in 
the  Aramaic  tongue,  "  Talitlia-cumi,"  which  is  simply,  "  Maiden, 
arise."  It  was  no  magical  formula,  no  incantation,  but  a  simple 
authoritative  command.  Her  spirit  came  to  her,  and  she  arose 
straightway. 

In  the  confusion  of  the  rapid  and  great  transitions  through 
which  she  had  been  passing,  the  girl  walked  about  the  room. 
The  astonishment  of  the  parents  was  so  great  that  they  forgot  the 
necessities  of  the  child ;  but  the  ever  calm  Jesus  simply  told 
them  to  give  her  something  to  eat.  She  was  necessarily  weak. 
She  was  no  ghost,  although  if  a  ghost  had  come  it  could  scarcely 
have  produced  a  different  effect  upon  the  sjiectatore.  So  self-sus- 
tained was  Jesus  that  these  wonderful  displays  of  his  power 
seemed  to  him  as  the  ordinary  work  of  his  hands.  AVliat  man 
ever  did  such  things  and  made  no  ado,  exhiljited  no  sense  of  his 
importance,  took  no  pains  to  give  the  transaction  all  possible  edat  ? 
Jesus  told  them  not  to  spread  it.  But  they  did.  The  fame  of 
this  miracle  went  abroad  into  all  that  land. 

As  Jesus  went  from  the  house  of  Jairus,  occasion  presented 

itself  for  the  performance  of  other  strikingly  wonderful  works. 

On  the   road  two  blind   men   followed   him,  and 

Matt-  ix.  1 .    .        -1     -1  .  !•  1  .  1         1  • 

solicited  the  exercise  ot  Ins  great  heahng  power. 
In  the  history  of  Jesus  he  is  often  confronted  with  l)lindness. 
We  sliall  not  wonder  at  this  Avhen  we  recollect  how  (iommon  tiiat 
disease  is  in  the  East.  In  Cairo  alone  it  has  been  estimated  that 
there  are  four  thousjind  blind  persons,  and  one  traveller  supposes 
that  one  in  every  five  is  partially  or  totally  blind.  This  arises 
from  the  brightness  of  the  sun,  the  intense  reflection  of  the  light, 
the  dust  so  impalpable  or  so  constantly  abroad  in  the  air,  and  the 
custom  of  slc('iiiiig  in  the  open  air  at  night,  exposing  the  eyes  to 
noxious  dews  which  ])roduce  inflammations  that  are  usually  neg- 
lected until  they  end  in  incurable  Idindness. 

Two  such  patients,  perhaps  by  the  way -side  begging,  Icai-ning 
that  Jesus  was  passing,  followed  him,  led  by  the  crowd,  it  may  be, 
\\\i\  ci-icd  after  liini,  ''  ()  Son  of  Dtivid,  liiive  pity  <in  us.''     ''Son 


A   CHAPTER   OF   aHRACLES.  37* 

ot  JDavid :  "  this  was  the  recognized  title  of  the  Messiah.  To 
accept  it  was  to  claim  Messiahship.  The  blind  men  continued 
to  repeat  it.  Jesus  apparently  paid  no  attention  two  uunu  men  re 
to  it  or  to  them,  but  passed  on  and  entered  his  ^*°''^'" 
lodgings.  The  blind  men  sttmehow  found  their  way  to  his  pres- 
ence. Jesus  said  to  them,  "  Do  you  believe  that  I  am  able  to  do 
this  for  you?"  They  answered,  "Yes,  Lord."  Then  he  touched 
their  eyes  and  said,  "xVccording  to  your  faith  be  it  unto  you." 
Their  sight  was  instantly  restored.  Then  Jesus,  who  made  this 
response  to  their  faith,  charged  them  sternly — he  really  seems  to 
have  threatened  them — that  they  should  not  make  proclanuition 
of  their  belief  in  his  Messiahship.  He  could  not  have  charged 
tliem  to  conceal  their  restoration  to  sight.  There  could  be  no 
reason  why  this  should  not  be  known.  But  there  was  a  good 
and  sufficient  reason  for  restraining  the  public  announcement  of 
his  claim  to  the  Messiahship.  The  people  were  already  begin- 
ning to  believe  it.  They  were  in  a  state  of  intense  excitement,  and 
being  always  ready  for  a  revolt  against  the  Roman  government, 
and  their  enthusiasm  for  Jesus  growing  at  each  display  of  his 
power  and  wisdom  and  goodness,  a  single  word  of  incitement 
would  have  been,  like  a  spark  to  a  keg  of  gunpowder,  the  occasion 
of  a  terrific  explosion.  With  extraordinary  wisdom  Jesus  saw 
that  his  time  had  not  yet  arrived. 

Nevertheless,  the  blind  men,  in  the  exuberance  of  their  grati- 
tude, proclaimed  that  the  Messiah  had  healed  them.  The  prac- 
tical effect  of  this  disobedience,  which  can  only  be  charitably 
excused  on  the  around  of  their  uncontrollable  delight  at  their 
recovery,  had  no  good  effect  on  the  minds  of  the  enemies  of  Jesus, 

These  men  had  scarcely  left  the  house  when  the  people  brought 
to  Jesus  another  of  those  bewildering  cases  of  fearful  disease,  a 
demoniac.  The  patient  in  this  case  was  one  jesus  cures  a  dumb 
whose  psychical  disorder  had  the  physical  exhi-  ^^^°^^^- 
bition  of  dumbness.  His  diseased  soul  locked  up  his  tongMie. 
His  insanity  took  on  the  form  of  speechlessness,  through  pro- 
foundest  melancholy  or  most  obdurate  stubbornness.  As  soon  as 
the  evil  of  his  soul  was  cured  his  speech  returned.  The  multi- 
tude marvelled  still  more,  and  said,  ^  It  was  never  so  seen  in 
Israel,"  or,  as  it  may  be  translated,  "  He  has  never  been  so  seen 
in  Israel."  Either  rendering  makes  the  speech  of  the  populace 
ail  ascription  to  Jesus  of  glory  greater  than  that  of  any  of  the 


376         SECOND   AND   TUIKD    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF  JESUS. 

prophets.  It  lifted  liiiu  above  Moses  and  Elijah.  It  declared 
him  to  be,  in  their  opinion,  the  most  splendid  display  of  God's 
glorious  goodness  and  power  ever  made  to  Jehovah's  chosen  peo- 
ple. It  was  the  most  magnificent  C(;mpliment  which  people  living 
under  a  theocracy  could  pay  to  any  man. 

Of  course  the  tendency  of  this  Avas  to  inflame  the  Pharisaic 
party  against  him.  They  made  the  old  objectiun,  '*  lie  casteth 
Charged  with  being  ^^^  dcmous  by  the  ruler  of  the  demons."  It  is 
a  a.nfeticrate  of  the  now  no  longer  a  whisper,  slyly  circulated,  but  an 
open  accusation,  made  to  break  his  influence  over 
the  popular  mind.  Infernal  passions  manifestly  swayed  these 
Pharisees,  so  that  naturally  it  was  not  diflicult  for  them  to  believe 
that  any  one  so  strong  as  Jesus  had  his  strength  from  bad  spirits. 
There  has  always  been  in  human  nature  an  unfortunate  pro- 
pensity to  imagine  the  chief  evil  spirit  of  the  universe  to  be 
mightier  than  he  is.  Men  are  prone  to  deify  the  devil.  Even 
many  Christians  have  to  pause  and  think  before  they  disabuse 
their  minds  of  the  prejudice  that  Satan  is  just  less  than  Almighty 
God.  Creative  power  is  often  assigned  him,  and  the  power  of 
inspiring  great  thoughts  and  stimulating  human  genius.  "NV^hen 
printing  was  invented,  the  honor  was  assigned  to  "  the  devil  and 
Dr.  Faustus."  It  is  a  popular  opinion  in  parts  of  Germany  to 
this  day,  that  the  famous  cathedral  of  Cologne  owes  its  magnifi- 
cence to  the  co-operation  of  the  devil :  it  is  too  splendid  a  struc- 
ture to  have  been  erected  without  his  aid !  On  the  road  over  the 
St.  Gothard  Pass,  in  Switzerland,  is  a  wonderful  bridge  across  the 
river  Reuss,  joining  the  wild  scenery  oi  two  mountains  by  a  span 
of  seventy-five  feet.  Of  course  it  is  the  "  Devil's  Bridge !  "  The 
Pharisees  would  have  gladly  obtained  ]>ower  from  the  ruler  of 
the  demons  if  they  had  only  known  how:  it  was  quite  easy,  then, 
for  tlioin  to  fancy  that  Jesus  had  discovered  the  secret.  That  the 
Father  of  Men  should  confer  so  beneficent  a  power  upon  any  of 
liis  Sons  was  an  idea  too  broad  for  the  narrow  minds  of  the 
Pharisees.  And  so  tliey  persecuted  Jesus,  not  because  of  the  sin 
of  being  in  league  with  the  devil,  but  out  of  sheer  envy  that  he 
liad  made  better  terms  with  Satan  than  they  and  their  children 
had  been  able  to  do.  In  Matthew  xii.  27,  does  not  Jesus  intimate 
as  much  ? 

Jesus  now  witlulrew  himself  and  went  with  his  discij)les  to  his 
own  country.    This  avoidance  of  the  spite  of  his  enemies  seems  to 


A   CHAFTEB   OF   MIEACLES.  377 

eyiiice  only  a  prudential  regard  to  the  success  of  his  work,  and 

in  no  way  to  indicate  cowardice,  as  he  was  always  ready  to  meet 

them  in  argument ;  and  when  he  shifted  the  range 

of  his  operations,  he  never  for  a  day  ceased  to  ^^^J''^'''' ^^"' ^^ " 

urge  forward  his  work.     He  was  not  yet  ready  to 

give  himself  up.     His  disciples  were  not  yet  ready  to  he  left. 

Jesus  was  no  wild  fanatic,  no  furious  enthusiast  rushing  on  fate. 

He  had  the  great  faculty  of  being  able  to  wait :  but  he  was  a 

ceaseless  worker.     He  foresaw  his  time  coiuine:.     He  would  not 

hurry  it.     It  was  coming  fast  enough. 

Once  more  he  entered  Nazareth,  a  town  to  be  made  immortal 
by  being  attached  to  his  name.  On  the  Sabbath  he  entered  the 
synagogue  and  began  to  teach.  He  taught  astonishingly.  His 
knowledge,  his  goodness,  his  power,  and,  perhaps  above  all,  his 
authority'  came  out  in  his  speech.  The  Nazarenes  could  not  com- 
prehend it.  It  seemed  to  them  only  a  few  months,  and  it  had  not 
been  long  since  he  had  lived  in  their  midst  among  their  humblest 
fellow-citizens.  They  knew  the  dwelling  of  Mary.  They  knew 
her  other  children.  None  of  Marj-'s  other  children  made  any  pi-e- 
tension  to  either  special  sanctity  or  special  auth(jrity.  Nay,  they 
did  not  believe  in  the  pretensions  of  their  brother  Jesus.  He  had 
failed  to  inspire  them  with  confidence.  He  came  to  them  with  a 
crowd  at  his  back,  and  bringing  home  a  reputation  as  a  prophet 
the  like  of  which  had  not  been  known  in  their  day.  He  had  per- 
formed miracles,  had  even  raised  the  dead,  not  far  from  Nazareth. 
But  it  seemed  like  j'esterday  since  they  had  seen  him  in  his  shop 
with  the  implements  of  the  mechanic,  making  or  mending  plain 
furniture,  or  had  seen  him  carrying  his  tools  to  neighboring  houses 
to  do  repaii*s.  There  was  nothing  specially  attractive  in  his  ap- 
pearance. When  he  sat  in  the  synagogue  no  halo  hung  over  his 
brow.  But  now  this  plain  man  came  back  and  assumed  great 
authority,  and  really  did  teach  in  a  style  surpassing  anything  they 
had  ever  heard  before. 

And  so  they  talked  among  themselves  and  said,  "  "WTience  hatb 
tliis  one  this  wisdom  and  mighty  powers  ?     Is  he  not  a  carpenter  ? 
Is  he  not  a  carpenter's  son  ?     Is  not  liis  mother 
the  woman  called  Mary?     Is  he  not  the  brother     ^^^^^-i^'-^^y^^' 

^  own  people. 

of  James  and  Joses,  and  Judas  and  Simon  ?    Are 

not  his  sisters  all  here  M'ith  us  ?     Whence  hath  this  man  all  these 

things  il"     They  showed  him  no  violent  opposition,  but  merely 


378       SECo^'D  and  third  passover  m  the  life  of  jesus. 

regarded  him  with  cuutempt.  His  returu  for  this  treatment  was 
the  simple  annouiiceiiieut  of  a  well-known  fact  in  human  nature: 
'"A  pr<ii»het  is  not  without  honor  except  in  his  own  country,  and 
among  his  own  kin,  and  in  his  own  house."  He  did  nothing  note- 
worthy in  Xazareth,  except  that  he  laid  his  healing  hands  on  a  few 
sick  people.  He  left  Nazareth,  marvelling  at  the  unbelief  of  its 
inhabitants. 


MAP  UK   OtMUAI.   AND   liUUXII    OHAL.Ii.t.. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

THE   THIED   TOUR    OF   GALILEE,    AXD    EETUKN   TO   CAPEKNAUM. 

Fkom  Nazareth  Jesus  entered  upon  his  third  circuit  in  Galilee, 
the  extent  of  which  tour  cannot  be  defined.     Matthew  says  that 
he  "  went  about  all  the  cities  and  villages."  Mark, 
that  "he  went  round  about  the  villages."     All     ^^'^^^-^■^-^ 

&  I.,  JQ. ;  Murk  VI.,  ix.i 

concur  that  he  was  teaching  and  preaching  his  Lukeix.,  x. 
peculiar  doctrines,  and  displaying  his  great  po\ter 
of  healing.  The  multitudes  continued  to  throng  hiui.  They  had 
had  the  formal  instruction  of  the  Established  Church,  but  the 
mass  of  the  people  were  destitute  of  moral  and  religious  culture. 
The}'  appeared  to  the  eye  of  Jesus  as  sheep  that  had  no  sheplierd, 
torn  to  pieces  by  hierarchic  wolves.  And  yet  the  people  seemed 
desirous  of  spiritual  training.  At  sight  of  this  Jesus  said  to  his 
disciples,  "The  harvest  indeed  is  great,  but  the  laborers  are  few: 
pray  therefore  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  that  he  will  send  forth 
laborers  into  his  hai-vest."  It  was  the  suggestion  of  the  mission- 
ary idea  and  the  kindling  of  the  missionary  spirit.  It  was  a  hint 
as  to  what  his  intentions  were  for  immediate  missionary  opera- 
tion. 

In  pursuance  of  this  design  he  called  his  twelve  chosen  disci- 
ples together,  and  commissioned  and  instructed  them  for  this 
new  institution  of  propagandism.  lie  intended 
to  disseminate  his  doctrines  more  rapidly  and  njent™^^°°*'^  ™°'^ 
more  widely.  These  men  had  been  with  him  loi\g 
enough  to  be  weaned  from  other  pursuits,  to  be  attached  to  his 
person  and  his  plans,  and  to  have  accpiired  such  facility  in  co- 
operation that  they  could  work  together.  Jesus  instituted  seven 
itinei'ant  centres  of  influence.  Xot  stopping  in  his  own  work,  lie 
sent  the  twelve  in  paii-s.  Their  work  may  be  better  gathered 
from  their  commission  in  the  words  of  Jesus  than  from  any  para- 
plu-ase.     lie  addressed  them  thus : — 


3S0         SECOND   AND   TIIIKD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

"Go  not  into  the  way  of  the  Gentiles,  and  enter  not  into* a  city  of  the 
Samaritans.  But  go  rather  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel.  And 
goin^,  preach,  saying,  Tlie  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is 
at  hand.  Heal  the  sick,  rai.se  the  dead,  cleanse  the  lep- 
ei-s,  cast  out  demons :  freely  ye  have  received,  freely  give.  Provide  neitlier 
gold,  nor  silver,  nor  copper  in  your  girdles,  nor  a  -wallet  for  your  journey,  noi 
two  coats,  nor  shoes,  nor  a  staff.  And  into  whatever  city  or  village  ye  may  enter, 
inquire  who  in  it  is  worthy,  and  there  abide  till  ye  depart:  go  not  from  house 
to  house :  and  into  whatsoever  city  ye  enter,  and  they  receive  you,  eat  such 
things  as  are  set  before  you ;  for  the  laborer  is  worthy  of  his  food.  But  as  ye 
enter  into  the  house,  salute  it,  saying,  '  Peace  be  to  this  house.'  And  if  indeed 
tlie  house  be  worthy,  your  })eace  shall  come  upon  it:  but  if  it  he  not  worthy, 
your  peace  shall  return  to  you.  And  whoever  will  not  I'eceive  you,  nor  hear 
your  words,  on  going  out  of  that  house,  or  city,  or  village,  shake  off  the  dust 
from  your  feet  for  a  testimony  against  them :  notwithstanding,  be  ye  sure  of 
tliis,  that  the  kingdom  of  God  is  come  nigh  unto  them.  Verily  I  say  to  you, 
it  will  be  more  tolerable  for  the  land  of  Sodom  and  the  land  of  Gomorrah, 
in  tlie  day  of  judgment,  than  for  that  city. 

"  Behold,  I  send  you  forth  as  slieep  in  the  midst  of  wolves.  Begin  ye 
therefore  to  become  wise  as  the  serpent,  and  simple  as  the  doves.  But  beware 
of  men :  for  they  will  deliver  you  up  to  councils,  and  will  scourge  you  in  the 
synagogues :  and  ye  shall  be  brought  before  governors  and  kings  for  my  sake, 
for  a  testimony  to  them  and  to  the  Gentiles.  And  when  they  deliver  you  up, 
be  not  ovor-anxious  how  or  what  ye  shall  speak  :  for  it  sliall  be  given  to  you 
in  that  hour  what  ye  shall  speak.  For  ye  are  not  the  speakeis,  but  the  Spirit 
of  your  Father  speaking  in  you.  And  a  lirother  shall  deliver  up  a  brother  to 
death,  and  a  father  a  cliild ;  and  children  shall  rise  up  against  parents,  and 
shall  put  them  to  death.  And  ye  shall  be  hated  by  all  on  account  of  my 
name ;  but  the  one  having  endured  to  tlie  end  shall  be  saved.  But  Mhon  they 
persecute  you  in  this  city,  flee  into  another:  for  verily  I  say  to  you.  Ye  shall 
not  finisli  the  cities  of  Israel  until  the  Son  of  Man  come. 

"  A  disciple  is  not  above  his  teacher,  nor  tlie  servant  above  liis  lord.  Suffi- 
cient for  the  disciple  that  he  be  as  his  teacher,  and  the  servant  as  his  lord.  If 
they  have  called  the  master  of  the  house  Beelzebul,  how  much  more  those  of 
the  household  ?  Fear  them  not,  therefore,  for  there  is  nothing  covered  that 
shall  not  be  revealed,  and  hidden  that  sliall  not  bo  knomi.  A^^lat  I  say  to  you 
in  thi'  darkness,  speak  in  the  light :  and  what  ye  hear  in  the  ear,  preach  ujion 
the  housetops.  And  fear  not  those  who  kill  the  body,  but  are  not  able  to  kill 
the  soul :  but  rather  fear  the  one  able  to  destroy  both  soul  and  body  ui  Gehen- 
na.    Are  not  two  sjiarrows  sold  for  an  a.s.sarion  ?  *  and  not  one  of  them  shall 

*  This  indicates  a  coin  of  small  value, 
perbajis  more  tliau  an  -\inericaii  cent  and 
less  than  an  English  penny.  Here  is  a 
picture  of  a  l»ronze  specimen  of  this  coin. 
On  one  side  is  an  anchor,  and  the  Greek 
MITE  or  iiK.Roi).  letters  for  J /<*rMl  B'ici  {Her cn\  Iving),  and 

on  the  obversu  two  cornucoiiiaj  and  a  pomegranate. 


THE   THIRD   TOUR    OF   GALILEE.  381 

fall  on  the  ground  without  your  Father.  But  even  the  hairs  of  your  head  are 
all  numbered.  Fear  ye  not  then ;  ye  are  of  more  value  than  many  sparrows. 
Every  one,  therefore,  who  will  confess  me  before  men,  I  also  will  confess  hiiu 
before  my  Father  in  heaven. 

"  Thiulv  not  that  I  came  to  cast  peace  on  the  earth :  I  came  not  to  cast  peace, 
but  a  sword.  For  I  came  to  set  a  man  against  his  father,  and  a  daughter 
against  her  mother,  and  a  daughter-in-law  against  her  mother-in-law.  And 
tlie  enemies  of  a  man  are  those  of  liis  own  household.  He  who  lovcth  father 
or  mother  above  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me :  and  he  who  loveth  son  or  daughter 
above  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me.  And  he  who  taketh  not  liis  cross,  and  fol- 
loweth  after  me,  is  not  worthy  of  me.  He  who  tindeth  his  life  shall  lose  it : 
and  he  who  loseth  his  life  for  my  sake  shall  tind  it.  He  who  receiveth  you 
receivcth  me,  and  he  who  receiveth  me  receiveth  him  who  sent  me.  He  who 
receiveth  a  prophet  in  the  name  of  a  prophet,  sliall  receive  the  reward  of  a 
prophet ;  and  he  who  receiveth  a  righteous  man  in  the  name  of  a  righteous 
man,  shall  receive  the  reward  of  a  righteous  man.  And  whoever  may  give  to 
diink  to  one  of  these  little  ones  only  a  cup  of  cold  water  in  the  name  of  a 
disciple,  verily  I  say  to  you,  he  shall  not  lose  his  reward." 

Jesus  gives  directions  to  liis  disciples  as  to  the  route  they  were 
to  take,  as  well  as  a  commission  for  the  work  they  were  to  per- 
form. They  were  not  to  go  ainong  the  Eoman  ^^^  ^^^^ 
settlements  nor  beyond  the  boundaries  of  Samaria. 
"  "Rather  to  the  lost  slieep  of  the  house  of  Israel,"  explains  the 
direction  as  one  not  founded  on  bigotry  or  Jewish  intolerance,  but 
as  a  temporary  economic  arrangement.  All  men  were  afterward 
to  have  his  gospel,  but  this  was  a  "  trial  ti-ip,"  a  missionary  exer- 
cise for  the  Apostles  among  their  own  people,  almost  under  his 
own  eyes. 

He  imparted  to  them,  of  liis  peculiar  power,  ability  to  heal  tho 
sick,  to  cleanse  lepers,  to  eject  demons,  and  to  raise  the  dead. 
"Whether  they  found  on  this  excursion  any  occa-  ^^^^ 
sion  to  exercise  this  great  power  in  the  raising  of 
the  dead,  we  are  not  informed.  But  all  these  things  were  merely 
suhservient  to  the  "preacliing  of  the  kingdom."  That  was  to  be 
their  great  work,  the  chief  absorbing  labor  of  their  lives. 

The  next  direction  is  that  they  are  to  make  no  proN^sion  for 
their  personal  comfort,  in  the  way  of  money  and  clothes.  They 
were  to  preach  the  gospel  without  pay.  They  ^^^^  ^^^^^^ 
had  received  freely,  they  were  to  give  freely. 
The  gospel  was  not  to  be  sold.  They  were  to  go  forth  free  of 
care  and  do  their  great  work.  Their  Lord  assured  them  that  they 
should  not  fail  of   support.     The   people  would   receive  them- 


382         SECOND    A^TD   TIIIED   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

They  were  not  to  be  eiicuraKered  with  baggage.  Their  wants 
were  to  be  simple,  and  those  wants  were  to  be  supplied.  It  was 
a  general  principle  he  seems  to  have  laid  down  for  the  govei-nance 
of  all  future  missionary  operations.  A  man  going  forth  with  the 
truth  will  find  those  who  are  ready  to  minister  to  his  wants. 

And  then  he  sets  forth  the  method  in  which  he  desired  his  gos- 
pel ju-opagated.     It  was  not  by  founding  churches,  not  by  erect- 
ing crreat  and  powerful  ecclesiastical  ai)i)aratus. 

The  home-altar.  o    O  i  ^  I  I 

lie  seems  never  to  have  intended  to  found  a 
church  like  this,  like  anything  indeed  now  represented  by  our 
modern  "  denominations."  Ills  "  church  "  was  to  be  of  all  those 
who  trusted  in  him,  believed  him,  followed  him,  loved  him.  Its 
work  was  the  dissemination  of  certain  principles.  It  is  observa- 
ble that  he  chose  the  heai-th-stone  as  the  altar  of  the  temple  of 
the  new  faith.  Ilis  apostles  were  to  enter  houses,  not  cry  aloud 
in  the  streets,  nor  harangue  the  crowds.  They  were  to  carry  the 
seeds  of  tlie  newly  quickened  religion  to  the  homes  and  the  hearts 
of  men.  They  were  to  sit  down  among  the  parents  and  children 
and  servants,  and  tell  them  what  Jesus  was  teaching,  explain  to 
them  what  the  "  kingdom  "  was,  and  was  to  be,  and  lunv  it  wa.s  to 
interpenetrate  all  life  from  bottom  to  top.  They  were  to  cure  and 
cleanse  men  spiritually,  and  in  confirmation  of  their  mission  cure 
and  cleanse  them  physically.  The  religion  of  Jesus  is  not  a  tem- 
ple religion.  It  does  not  consist  in  periodical  visits  to  tlie  altar- 
spot,  ceremonial  offering  of  sj)ecified  sacrifices,  nor  anytliing  else 
churchly  and  ritual.  It  was  to  be  the  religion  for  the  home.  It 
was  to  draw  all  men  near  to  the  Fatlier  of  all  men.  It  was  to 
make  the  earthly  home  a  type  of  the  heavenly,  a  terrestrial  school 
of  preparation  for  the  celestial  "  life  to  come."  It  was  to  be  a 
religion  of  principle.  Some  families  would  receive  them,  others 
would  reject.  They  are  told  how  to  conduct  themselves  in  eitlier 
event. 

But  lie  warns  them  that  it  is  not  to  be  always  easy  work.     Tliey 
were  not  always  to  be  immediate  and  radiant  victore.     The  oppo- 
sition they  should  meet  would  bo  powerful  and  for- 

A  warning.  ,  *'  *• 

midable.  The  Jews  would  oppose  them.  Some- 
times, instead  of  carrying  captive  the  congregation  in  the  syna- 
gogue, the  poor  A])ostle  would  l)e  enduring  a  scourging.  The 
Gentile  governors  and  kings  would  set  them  at  naught.  AVTiat 
seemed  so  true  to  them  would  seem  so  false  to  others;  what  seemed 


THE  THIRD   TOUE   OF   GALILEE.  38S 

BO  beautiful  to  them  would  be  so 'ugly  and  hateful  to  others. 
They  should  be  called  to  answer  suddenly  at  the  highest  pagan 
tribunals.  But  they  were  not  to  be  anxious.  The  right  wui'd 
would  come  at  the  right  hour.  They  are  to  keep  themselves  in 
the  love  of  the  truth  and  be  not  specially  careful  ior  theii-  oratory. 
lie  particularly  tears  away  all  self-conceit  from  them  by  saying 
"Ye  are  not  the  speakers,  but  the  Spirit  of  your  Father."  This 
lifts  them  above  all  selfish  anxiety.  It  is  not  their  work,  but 
another's.  If  they  be  persecuted  in  one  city  they  must  fiee  to 
another.  They  have  no  further  work  in  the  one,  and  they  have 
something  to  do  in  another.  Providence  sometimes  leads  and 
Bometimes  drives. 

But  he  gives  them  this  consolation — that  they  shall  not  have 
finished  visiting  the  cities  of  Israel  "  until  the  Son  of  Man  come." 
It  is  "not  quite  easy  to  determine  satisfactorily 

■*•  •'  "A  consolation. 

what  this  phrase  means.  It  may  mean  that  he 
should  j(jin  them  in  person  before  long,  and  thus  be  present  to 
aid  and  direct  them.  To  this  it  is  to  be  objected  that  the  portion 
of  tliis  solemn  charge  which  begins  with  "  Behold,  I  send  you 
forth  as  sheep,"  really  seems  not  to  have  had  apphcation  to  them 
in  tlieir  temporary  missionary  excursions,  but  to  their  much  longer 
apostolic  career  after  the  death  of  Jesus.  Certainly  the  events 
which  he  foretold  did  not  take  place  until  then.  The  interpreta- 
tion suggested  by  Stier  is  that  it  applies  to  the  apostolic  labors 
in  Judaea,  which  were  to  be  closed  by  the  coming  of  the  Son  of 
Man  in  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and,  by  extension,  that  it 
applies  to  the  operations  of  his  messengers  in  the  towns  of  the 
spiritual  Israel.  But  all  this  seems  mystical.  These  men  were 
going  on  a  practical  mission,  which  Jesus  tells  them  was  so  full  of 
peril  that  their  lives  should  be  in  constant  jeopardy.  It  was  no 
time  to  talk  romantic  theology  to  them.  Jesus  meant  something 
practical  which  they  could  understand.  Just  what  it  was  I  do 
not  know,  but  its  general  significance  seems  to  be  that,  no  matter 
how  industriously  they  worked,  and  however  rapid  their  move- 
ments, they  could  not  visit  all  the  towns  before  their  mission 
should  be  accomplished.  And  this  was  probably  the  sense, 
whether  their  temporary  tour  be  considered  or  their  travels  and 
labors  after  the  death  of  their  Teacher. 

He  still  further  confirms  and  strengthens  them  by  reminding 
them  -of  his  own  case.     They  readily  acknowledged  him  as  theii 


o8-i         PKCOND   AND   THIRD   TAPSOTER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

Master  and  Lord ;  but  he  liad  all  kinds  of  opprobrium   heajied 

upon  him.     He  had  not  had  a  serene  and  brilliant  public  life 

_  His  was  not  the  work  of  o-radually  winninor  men 

HiB  own  case.  ^  o  j  o 

to  the  truth ;  it  was  a  terrific  battle  with  error 
and  evil.  The  disciple  is  not  above  his  master,  the  servant  is  nol 
above  his  lord.  They  were  to  push  the  battle  forward.  He  had 
spoken  to  them  privately' ;  they  were  to  declare  his  doctrines 
openly.  What  they  had  heard  in  the  closet  they  must  proclaim 
upon  the  house-top.  But  there  was  to  be  no  timidity  and  pusil- 
lanimity. A  special  pro\idence  would  be  vouchsafed  them.  To 
sparrows,  one  of  which  is  worth  scarcely  a  penny,  God's  guar- 
dianship extends,  so  that  one  of  them  does  not  fall  without  his 
notice.  The  arrow  of  the  archer  cannot  reach  him  unless  God 
so  wills.  That  same  heavenly  Father  counts  every  hair  of  every 
head.  How  much  more  precious  is  the  head  than  the  hair,  the 
man  than  the  sparrow!  And  a  man  set  to  the  promulgation  of 
great  truths,  how  precious  is  he  !  He  shall  not  be  destrt)}cd  care- 
lessly. On  the  other  hand,  he  warns  them  by  their  fear  of  God 
as  well  as  by  their  confidence  in  his  love.  The  persecutor  lives 
his  day ;  the  martyr  has  eternity.  Men  may  destroy  the  body. 
They  reach  their  limit  there.  God  can  destroy  both  soul  and 
body  in  eternity.  He  seems  to  teach  that  the  final  punishment 
of  the  incorrigibly  wicked  shall  be  the  final  destruction  of  both 
soul  and  body. 

He  gives  liis  Apostles  to  understand  tliat  the  propagation  of  his 
gospel  would  be  a  process  of  discrimination,  and  an  occasion,  not 

The  gospel  to  be  a     ^  causc,  of  wide-sprcad  and  bitter  antagonisms. 
diBcrimination.  jjg  auuounces  his  intention  of  claiming  and  striv- 

ing to  win  the  best  love  of  every  inan.  Every  earthly  affection 
in  the  disciple  is  to  become  subordinate  to  his  devotion  to  his 
Master.  Father,  mother,  son,  daughter, — every  other  relationship 
and  love  must  sit  down  at  his  feet.  He  intends  to  make  himself 
king  by  obtaining  monarchic  sway  over  the  hearts  of  men.  Life 
itself  is  to  be  laid  on  the  altar  of  this  love.  If  a  man  shrink 
from  the  service  of  Jesus  \n  order  to  preserve  his  life,  lie  will 
surely  lose  it.  He  who  yields  himself,  in  the  wise  al)andonment 
of  a  reasonable  devotion,  to  Jesus,  shall  find  all  the  good  and 
sweet  there  is  in  life.  Jesus  will  know,  remember,  ajul  reward 
every  least  act  of  help  to  his  kingdom  or  to  those  who  are  engaged 
in  upbuilding  it — even  to  the  giving  of  a  cup  t»f  cold  water  to  a 


THE  TinRD  TOUR  OF  GALILEE.  385 

disciple.  He  intend8  to  invest  all  his  followers  with  a  portion  of 
his  own  dignity.  Whosoever  receives  a  minister  of  the  gospel  is 
to  be  regarded  as  one  who  has  received  Jesus  into  his  liouse,  as 
Jesus  is  to  be  king  of  hearts ! 

It  must  have  been  appalling  to  the  Apostles  when  Jesus  spoke 
of  "  taking  up  the  cross  "  and  following  him.  lie  had  not  been 
crucified :  there  was  no  prospect  that  he  would 

1  11^-  +1,  •     ^-         ^-  £  A  frightful  fi^re. 

be :  he  had  given  them  no  intimation  or  any 
suspicion  on  his  part  that  his  career  would  have  so  disastrous  a 
termination.  But  the  cross  as  an  instrument  of  iirnominious  tor- 
ture  was  well  known  to  them  ;  and  they  most  probably  interpreted 
this  phrase  figuratively,  as  it  was  intended,  to  mean  great  pain 
and  shame  to  be  brought  upon  them  by  becoming  preachers  of 
the  gospel. 

The  whole  address  is  a  great  step  forward.     It  commissions 
Apostles  to  open  the  way  before  him.     His  hour  was  coming.     He 
was  advancing  his  claims.     He  was  prudently  but 
unhesitatingly  going  forward  on  the  line  of  his 
mission.     He  might  have  retreated  hitherto ;  now  he  must  go  for- 
ward to  any  fate  that  might  lie  in  the  path  he  had  chosen. 

The  disciples  went  on  their  way.  Jesus  continued  to  work. 
They  were  all  engaged  in  preaching  repentance  as  preparatory  to 
the  receiving  of  the  Messiah.  TVe  are  not  now  able  to  learn  how 
large  was  the  missionary  circuit  of  the  Apostles,  but  it  is  very  ap- 
parent that  it  excited  a  great  popular  interest  in  the  person  and 
work  of  Jesus. 

At  the  instigation  of  Herodias,  Herod  had,  as  we  have  seen, 
seized  and  imprisoned  John  the  Baptist,  because  tlie  bold  preacher 
had  rebuked  him  for  living  in  adultery  with  Ile- 

T.  i  ■...,         .-,  ,,  .  n        p  T-.,  . , .  John  the  Baptist  ex- 

rodias,  who  was  his  sister-in-law,  the  wife  oi  rhilip.  ecnted.  Matt.  xiv.  i- 
He  may  also  have  feared  lest  the  growing  in-  ^3;  Mark  vi.  21-29; 
fluence  of  John  upon  the  populace  might  become 
so  great  as  to  give  him  political  power,  if  he  chose  to  exert  it. 
For  entire  safety  he  had  confined  the  Baptist  in  the  castle  of 
Machrerus.  Herodias  never  forgave  John  his  denunciation  of 
this  adulterous  connection,  but  continued  to  plot  against  his  life, 
and  at  last  succeeded  Herod's  birthday  arrived.  He  made  a 
supper  for  his  lords,  high  captains,  and  chief-estates.  At  a 
warm  stage  of  the  revel  the  daughter  of  Herodias  entered  and 
danced  before  the  assembly,  danced  so  seductively  that  Herod,  in 
25 


386 


SECOND    AXD   TIIIKD    PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE    C'F   JESUS. 


Herod  hears  of  Jesus. 


his  hot  a<lniiration,  promised  to  give  her  wliatever  she  should  Rsk, 
to  the  half  of  liis  kingdom.  To  convince  her,  he  backed  up  this 
foolish  promise  by  an  oath.  She  conferred  with  her  vindictive 
mother,  who  instructed  her  to  demand  the  head  of  John  the  Bap- 
tist. To  this  demand  Herod  was  extremely  reluctant  to  comply. 
Nevertheless,  as  the  historian  says,  "for  his  oath's  sake,  and  for 
their  sakes  who  sat  at  meat,  he  would  not  reject  her."  An  execu- 
tioner went  forthwith  and  brought  the  horrible  gift  in  a  charger, 
which  the  hardened  daughter  carried  to  her  callous  motlier. 
John's  disciples  heard  that  he  had  been  executed,  and  went  and 
buried  his  headless  cor2")se. 

It  was  at  this  juncture  that  the  fame  of  Jesus  reached  the  court 
of  Herod.  That  potentate  was  superstitious  as  well  as  lustful 
and  cruel.  "Wlien  he  heard  the  marvellous  things 
which  Jesus  was  doing  he  was  perplexed,  and 
said  to  his  fi-iends  that  it  was  John  risen  from  the  dead.  They 
endeavored  to  allay  his  terror  by  saying  that  it  was  Elias,  or  the 
spirit  of  some  other  of  the  older  prophets  reappearing  in  Jesus. 
But  Herod's  alarms  were  not  so  easily  dissipated.  He  retained 
and  affirmed  the  conviction  that  his  victim  had  risen  from  the 
dead.  He  determined,  if  possible,  to  see  Jesus,  who  was  mani- 
festly becoming  as  important,  in  a  political  point  of  x\e\v,  as 
Hei'od  had  supposed  John  to  be.  Wlien  Jesus  heard  that  Herod 
liad  begun  to  manifest  an  interest  in  his  movements,  and  saw 
that  the  people  were  reaching  a  pitch  of  excitement  which  might 
easily  transport  them  into  violence,  he  judged  it  best  to  Avithdraw 
himself  from  a  position  in  which  he  was  liable  to  have  his  great 
work  interrupted  by  the  arousing  of  a  tyi*ant's  terrors  by  popular 
demonstration  in  his  behalf. 

In  the  mean  time  the  disciples  had  returned  and  reported  the 
results  of  their  missionary  tour.  Perhaps  the  news  of  the  death 
of  John  hastened  their  return.*  Mark  mentions 
another  reason:  the  Apostles  had  returned  from 
their  tour,  by  the  labors  and  circumstances  of  which  they  were 
excited,  and  they  needed  refreshment  for  coming  conflicts.     Jesus 


Return  of  the  twelve. 


•  It  does  not  appear  how  long  they 

were   absent   on   this   preaching    tour. 

Wiescler  and  Tischcndorf  make  it  only  a 

day;    Ellicott,  two  days;  Grcswcll,  that 

hey  left  in  February  and  returned  in 


March,  one  or  two  months ;  and  Kraflft 
extends  it  to  several  months.  Wc  can 
hardly  suppose  that  it  was  less  than 
several  weeks. 


THE   THIED   TOUR   OF   GALILEE. 


387 


^thdrew  them  from  their  public  ministiy,  and  went  with  them 
into  a  desert  place.  If  he  had  not  done  so,  now  that  he  was 
becoming  so  popular,  and  the  people  so  much  excited  by  his  min- 
istry, and  the  slaughter  of  John  having  undoubtedly  produced  a 
very  profound  impression,  it  is  probable  that  a  sedition  would 
have  occurred,  and  Ilerod  would  have  charged  it  to  his  ministr)^ 
And  this  sedition  was  all  the  more  probable  as  the  people  did  not 
recognize  him  as  a  divine  person,  but  only  as  a  very  great  prophet. 
There  was  every  prudential  reason  for  retiring.  lie  took  a  boat 
with  his  disciples  and  went  over  to  a  portion  of  uninhabited  shore, 
probably  near  the  town  of  Bethsaida,  in  Perea.  He  was  not  flying 
from  Ilerod  so  much  as  from  the  people.  But  he  could  not  be 
hid.  The  excited  populace,  seeing  the  movement  and  conjectur- 
ing the  destination,  ran  around  the  head  of  the  lake  and  reached 
the  spot  before  the  landing  of  Jesus,  who,  when  he  came  out,  saw 
that  privacy  was  impracticable.  He  looked  on  that  great  multi- 
tude, anxious  and  panting  fr-om  the  exertion  they  had  made  to 
gain  the  spot.*  He  had  compassion  upon  them.  Their  spiritual 
pastors  had  abandoned  them.  They  were  as  sheep  without  a  shep- 
herd. The  tender-hearted  Jesus  could  not  forbear.  So,  ffoins:  to 
an  elevation,  he  sat  down,  and  for  hours  gave  them  instruction  in 
the  things  pertaining  to  the  kingdom  of  God. 

And  when  the  day  was  far  spent  his  disciples  reminded  him 
that  it  was  a  desert  place  and  that  the  people  had  long  been  with- 
out food,  and  urged  him  to  send  them  awat-  to  find  food  and 


*  The  distance  was  from  six  to  eight 
miles,  and  could  be  passed  over  as 
quickly  by  those  who  hastened  on  foot 
as  by  those  who  crossed  the  lake  in  a 
boat.  Bethsaida  probably  lay  on  both 
sides  the  Jordan,  just  where  it  entered 
into  the  lake.  On  the  east  is  the  level 
plain  of  Buthiah,  in  the  shape  of  a  tri- 
angle, naade  by  the  eastern  mountains, 
the  lake  shore,  and  the  river  side.  Dr. 
Thomson  concludes,  and  I  think  shows, 
that  the  site  of  the  feeding  of  the  five 
thousand  was  in  the  south-eastern  angle 
of  this  plain,  where  the  hills  come  close 
to  the  shore.  He  says  (vol.  ii.  p.  29), 
"  From  the  four  narratives  of  this  stu- 
pendous miracle,  we  gather.  1st,  That 
the  place   belonged  to  Bethsaida;  2d, 


That  it  was  a  desert  place  ;  3d,  That  it 
was  near  the  shore  of  the  lake,  for  they 
came  to  it  by  boats ;  4th,  That  there  was 
a  mountain  close  at  hand  ;  5th,  That  it 
was  a  smooth  grassy  spot,  capable  of 
seating  many  thousand  people.  Now 
aU  these  requisites  are  found  in  this 
exact  locality,  and  nowhere  else,  so  far 
as  I  can  discover.  This  Butaiha  be- 
longed to  Bethsaida.  At  this  extreme 
south-east  comer  of  it  the  mountain 
shuts  down  upon  the  lake,  bleak  and  bar- 
ren. It  was,  doubtless,  desert  then  as 
now,  for  it  is  not  capable  of  cultivation. 
In  this  little  cove  the  ships  (boats)  were 
anchored.  On  this  beautiful  sward,  at 
the  base  of  the  rocky  hill,  the  people 
were  seated." 


3S8         SECOND    AND    TUIRD   PASSOVER    IN    THE    LIFE    OF   JESUS. 

lodging  in  the  surrounding  country.  To  this  he  replied,  "  They 
need  not  depart ;  give  ye  tlieni  to  eat."  Previous  to  this,  probably 
Miraculous  feeding  of  early  in  the  afternoon,  Jesus  had  questioned  Philip 
Ave  thousand.  *  ^s  to  liow  tlicy  sliould  manage  to  feed  so  great  a 
congregation  of  people.  There  nuiy  have  been  two  reasons  for 
putting  this  question  to  Philip,  namely,  that  he  was  a  man  very 
slow  of  spiritual  apprehension,  and  was  a  citizen  of  the  neighbor- 
ing town  of  Bethsaida.  John  says  that  Jesus  thus  questioned 
Philip  to  prove  him.  Philip's  reply  shows  his  spiritual  obtuse- 
uess.  Jesus  was  putting  forth  his  claim  to  Messiahship  more  and 
more  distinctly.  But  Philip  could  not  discover  it.  lie  replied, 
"  Two  hundred  denarii  worth  of  loaves  is  not  sufficient  for  them, 
that  every  one  should  receive  a  little."  This  intimation  of  the 
impossibility  of  making  so  heavy  a  purchase  shows  the  ^;cantiness 
of  the  exchequer  of  the  circle  of  Jesus.  "Thirty  dollars  would 
not  feed  them  !  and  where  have  we  that  sum  ? "  Jesus  seems  to 
have  left  the  perplexing  question  with  Philip  until  late  in  the 
afternoon,  when  his  disciples  suggested  the  difficulty  to  hira,  to 
which  he  replied  as  above,  and  added,  "  How  many  loaves  have 
you  ? "  Andi-ew  answered  that  they  had  found  in  the  multitude 
a  lad  who  had  five  barley  loaves  and  two  small  fishes.  He  ordered 
them  to  be  brought  to  liim,  and  then  commanded  tlie  multitude  to 
be  seated  on  the  green  grass,  in  plots  or  squares,  so  that  there  were 
alleys  between,  and  the  whole  slope  looked  like  a  garden  whose 
parterres  were  filled  with  human  beings.  lie  then  looked  up  to 
heaven  and  blessed  and  bi-ake  the  loaves,  and  handed  them  to  the 
disciples  to  set  before  the  multitude.  There  were  about  five  tliou- 
sand  men,  beside  women  and  children.  The  orderly  arrangement 
secured  ample  opportunity  to  each  to  eat  as  much  as  he  would,  as 
long  as  the  food  lasted.  They  did  all  eat  and  were  filled.  "Wlicn 
they  could  eat  no  more  Jesus  directed  the  fragments  to  be  gatli- 
ercd,  that  nothing  be  lost,  and  the  disciples  gathered  twelve  bas 
kets*  full  of  the  frajjcments  and  of  the  fishes  that  remained  over 
after  all  had  eaten. 

*  This  ia  the  translation  in  the  com- |  which  is  here  translated  "baskets" 
mon  version,  and  is  correct,  that  being  ,  does  mean  "  wallet,"  and  was  applied 
the  ordinary  meaning  of  the  word.  But  to  the  travelling-bag  which  every  Jew 
does  it  not  mean  that  the  twelve  Apos-  carried.  To  this  Juvenal  allndcs.  using 
ties  filled  each  his  wallet  with  the  frag-  '  the  very  word  employed  in  this  passage, 
ments?  Whence  did  they  have  so  many  |  "  Judasis,  quorum  cophinua  faenumqu* 
empty   baakeUf      But    the   vi;ry   word    supellex."     (.iii.  14.) 


THE  THIRD   TOUR   OF   GALILEE.  389 

How  this  was  performed  we  have  no  meaus  of  knowing.  The 
historians  recite  the  facts  and  offer  no  theory.  There  was  nc 
6upi:»ly  called  forth  from  the  multitude,  and  the 

^i-    •^  _  '  No  theory. 

disciples  had  none  in  reserve.  The  astonishment 
and  enthusiasm  of  all  parties  show  this.  It  could  have  been  nc 
feat  of  legerdemain.  It  has  had  no  parallel,  and  no  attempt  has 
been  made,  so  far  as  is  known  to  us,  to  imitate  it.  It  was  no  has- 
tening of  the  process  of  nature,  for  it  was  baked  bread  that  was 
multiplied.  If  a  handful  of  uninjured  wheat  had  been  made  to 
grow  in  an  hour  into  the  bulk  of  a  harvest,  the  process  would  have 
been  measurably  intelligible,  and  might  have  been  described  as 
an  astoundiugly  rapid  pushing  forward  of  natural  processes.  But 
here  were  five  baked  loaves,  and  two  small  fishes  already  cooked. 
More  than  five  thousand  persons,  after  a  long  fast,  ate  of  these  and 
nothing  else,  ate  to  repletion,  and  then  the  fragments  were  hugely 
more  than  the  original  bulk.  It  was  an  astounding  fact,  a  stu- 
pendous act,  and  was  so  regarded  by  those  who  were  of  that  large 
party.  Wliether  the  food  grew  in  the  bauds  of  Jesus,  or  in  the 
hands  of  the  disciples,  or  in  the  hands  or  in  the  mouths  of  the 
eaters,  there  seems  no  possibility  of  knowing.  The  historians,  who 
were  eye-witnesses,  do  not  adventure  an  opinion.  Nor  can  we. 
It  is  a  fact  in  the  history  of  Jesus,  and  as  such  we  must  simply 
record  it  and  honestly  study  it. 

IIow  this  wonderful  performance  was  regarded  by  the  multi- 
tude is  manifest  from  the  fact  that  their  false  Messianic  ^-iews 
were  so  highly  excited  thereby  that  they  were  Matt  xiv.;  Mark  ti.; 
ready  to  rise  in  rebellion  against  the  Koman  Joi»°vi- 
power,  and  crown  Jesus  as  their  king,  and  insist  that  he  should 
lead  them  forth  to  a  victorious  revolt.  Perceiving  that  they  would 
make  him  king  by  force,  and  thus  push  him  into  a  false  position, 
Jesus  showed  Avonderful  force  of  character  and  sagacity  by  first 
sending  away  his  disciples,  that  they  might  not  catch  this  political 
fever  and  complicate  the  difiiculties  of  the  situation  by  joining 
the  people  in  their  mad  attempt.  In  the  absence  of  his  immedi- 
diate  friends  and  followers  it  would  be  more  easy  to  manage  the 
mob,  for  such  the  multitude  seems  to  have  become.  And  he  did 
succeed  in  dispei-sing  them. 

At  this  point  occurs  a  difference  in  the  directions  given  by  Jesus 
to  the  disciples  as  recorded  by  two  of  the  historians.  John  saya 
the  disciples  went  over   the  sea  toward  Capernaum,  aud  Mark 


390         SECOND   AND   TUIKD   PASSOVER   IN   TUE   LIFE   OF   JESCTS. 

says  that  Jesus  constrained  them  to  get  into  the  ship  and  to  <ra 
to  the  other  side  before   him   mito   Bethsaida.      Dr.  Thomson, 
.  ,.„   ,        ,  .    ,   whose  intimate  personal  knowledfje  of  the  IIolv 
Land  makes  him  the  very  highest  authority,  says 

"  Looking  back  from  this  point  at  the  south-eastern  extremity  of  the  Bu- 
taiha,  I  see  no  difficulty  in  these  statements.  As  the  evening  was  coming  on, 
Jesus  commanded  the  disciples  to  return  home  to  Capernaum,  while  he  sent 
the  people  away.  They  were  reluctant  to  go  and  leave  him  alone  in  that  des- 
ert phice;  probably  remonstrated  against  his  exposing  liimself  to  the  coming 
storm  and  the  cold  night  air,  and  reminded  him  that  he  would  have  many 
miles  to  walk  round  the  head  of  the  lake,  and  must  cross  the  Jordan  at  Beth- 
saida  liefore  he  could  reach  home.  To  quiet  their  minds,  he  may  have  told 
them  to  go  on  before  toward  Betlisaida,  while  he  dismissed  the  crowd,  prom- 
ising to  join  them  in  the  night,  which  he  intended  to  do,  and  actually  did, 
tliougli  in  a  maimer  very  different  from  what  they  expected.  Still,  they  were 
reluctant  to  leave  him,  and  had  to  be  constrained,  to  set  sail.  In  tliis  state  of 
anxiety  they  endeavored  to  keep  near  the  shore  between  this  and  Bethsaida, 
hoping,  no  doubt,  to  take  in  their  beloved  Master  at  some  point  along  the 
coast.  But  a  violent  wind  beat  off  the  boat,  so  that  they  were  not  able  to 
make  Bethsaida,  nor  even  Capernaum,  but  were  driven  past  both." 

"Wlien  the  disciples  had  started,  and  the  multitude  had  been  dis- 

pei-sed,  Jesus  went  into  a  mountain  apart  to  pray,  and  so  remained 

until  tlie  fourth  watch  of  the  ni<rht ;  that  is,  be- 

Storm  on  the  lake.  .  i    -i       i     .         i  .  x 

tween  three  and  six  o  clock  m  the  mornmg.  In 
the  mean  time  there  came  upon  the  lake  one  of  those  furious  storms 
which  sometimes  sweep  down  through  the  valleys  and  plough 
the  lake  furiously.  Dr.  Thomson's  description  (ii.  32)  is  a  vivid 
help  to  our  imaginations  in  endeavoring  to  realize  the  scene : 

"  My  exijerience  in  this  region  enables  me  to  sympathize  with  the  disciple^ 
in  their  long  night's  contest  with  the  \vind.  I  sjjcnt  a  night  in  that  Wady 
Shukaiyif,  some  three  miles  up  it,  to  the  left  of  us.  Tlic  sun  had  scarcely  set 
when  th(!  wnd  began  to  rush  down  toward  the  lake,  and  it  continued  all  niglit 
long  with  constantly  increasing  violence,  so  that  when  we  reached  the  shore 
next  morning  the  face  of  the  lake  was  a  huge  boiling  caldron.  The  wind 
howled  down  every  wady  from  the  north-east  and  east  mth  sucli  fury  tliat  no 
efforts  of  rowers  could  liave  brought  a  boat  to  shore  at  any  point  along  that 
coast.  In  a  •wind  like  that,  the  disciples  must  have  been  driven  quite  across  to 
Qennesaret,  as  we  know  they  were.  To  understand  the  causes  of  these  suddeu 
and  ^^olent  tempests,  we  must  remember  that  the  lake  lies  low — six  hundred 
feet  lower  than  the  ocean;  that  the  vast  and  naked  plateaus  of  the  Jaulan  ri.se 
to  a  great  h'-ight,  sj^reading  backward  to  the  wilds  of  the  Ilauran.  and  upward 
to  snowy  Ilermon;  and  the  water-courses  have  cut  out  profound  ravines  and 
wild  gorges,  converging  to  the  head  of  this  lake,  and  that  these  act  lika 


THE  TUIKD  TOUE  OF  GALILEE.  391 

gigantic  funnels  to  draw  down  the  cold  winds  from  the  mountams.  On  the 
occasion  referred  to  we  subsequently  pitched  our  tents  at  the  shore,  and  re- 
mained for  three  days  and  nights  ex^Dosed  to  this  tremendous  wind.  "We  had 
to  double-pin  all  our  tent-ropes,  and  frequently  were  obliged  to  hang  vnth  oul 
whole  weights  upon  them  to  keep  the  quiveiing  tabernacle  from  being  carried 
up  bodily  into  the  air.  No  wonder  the  disciples  toiled  and  rowed  hard  all 
that  night ;  and  how  natural  their  amazement  and  terror  at  the  sight  of  .Jesu3 
walking  on  the  waves !  The  whole  lake,  as  we  had  it,  was  lashed  into  fury ; 
the  waves  repeatedly  rolled  uj)  to  our  tent-door,  tumbling  over  the  roj^cs  with 
such  violence  as  to  carry  away  the  tent-pins." 

In  such  a  storm  as  this  the  disciples  toiled  about  eight  hours, 
making  a  little  over  three  miles,  and  therefore  only  about  half 
their  voyage.  It  was  still  dark,  and  the  heavy  jesus  walking  on  the 
tempest  lay  on  them.  Suddenl}^  they  saw  what  "''*'^'^- 
they  supposed  was  a  ghost — the  appearance  of  a  man  walking  the 
waves  as  though  he  would  pass  them — and  they  cried  out  with 
fear.  Jesus  spoke  to  them  and  said,  "  Cheer  up,  it  is  I ;  be  not 
afraid  !  "  It  was  he.  lie  had  come  down  from  the  mountain 
and  gone  over  the  sea,  and  was  walking  near  their  vessel.  When 
the  excitable  Peter  heard  his  voice  he  said,  "  Lord,  if  it  be  thou, 
command  me  to  come  to  thee  upon  the  waters."  Jesus  did  not 
command,  but  he  permitted  the  attempt.  Peter  tried  it.  Going 
toward  Jesus,  the  prodigious  storm  so  unnerved  him  and  shook  his 
faith  that  Peter  began  to  sink,  and  cried  for  help  to  Jesus,  who 
stretched  out  his  hand  and  seized  him,  and  lifted  him  up  with  the 
kind  rebuke,  "O  thou  of  little  faith;  wherefore  didst  thou  doubt?" 
In  their  act  of  entering  the  ship  the  wind  suddenly  ceased  and 
straightway  the  vessel  was  at  the  landing.  Then  the  disciples, 
the  crew,  and  the  passengers  fell  at  his  feet  and  worshipped  him, 
and  said,  "  Of  a  truth  thou  art  the  Son  of  God." 

Here  is  a  plain  statement  of  a  miracle.  In  a  liowli ng  storm 
Jesus  walked  the  waters  of  a  lake  that  had  been  lashed  by  the 
scourges  of   a  powerful   hurricane   throuo^h  the 

1      1  •    1  T  1  PI.  Theories. 

whole  mght.  it  M-as  not  a  phantasm  oi  him. 
There  was  no  optical  delusion.  Peter  touched  his  hand.  He 
went  on  board  the  vessel.  He  remained  with  a  number  of  men, 
who  had  ample  opportunity  to  examine  his  person.  IIuw  lie  did 
it  is  not  the  part  of  a  historian  to  say.  There  are  latent  foi-ces  in 
our  humanity  which  now  and  then  flash  forth.  There  are  ordi- 
nary phenomena  which  lie  in  the  line  of  this  narratiN-e,  one  of 
which,  namely,  that  a  man  is  lighter  when  awake  than  when 


392         eiXuND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   m   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

asleej),  was  noticed  as  early  as  the  times  of  Fliuy,  Trench's 
theory  for  this  is  that  the  hiimau  consciousness  as  an  inner  centre 
works  an  opposing  force  to  the  centripetal  force  of  gravity,  how- 
ever unable  now  to  overbear  it.  But  here  is  something  stupen- 
dous. In  a  great  storm  a  man  walha  about  on  the  waters,  fur  the 
original  word  indicates  something  of  a  quiet  promenade.  Another 
man  attempts  to  walk  towards  him,  and  succeeds  so  long  as  he 
trusts  him,  but  sinks  as  soon  as  his  faith  begins  to  fail.  Jesus 
teaches  that,  so  far  as  Peter  was  concerned,  the  walking  was  due 
to  his  faith  alone;  that  there  was  in  him  a  capability  to  achieve 
this  dominion  over  nature,  but  that  he  had  failed  because  his 
faith  had  failed.  So  far  as  Jesus  was  concerned,  there  was  no 
force  exerted  on  him  from  without,  nor  was  there  any  suspension 
of  the  physical  law  of  gravity:  it  was  manifestly  the  power  of 
his  own  will  dominating  what  seem  to  us  to  be  natural  laws. 

If  there  had  been  any  very  philosophic  man  among  his  fol- 
lowers he  must  have  seen,  even  at  the  disadvantage  of  too  great 
ProKTcasivoness  of     ueamess,  what  seems  sufficiently  plain  to  even 
•^•*"*  superficial  study  of  Jesus  at  this  remo\e  from 

his  presence,  namely,  that  there  was  a  progress! veness  in  his  whole 
inner  and  outer  history — a  growth  of  the  inner  man — to  which 
there  was  a  corresponding  development  of  the  outer  life.  Tlirongh 
thirtv  vears  his  spiritual  force  seems  to  liave  been  accuniulatiu'T 
in  private.  AVe  can  hardly  imagine  that  he  was  totally  devoid  of 
all  consciousness  of  this  progress  of  his  soul;  nay,  the  whole  his- 
t(»ry  shows  that  he  knew  liimself,  and  that  one  of  the  verv  irreatest 
difhculties  of  his  })osition  was  to  make  othere  comprehend  his 
}>syc]iical  condition.  At  the  ripening  moment  he  entered  upon 
his  jiiiblic  career,  through  all  of  which  there  were  repeated  out- 
flashings  of  the  growing  inner  glory.  These  three  yeare  show 
how  he  ])ecame  more  and  more  huninous.  At  this  point  of  hie 
liistoi-y  he  opposes  the  forces  (;f  his  inner  man  to  famine,  to  a 
mob,  to  a  storm  at  sea.  He  stretches  the  assertion  of  his  kingly 
rule  further  and  further  into  the  world  of  matter  and  the  world 
of  mind.  The  development  of  his  spiritual  history  is  rhythmic. 
These  plienomena  are  described  by  men  who  did  not  perceive,  and 
could  not  comprehend,  the  profound  logical  and  poetical  nomne- 
non  which  prodiu-ed  them.  If  tliese  things  did  not  occur,  then 
we  have  a  more  tronblesome  perplexity  to  deal  with,  namely,  the 
miracle  of  the  existence  of  a  narrative  so  superhumanly  true  to 


THE  THIRD  TOUK  OF  GALILEE.  393 

philosophy  and  the  liighest  poetry — superhumanly,  that  is  to  say, 
if  the  historiiuis  were  not  relating  facts.  It  would  be  easier  for 
any  man  to  walk  the  Atlantic  through  a  raging  storm,  from  New 
York  to  Liverpool,  than  to  produce  a  book  which  should  set  forth 
a  character  and  a  history  so  wonderful  as  this  of  Jesus,  so 
symmetrical,  so  accordant  with  our  intuitions  of  truth,  and  yet 
not  modelled  after  this  of  Jesus,  whose  historians  produced  it 
without  type,  suggestion,  or  original,  if  just  such  a  man  did  not 
live  and  perform  just  the  things  which  they  represent. 

There  is  no  wonder,  then,  that  the  mariners  and  passengers,  as 
well  as  the  disciples,  now,  if  never  before,  acknowledged  him  as 
the  Son  of  God ;  that  is,  granted  what  he  had  claimed,  the  posi- 
tion of  Messiah,  although  they  held  their  own  gross  views  of 
what  the  Messiah's  functions  were.  They  now  believed  that  he 
was  the  One  Anointed  to  deliver  them  from  the  bondage  of  the 
Romans.  It  would  seem  as  if  there  now  came  upon  them  the 
conviction  which  had  been  forced  upon  the  multitude  by  the 
feeding  of  thousands  with  a  few  loaves. 

The  party  hxnded  on  the  plain  of  Gennesaret.  As  soon  as  the 
inhabitants  found  that  he  had  arrived  they  sent  messengers  through 
the  whole  country  and  had  the  sick  brought  in  lit- 

"  "  ,        Intense  excitement. 

ters  to  him.  As  he  passed  around  the  lake  to  his 
home  in  Capernaum  there  was  an  intense  excitement  everywhere. 
In  all  the  towns  and  villages  they  brought  their  sick  and  laid  them 
before  him  on  his  passage  through  their  streets,  and  invalids 
begged  the  privilege  of  touching  if  only  the  hem  of  his  garment. 
All  were  healed.  It  was  a  wonderful  procession  of  beneficence. 
In  the  mean  time  s<jme  of  the  most  fanatical  of  tlie  people  Avho 
had  been  fed  on  tlie  pre\dous  day  seemed  to  have  lingered  in  the 
hope  of  seeing  him  again.  They  knew  nothing  of  the  extraor- 
dinary night-scene  on  the  lake.  They  supposed  that  he  may  have 
retired  for  private  devotion,  but  would  make  his  appearance 
during  the  day.  But  not  finding  him,  and  knowing  that  there  had 
been  but  one  vessel  on  the  lake  yesterday,  and  that  in  the  fearful 
storm  the  disciples  could  not  have  returned  and  taken  him,  they 
fell  back  on  the  only  natural  conjecture,  namely,  that  he  had 
walked  around  tlie  edge  of  the  lake  by  Bethsaida  to  Capernaum. 
When,  therefore,  vessels  from  Tiberias  passed  near,  they  hailed 
them  and  took  shipping  for  Capernaum,  seeking  Jesus  and  more 
bread. 


394:         SECOND   AXD   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

That  these  people  were  not  the  best  of  the  multitude  who  had 

been  fed  m  the  wilderness,  appears  from  their  pei-secutiiig  Jesus 

with  their  presence  when  he  would  fain  have  been 

Capernaum.   Jolm  xvi.  •^ 

rid  of  them,  because  they  did  nut  full(_)w  him  for 
religious  instruction,  but  for  material  considerations.  They  hoped 
that  he  was  to  be  their  Bread-king,  the  Messiah,  to  reign  andj^eed 
his  people.  Their  hearts  and  consciences  had  all  gone  to  stomach. 
They  lived  in  a  di'eam,  in  which  many  a  lazy  soul  to  this  day  laps 
itself,  that  there  is  "a  good  time  coming"  when  men  shall  have 
plenty  to  eat  and  nothing  to  do.  They  were  the  Millerites  or 
Adventists  of  old.  "We  must  remember  tliis,  to  make  the  address 
of  Jesus  at  all  c<jmpreliensible.  lie  speaks  what  tliey  could  not 
understand,  while  he  utters  profound  truths  which  all  receptive 
spirits  will  find  instructive. 

The  company  of  bread-seekers  pushed  into  the  synagogue  where 
Jesus  was  teaching,  and  soufjht  to  relieve  their  curiositv  bv  the 

abrupt   inquiry,    "Rabbi,    when    did    you    come 

The  bread-Beekers.  i.  x        >/  '  >  ^ 

hitlier?"  Jesus  deigned  no  reply  to  this  imperti- 
nence, lie  regarded  himself  as  the  embodiment  of  Truth,  and 
Truth  never  reveals  itself  to  crude  curiosity  and  pruriency.  He 
answers  reprovingly,  and  then  makes  an  utterance  very  deep,  but 
not  wholly  incomprehensible  even  to  them.  "  Verily,  verily,  I  say 
to  you.  Ye  seek  me  not  because  ye  saw  signs,  but  because  ye  did  eat 
of  the  loaves  and  were  filled.  Exert  youi-selves,  not  for  food 
which  perishes,  but  for  that  M'hich  remains  to  the  enduring  life 
which  the  Son  of  Man  gives  to  you,  for  him  has  God  the  Father 
sealed." 

They  seemed  to  understand  something  of  this,  so  far  at  least  as 
that  he  meant  to  say  that  if  they  got  material  bread  from  hinv  it 
would  be  a  very  incidental  thing ;  that  he  was  a  moral  teacher,  and 
that  they  must  seek  him  for  what  their  souls  would  gain  of  spiri- 
tual sustenance,  which  he  boldly  announces  that  he  is  able  to 
give  them;  that  he  is  the  one  whom  God  the  Father  has  stamped 
as  genuine,  and  that  he  could  give  them  that  which  nourishes  the 
life  wliich  endures.  Tlierefore  tliey said,  "What  shall  we  do  that 
we  may  work  the  works  of  God  ?  "  Jesus  answered  them,  "  This 
is  the  work  of  God,  that  ye  believe  on  him  wliom  He  hath  sent." 

Their  rei>ly  was,  "AVliat  sign  doest  tliou,  that  we  may  sec  and 
believe  thee?  what  dost  thou  work?  Our  fathers  did  cat  manna 
in  the  wilderness,  as  it  is  written,  '  He  gave  them  bread  from  hca- 


THE  THIRD  TOUR  OF  GALILEE.  395 

ven  to  eat.'  "  These  gross  people,  having  been  fed  miraculously, 
had  forgotten  the  feeding  and  undervalued  the  miracle,  it  would 
seem,   because   it  was   a  mere  multiplication  of 

.  ,  •'^  They  demand  a  sign. 

Dread,  whereas  m  the  desert,  during  then-  wander- 
ings, their  fathers  had  a  daily  shower  of  bread  from  heaven.     This 
reply  shows  how  material  and  sensuous  were  all  their  ideas. 

Jesus  answered :  "  Moses  did  not  give  you  the  bread,  but  ray 
Father  gives  you  the  true  bread  from  heaven.  For  tlie  bread  of 
God  is  tliat  which  cometh  down  from  heaven  and  giveth  life  to 
the  world."  It  was  not  Moses  who  gave  the  manna,  but  it  was 
God.  And  that  manna  was  but  temporary,  for  if  it  remained 
over  it  decayed  and  was  useless.  But  God  sends  Jesus,  in  whom 
the  world  is  to  have  life.  He  evidently  believed  and  manifestly 
taught  that  the  life  of  the  world  was  derived  from  himself,  and 
»vholly  dependent  on  himself.     It  was  the  highest  possible  claim. 

There  seemed  to  be  some  upspriuging  of  faith  in  the  hearts  of 
his  hearers.  They  said  unto  him,  "  Sir,  evermore  give  us  this 
bread."     Jesus,   knowing   that  the   faith   which 

,  ,     T  .         T  T       ,  Some  fatth. 

depended  upon  mn-acies  was  a  stream  made  by 
showers,  and  not  flowing  from  a  fountain,  deepened  his  discoui-se 
and  became  more  offensive  to  them.  "  I  am  the  bread  of  life : 
he  that  comes  to  me  shall  never  hunger,  and  he  that  believes  on 
me  shall  never  thirst.  But  I  said  unto  you  that  ye  have  even  seen 
and  failed  to  believe.  The  whole  that  the  Father  gives  me  will 
come  to  me,  and  him  that  comes  to  me  I  will  not  cast  out.  For 
I  came  down  from  heaven  not  to  do  mine  own  will,  but  the  will 
of  Ilim  who  sent  me,  which  is,  that  of  the  whole  which  lie  has 
given  me  I  should  not  lose  from,  but  should  raise  it  up  in  the 
final  day.  For  this  is  the  will  of  the  Father,  that  every  one  wlio 
sees  the  Son  and  believes  on  him  may  have  lasting  life,  and 
that  I  should  raise  him  up  in  the  final  day." 

This  profound  speech  seems  to  imply  that  as  bread  is  the  nutri- 
ment of  the  outward  and  physical  life,  so  Jesus  is  the  nutriment 
of  the  spiritual  life ;  that  as  the  body  which  does  not  receive 
food  int(3  itself,  and  assimilate  that  food  with  itself,  will  perish, 
so  the  soul  which  fails  to  receive  and  assimilate  Jesus,  wliich  must 
mean  the  spirit  and  teachings  of  Jesus,  will  also  perish ;  that 
there  is  no  lasting  life  for  those  who  do  not  derive  it  from  Jesus. 

The  assertion  that  he  came  down  from  heaven,  by  which  he 
claimed  a  relation  to  the  spiritual  world  quite  distinct  from  and 


396  SECOND   AND   THIRD   PASSOVER   IN   THE   LIFE   OF   JESUS. 

superior  to  that  of  otlier  men,  was  an  offence  to  the  Pharisaic 
leadere,  who  started  the  munnur  among  the  people  :  "  Is  not  this 

Jesus  ogain  offends  Josus,  the  SOU  of  Joscph,  wliosc  father  also  we 
the  Phariscfs.  liasQ  known ?     How  then  says  he,  '  I  came  down 

from  heaven  ? '  "  They  had  been  familiar  with  Joseph  and  with 
Jesus  as  plain  mechanics  working  in  a  humble  shop,  or  going 
about  d(jing  the  usual  work  of  carpenters.  That  such  a  man 
should  claim  knowledge  of  a  previous  existence  in  heaven,  and  a 
voluntary  coming  from  heaven  to  earth,  all  which  Jesus  certainly 
did  claim,  was  to  them  a  stuml)ling-block. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  was,  "  Murmur  ncA  among  yourselves.     No 

man  can  come  to  rae  except  the  Father  who  has  sent  me  draw 

him ;  and  I  will  raise  him  up  in  the  last  day.     It 

TTia  reply  to  them.  .  .  ' 

is  written  in  the  prophets,  '  And  they  shall  all  be 
taught  of  God.'  *  Every  one  who  has  heard  and  has  learned  of 
the  Father  comes  unto  me.  Not  that  any  one  hath  seen  the 
Father,  except  he  who  is  from  the  Father:  he  has  seen  God. 
Verily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you,  He  that  believes  lias  lasting  life. 
I  am  the  bread  of  life.  Your  fathei-s  did  eat  the  manna  in  the 
wilderness  and  have  died.  This  is  the  bread  that  comes  down 
from  heaven,  that  any  one  may  eat  of  it  and  not  die.  I  am  the 
living  l)read  which  came  down  from  heaven  ;  if  any  one  eat  of 
my  bread  ho  shall  live  forever.  The  Ijread  which  I  shall  give  for 
the  life  of  the  world  is  my  flesh."  Here  Jesus  explicitly  teaches 
that  God  co-opei-ates  with  him  in  his  mission,  so  that  every  one 
who  has  any  right  thoughts  and  feelings  from  God  has  the  moral 
preparation  necessary  to  receive  Jesus.  Not  that  any  one  has  seen 
God  except  Jesus  himself,  but  he  imj)licitly  says  that  he  has  seen 
God.  God  gave  perishable  bread  in  the  desert  for  the  temporary 
Bustentation  of  the  temporary  lives  of  their  fathere,  but  now  God 
gives  living  bread  from  heaven,  even  Jesus. 

This  language  is  evidently  highly  symbolical  of  a  deeply  pro- 
found conviction  of  Jesus.  He  connected  the  welfare  of  man- 
kind with  himself,  and  M'ith  himself  after  death.  Flesh  cannot 
be  eaten  until  the  animal  is  dead ;  but  then  that  flesh,  having  lost 
its  life,  is  on  the  way  to  decay:  but  Jesus  says  his  flesh  is  alive 
when  eaten.  The  words  in  the  original  are  so  arranged  as  to  ex- 
press this  weightily.     Then  there  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  his  con- 

*  In  ?uch  poAsages  as  the  remarkable  i  pare  Isa.  lir.  13,  and  Jerem.  xxxi.  83, 
one  in  Joel  ii.  20,  20,  with  which  com-  |  34. 


THE    TniRD   TOITR    OF   GALILEE.  397 

viction  that  he  should  die ;  that  after  death  he  should  be  alive 
again;  and  that  then  faith  in  him  should  be  the  life  of  men,  and 
that  only  by  faith  in  him  could  men  have  lasting  life,  and  that 
souls  that  did  not  receive  him  should  perish,  just  as  bodies  perish 
that  do  not  receive  material  food  into  themselves. 

Then  the  Jews  strove  among  themselves  and  said,  "  How  can 
this  man  give  us  his  flesh  to  eat  ? "  Perhaps  some  had  glimpses 
of  a  profound  si^iritnal  meaning.     Jesus  confirms 

.  '-       ,   .  Their  puzzle. 

their  idea  of  "  eating  by  a  positive  averment. 
"  Yerily,  verily,  I  say  unto  you.  Except  ye  eat  the  flesh  of  the  Son 
of  Man,  and  drink  his  blood,  ye  have  not  lasting  life  in  you.  Tie 
who  eats  my  flesh  and  drinks  my  blood  Tian  lasting  life,  and  I 
will  raise  him  up  at  the  final  day.  For  my  flesh  is  truly  food,  and 
my  blood  is  truly  drink.  lie  who  eats  my  flesh  and  drinks  my 
blood  dwells  in  me  and  I  in  him.  As  the  living  Father  has  sent 
me,  and  I  live  on  account  of  the  Father,  so  he  who  eats  me,  he 
also  shall  live  on  account  of  me.  Such  is  the  bread  which  came 
down  from  heaven :  not  as  the  fathers  did  eat,  and  have  died :  he 
who  eats  this  bread  shall  live  forever." 

Tliis  is  very  spiritual  or  very  gross,  and  to  each  hearer  it  must 
have  seemed,  as  now  to  each  reader  it  does  seem,  either  one  or  tlie 
other,  according  to  his  moral  state  of  recepti\'ity.  To  Jesus,  from 
all  we  now  know  of  his  character,  it  could  have  been  only  an  ex- 
pression in  human  language  of  his  most  delicate  perceptions  of 
most  spiritual  and  sublime  and  impoitant  truths.  No  one  could 
truthfully  utter  these  words  without  l)elieving  that  the  existence 
of  all  souls  depoiifled  upon  himself,  and  that  his  life  was  depend- 
ent upon  the  continued  existence  of  God  and  upon  nothing  else, 
so  that  he  is  virtually  tlie  God  of  humanity.  The  soul  that  does 
not  somehow  partake  of  him  is  as  surely  going  to  destruction  as 
the  body  that  does  not  somehow  partake  of  food  and  drink  is  go- 
ing to  destruction.  He  makes  this  statement  so  strong  that  while 
the  Jews  are  discussing  \\\e pos^nhilifyhe  cuts  them  short  with  an 
emphatic  statement  of  the  necessity.  That  which  is  eaten  is  taken 
into  the  absorbing  and  circulating  organs  of  the  body  and  assimi- 
lated. That  seems  to  be  the  reigning  idea  throughout  this  speech, 
not  \\\Q  grossness  of  mastication,  but  the  fineness  of  assimilation. 

All  this  discourse  took  place  in  the  synagogue  in  Capernaum. 
It  was  not  only  offensive  to  the  Jews,  but  also  to  many  of  the 
hangers-on  of  his  disciples,  those  who  followed  him  from  general 


308         PECOXT)    AND   TITTRD   PASSOVER   IN   TTTE:   LITE   OF   .TESrS. 

motives  or  for  sinister  pui-poses.  Thej  said,  "  Tliis  is  a  hard  sav- 
inpj;  who  can  listen  to  it?"  Jesns  knew  how  they  felt,  perhaps 
heard  what  they  said.  lie  replied,  "Docs  this  offend  you  ?  "Wliat 
if  ye  shall  see  the  Son  of  Man  ascend  to  where  he  was  before  ? 
It  is  the  spirit  that  gives  life ;  the  flesh  profits  nothing :  the 
words  that  I  have  spoken  to  you  are  spirit  and  life.  But  there 
are  some  of  you  who  do  not  believe."  It  seemed  to  them  some- 
thing like  impiety  which  he  was  uttering  in  saying  that  he  came 
down  from  heaven.  lie  startles  them  with  the  intimation  that  it 
is  possible  they  may  yet  have  ocular  proof  of  his  ascending.  lie 
declares  again  his  pre-existence.  In  speaking  to  his  disciples  he 
gives  a  spiritual  turn  to  the  words  he  had  uttered,  and  broad- 
ens the  spiritual  significance  of  tliat  speech  by  declaring  that  his 
physical  man,  his  body,  could  not  be  profitable,  but  that  it  is  tlie 
spirit  which  gives  life,  the  spirit  animates  the  body,  and  spirit- 
ual recognitions  alone  are  valuable. 

John  declares  that  Jesus  had  insight  into  the  spiritual  con- 
dition of  the  men  about  him,  and  knew  who  did  and  who  did  not 
Jesns Bifta his fouow-  bclieve  his  words,  and  who  it  was  that  should 
^-  betray  him.     lie  saw  that  he  weaned  from  him 

the  utter  materialists  and  traditionalists  and  secularists.  Many  of 
his  followers  turned  away  from  him  forever.  Jesus  said  to  his 
twelve  chosen  friends,  whom  he  had  selected  to  propagate  his 
principles,  "Do  you  also  wish  to  go  away?"  Simon  Peter,  gen- 
erally spokesman,  answered,  "Sir,  to  whom  shall  we  go?  You 
have  the  words  of  lasting  life,  and  we  believe  and  have  found  out 
that  you  are  the  Holy  One  of  God."  There  was  a  great  faith 
based  on  a  groat  spiritual  intelligence.  lie  saw  that  vonlji  were 
more  powerful  than  acts.  Deeds  die.  "Words  live.  The  feeding 
of  five  thousand  people  was  a  small  thing  as  compared  witli  tlie 
utterance  of  a  great  truth  on  which  the  soul  could  feed  and  grow. 
Jesus  said,  "  Have  not  I  chosen  you  twelve  ?  and  one  of  yon  is  a 
traitor."  John  says,  after  the  fact,  that  Jesus  spoke  of  Judas 
Iscariot,  son  of  Simon  of  Kerioth.  Jesus  may  have  told  Jolm 
that  lie  did  mean  this  Judas,  or  John  may  have  simply  afterward 
recollected  when  Jesus  was  betrayed  that  this  speech  had  been 
made  and  must  have  referred  to  Judas. 

This  is  the  closing  passage  in  the  histoiy  of  the  second  year  of 
the  ministry  of  Jesus.  lie  had  aroused  the  Pharisees,  Iiad  sifted 
his  followers,  and  had  given  training  to  his  tried  Apostles. 


PART    V. 

FEOM  THE  THIRD  PASSOYEE  TO  THE  ENSUING 
FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

FROM  APRIL  TO  OCTOBER,  A.D.  29— ABOUT  SIX  MONTHS. 


CHAPTER    I. 


UNSETTLED. 


It  does  not  appear  that  Jesus  went  up  to  Jerusalem  to  the  Pasa- 

oyer  of  this  year,  but  it  is  supposed  that  his  disciples  did.     There 

must  have  been  multitudes  at  the  great  national 

T,,.           Ill                    1         3     £  ^\      £      T  Jesus  remaiii.s 

celebration  who  had  seen  or  heard  or  the  leeding  .    ^ 

°  m  Capernaum. 

of  the  five  thousand,  and  who  knew  the  intense 
desire  of  the  people  to  make  Jesus  king.  Such  things  would  be 
much  talked  of  and  most  eagerly  listened  to.  The  intense  inter- 
est excited  by  these  reports  probably  hastened  the  determination 
of  the  hierarchic  party  to  destroy  Jesus.  Jesus  knew  it,  and  ceased 
to  travel  in  Judaea  proper,  confining  himself  to  Galilee. 

Soon  after  the  Passover  a  deputation  from  the  Pharisees  and 
Scribes,  being  charged  to  ascertain  some  ground  of  accusation 
against  Jesus,  were  dogging  his  steps  and  watch-  j^j^^  ^^  .  j^^^^^ 
ing  his  movements;  and  spies  of  that  character  vii.  The  deputa- 
nevor  fail  to  find  in  the  most  spotless  life  some-  tion  from  the 
thing  to  which  they  can  take  exception.  ansees. 

In  addition  to  the  Scriptures,  which  contained  the  moral  law  in 

writing,  the  Pharisees  endeavored  to  bind  upon  the  consciences 

of  the  people  certain  unwritten  traditions  of  the       „    ,.^. 
-.11  1  .  1      1  Mil  Tradition. 

eldere,  oral  precepts,  which  they  attributed  to  the 

assistants  of  Moses.     After  the  time  of  Jesus  these  were  collected 


400       THE   TIIIKD    PASSOVER   TO   THE   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 

into  a  book,  consisting  of  two  parts:  the  MisJina,  tlie  text  of  the 
supposed  original  precepts  of  tlie  eldei-s,  and  the  Gemara^  the 
comments  on  the  text  by  the  chief  rabbies — the  whole  being 
called  TuE  Talmud. 

Among  the  requirements  of  these  traditions  were  many  which 
obliged  the  Jews  to  wash  often,  and  to  wash  many  things,  and  to 
wash  in  peculiar  ways.  Mark  has  a  note  to  that  effect,  inserted 
parenthetically  in  his  history  :  "  For  the  Pharisees  and  all  Jews, 
except  they  wash  their  hands  often,  eat  not,  holding  the  tradition 
of  the  elders,  and  on  coming  from  the  market,  if  they  sprinkle 
not,  they  eat  not.  And  many  other  things  there  are  which  they 
have  received  to  hold,  as  baptisms  of  cups  and  of  pots  and  of 
vessels  of  brass."  On  coming  from  any  public  assembly  it  was  in 
accordance  with  this  ceremonial  law  that  the  whole  body  be 
washed,  because  it  could  not  be  known  wliat  defilement  may  have 
been  contracted  by  contact  with  the  common  people.  W^heii  this 
deputation  of  spies  saw  that  Jesus  and  his  disciples  paid  no  regard 
to  these  requirements  they  catechized  him,  saying,  "  AVliy  do  your 
disciples  n(jt  walk  according  to  the  tradition  of  the  elders,  but  eat 
bread  with  ujiwashed  hands?"  The  plain  intimation  is,  that  the 
Master  was  held  responsible  for  at  least  the  known  and  nnrebuked 
acts  of  his  disciples. 

The  stern  reply  of  Jesus  was,  "  Well  has  Isaiah  prophesied  of 

you  hypocrites  when  he  said  (representing  Jehovah  as  speaking), 

'  This  people  honor  me  with  their  lips,  but  tlicir 
Jesns  rebukes     j^^^^j.^  j^  ^^^   ^^^^^  ^^^  .    -^^   ^.^-^    ^^   ^j^^^^   WOl'ship 

me,  teaching  for  doctrines  the  commandments  of 
men.'  For  you,  leaving  tlie  commandment  of  God,  hold  tlie  trsi- 
dition  of  men.  Well  do  you  reject  the  commandment  of  God 
that  ye  may  keep  your  own  tradition.  For  Moses  said,  '  Honor 
thy  father  and  thy  mother,  and  he  who  resisteth  father  or  mother 
let  him  end  by  death.'  But  you  say  that  if  a  man  shall  say  to  his 
father  or  mother,  ^Corhan  (which  means  a  gift),  by  whatever  tliou 
mightest  be  profited  by  me,'  ye  suffer  him  no  longer  to  do  anything 
for  his  father  or  his  mother,  making  the  word  of  God  of  none 
effect  through  your  tradition,  which  ye  have  delivered.  And 
many  such  liice  things  ye  do." 

Tliis  was  a  severe  rebuke,  and  struck  at  the  sorest  spot  of  Pha- 
risaism. The  hold  of  the  hierarchic  clique  upon  the  ])eo]»le  lay 
in  continuing  in  them  a  supcretitious  regard  for  the  "traditions." 


UNSETTLED.  401 

So  long  as  the  people  -were  traditionists  and  ritualists,  and  the 
Pharisees  held  in  their  hands  the  interpretation  of  the  tradition 
and  the  arrangement  of  the  ritual,  they  could  lord  it  over  the  con- 
sciences of  the  populace.  And  we  see  in  this  rebuke  of  Jesus 
that  churchism  is  the  same  in  all  ages  of  the  world.  The  spies 
from  Jerusalem  indirectly  rebuked  Jesus,  not  because  he  did  not 
regard  personal  cleanliness,  but  because  he  did  not  conform  to  the 
minute  directions  of  the  ceremonial  laws  which  had  been  built  up 
by  the  doctors  of  the  law.  In  this  they  were  hypocrites.  They 
bad  made  canons  which  were  contrary  to  God's  express  command- 
ments. They  had  been  described  by  Isaiah,  and  a  telling  passage 
was  quoted  against  them.  Jesus  cites  a  case  in  which  tlie  terrible 
injury  of  churchism  is  seen.  According  to  the  law  of  God,  a  man 
was  to  honor  his  parents.  But  these  "  churchmen  "  taught  that  if 
a  man  said  "  Corban"  over  any  property,  it  was  thenceforth  de- 
voted to  "the  church,"  and  no  matter  how  much  the  parents  might 
be  in  need,  this  property  was  interdicted  and  alienated  to  "  the 
church."  Jesus  regarded  this  as  simply  horrible.  Nothing  taken 
from  a  needy  father  or  mother  could  be  made  acceptable  to  God 
by  being  devoted  to  what  are  called  sacred  purposes. 

Then  calling  to  the  crowd  that  was  near,  Jesus  said,  "Hear  and 
understand :  There  is  nothing  from  without  the  man  which  enter- 
ing into  him  can  defile  him  ;  but  the  things  which 
come  out  of  him,  those  are  \vhat  defile  the  man."    ^,^^^ 
The  comparison  of  this  address  to  the  multitude 
with  the  speech  to  the  Pharisees  shows  to  us,  that  Jesus  would  not 
be  understood  as  undervaluing  purity  in  any  sense,  as  not  abol- 
ishing any  law  which  God  had  given,  but  that  purity  was  not  to 
be  attained  and  maintained  by  outward  washings,  and  by  observ- 
ance of  what  meats  a  man  should  eat,  but  rather  b}'  keeping  the 
soul,  the  source  of  life,  all  clean.     But  this  is  expressed  in  a  par- 
able. 

His  disciples  told  him  that  he  had  offended  the  Pharisees  by  his 
speech  to  them.  lie  answered,  "  Every  plant  which  my  heavenly 
Father  hath  not  planted  shall  be  rooted  up.  Let  them  alone; 
they  are  blind  leaders.  And  if  a  blind  man  lead  a  blind  man 
both  shall  fall  into  the  ditch.V  "Wliich  reply  seems  to  mean  that 
whatever  mig-ht  come  to  him  from  so  doiufj  he  should  not  hesitate 
to  root  up  such  noxious  weeds  as  these  false  teachers,  but  seems 
also  to  implv  that  no  special  violence  would  be  requisite.  Do  you 
26 


402   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

see  a  blind  man  leading  a  blind  man  ?  There  is  a  pit  in  their 
path.  ^Vliy  should  one  push  them  forward  ?  Thej  are  going  to 
destruction  of  themselves.  So  of  these  false  teachers,  and,  alas! 
of  their  followers. 

But  when  they  reached  the  house,  Peter,  who  still  had  tradi- 
tionary ideas,  and  regarded  the  manner  of  eating  as  not  an  indif- 
ferent subject,  asked  his  Master  to  explain  to  the 

Jesus  explains  ^jg^.^  i^g  ^j^jg  parable  about  the  food.  And  he 
Mb  saying.  t  t-       r  ^^ 

said,  "Are  you  yet  also  without  understandmg  r 
They  had  been  so  near  him,  had  so  long  heard  his  expressions  of 
thought  that  they  should  have  been  able  at  once  to  know  what  he 
meant,  and  not  compel  him  to  go  into  a  detailed  explanation, 
which,  however,  he  does  not  withhold.  "  Do  you  not  undei-stand 
that  whatsoever  enters  the  mouth  goes  into  the  stomach,  and  is 
evacuated  into  the  draught?  But  the  things  coming  out  of  the 
mouth  come  from  the  heart,  and  they  profane  the  man.  For  out 
of  the  heart  come  forth  evil  purposes,  murders,  adulteries,  forni- 
cations, thefts,  false  testimonies,  blasphemies :  these  are  the  things 
that  profane  a  man,  but  to  eat  with  unwashed  hands  does  not." 
This  is  consistent  with  all  his  teachings,  that  a  man's  purity  must 
be  that  of  the  character  interfused  through  the  whole  life. 

It  was  quite  apparent  now  that  the  Jewish  ecclesiastical  au- 
thorities meditated  extreme  measures.     The  labors  of  Jesus  and 

his  Apostles  had  been  exhaustive.     There  was  a 
Matt.  XV.;  Mark    fearful  ordeal  in  advance  of  them:  Jesus  mani- 
vii.    In  Phoenicia.      »      ,  ^  ^      ^         •  ^ 

restly  saw  that,  whether  it  was  aj^parent  to  the 

others  or  not.  His  field  of  operations  was  daily  more  and  more 
circumscribed  by  his  enemies.  lie  could  not  "walk"  in  Juda?a 
nor  in  Galilee  without  being  beset  by  his  ecclesiastical  foes. 
Capernaum  could  no  longer  be  a  retreat  to  him.  It  would  seem 
that  In  view  of  these  things  Jesus  meditated  a  season  of  retire- 
ment, and  so  withdrew  his  disciples  up  towards  the  confines  of 
Phoenicia,  designated  in  Matthew  and  Mark  l)y  the  names  of  the 
two  principal  cities.  Tyre  and  Sidon. 

It  has  been  a  question  whether  Jesus  ever  crossed  the  l)oundary 
of  his  native  country  during  his  public  ministry.  It  is  not  neces- 
sarily implied  in  the  words  of  Matthew  and  Mark,  "  into  the 
coasts,"  "into  the  borders  of  Tyre  and  Sidon."  The  word  may 
1)6  as  well  translated  "  towards,"  or  "  unto,"  as  "  into."  That 
he  had  declared  his  ministry  to  be  confined  to  the  Jewish  people 


402       TflE   THIRD   PA880VKI 


BCO  a  blind  man  leading'' 
path.     Why  sliould  (mi 
(lostniction  of  tlieinBchi;- 
of  tlioir  followers. 

But  wlicn  thoy  reacli' 
tionary  ideas,  and  rv^i 
fere  II I 

JoRUB  explains    ^ij^,.;.,], 

his  Baying.  , 

Haul,  " 

They  liad  l>cen  ho  nem 

thought  that  they  shoi 

meant,  and  not  eomj 

wliich,  liowever,  lie  d' 

that  whatsoever  enter 

evacuated  into  the  dr; 

mouth  come  from  the  lit 

of  the  lieart  come  forth 

cations,  thefts,  false  testii 

that  profane  a  man,  but 

This  is  oonsiistent  with  all 

bo  that  of  the  character  It^ 

It  was  quite  appan 

thorities  meditated  ext 

liis  A] 

Mr\tt.  XV .;  Mark     !•„„    r 

..    T    Ti»      •  •       leartu 
vii.    In  rhoenicia. 

f( 

others  or  not.     His  i; 

eircumscribod  by  his  r 

uor  in  Galilee  witho 

Capernaum  could  no 

that  In  view  of  tbc^*' 

nient,  and  so  witl 

PhcBnicia.  design; 

two  principal  citi 

It  has  been  a  q 

of  his  native  conn, 

sarily  implied  in  ti 

coasts,''  "  into  the 

be  as  well  translate 

he  had  declared  his 


ate^H 
his^ 


404   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

\)0  rid  of  her  importunity  than  from  any  special  regard  for  tho 
poor  petitioner.  The  reply  was  another  discouragement  to  the 
agonized  mother :  "'  I  was  not  sent  except  to  the  lost  sheep  of  the 
house  of  Israel."  Tliis  reminded  them  of  the  limit  of  their  own 
commission,  and  perhaps  recalled  to  them  the  fact  that  Jesus  had 
made  no  cures  of  any  hcatlien.  It  did  not  positively  say  that  lie 
would  not  grant  their  request  and  hearken  to  her  prayer,  but  that 
if  he  did  so  it  would  transcend  the  limits  of  his  mission  and 
theirs.     To  the  woman  it  must  have  sounded  like  a  fresh  repulse. 

She  had,  however,  made  her  daughter's  case  her  own,  with  such 
motherly  sympathy  that  when  she  opened  her  petitions  to  Jesus 
it  was  in  the  pathetic  appeal,  "  Pity  me  !  "  as  if  she  were  the 
sufferer.  Such  love  is  unconquerable.  She  could  not  go  back  to 
her  daughter  with  no  relief.  The  picture  of  the  paroxysms  of  the 
wretched  patient  goaded  her  maternal  heart  to  utmost  effort. 

Again  she  worshipped  him.  Again  she  cried  :  "  O  sir,  help 
me  ! "  As  if  she  liad  said:  "  I  cannot  go  wholly  unhelped  :  if  my 
daughter  cannot  be  utterly  cured,  do  something  for  me!  I  leave 
it  to  your  wisdom  and  goodness  to  decide  what."  Jesus  again  re- 
pulsed her  by  a  speech  embodying  a  picture  from  domestic  life. 
His  first  word  to  her  was  :  "  It  is  not  a  fair  thing  to  take  the 
bread  of  the  children  and  throw  it  away  (waste  it)  on  the  little 
dogs." 

All  the  history  of  Jesus  shows  the  fineness  of  his  organization. 

It  is  a  remembrance  of  this  which  must  help  us  here.     With 

wliat  tone  and  look  did  Jesus  utter  tliis  speech  ? 

Jesus  tries  her  r^^  fancy  that  he  meant  that  this  anxious  mother 
and  his  disciples.  ^  .     n  ,  i  i  ,  i      t   p 

at  his  leet  was  a  dog,  would  be  a  wretclied  roiget- 
fulness  of  the  whole  spirit  of  Jesus  thus  far  manifested  in  his 
words  and  works,  especially  in  his  treatment  of  women.  He  did 
not  mean  tliat.  Tlie  woman  knew,  and  tlie  disciples  knew,  that 
the  Jews  were  accustomed  to  apply  the  unhandsome  epithet  of 
"  dog  "  to  all  heathens.  lie  never  could  have  called  any  woman 
a  "  whelp."  None  but  the  grossest  of  all  gross  men  ever  apply 
this  word  to  any  woman,  and  then  they  conceive  her  to  be  the 
basest  of  all  base  women.  There  is  nothing  here  to  justify  this 
interpretation.  He  was  simply  reminding  them  of  what  the 
Pharisees  and  Scribes  would  say  if  he  should  help  this  woman, 
and  also  presenting  to  them  in  concrete  words  the  abstract  but 
vigorous  prejudices  of  their  own  hearts  against  all  peoples  whr. 


UNSETTLED.  405 

were  not  of  their  nation,  as  if  lie  had  said  :  "  You  know  that  the 
Jews  are  Jehovah's  peculiar  children,  and  that  this  woman  is  a 
dog  of  a  Canaanite ;  would  you  have  your  Master  outrage  all 
decency  and  orthodoxy  by  helping  her  ?  "  The  coldest  of  most 
unpoetic  historians  might  fancy  that  a  faint  smile  of  pity  for  their 
narrowness  passed  over  his  now  benignant  features  as  he  uttered 
these  gently  satirical  words. 

There  was  something  in  that  look  which  stimulated  the  poor 
pleader's  fainting  hope.  In  the  light  of  the  smile  which  fell  on 
her  eyes,  her  heart — a  woman's  and  a  mother's — seemed  to  detect 
a  warmth  from  the  inmost  soul  of  Jesus  which  escaped  the  eyes 
of  the  disciples,  and  which  could  not  possibly  be  transferred  to  a 
written  narrative.  Quick-witted,  persistent,  faithful,  she  caught 
at  the  very  word  "  little-dogs."  In  the  original  it  is  only  one 
word.  He  did  not  employ  the  harshest  name  for  those  worth- 
less, vicious,  vagabond  canine  prowlers  through  oriental  villages. 
It  is  the  only  passage,  so  far  as  I  can  recollect,  in  the  Bible  his- 
tories, in  which  occurs  any  allusion  to  dogs  which  is  not  much 
against  that  animal.  The  word  here  is  a  diminutive,  softening 
the  meaning,  not  intensifying  the  contemptuousness.  And  it  is  a 
home  scene.  The  little  dogs  are  in  the  house ;  they  are  men- 
tioned in  close  connnection  with  "  the  children."  It  was  a  hint 
to  her  faith.  She  caught  it,  and  replied  with  aduiirable  spirit  and 
celerity.  She  did  not  deny  what  Jesus  affirmed,  but  gave  it  a 
most  sudden  turn  in  her  own  favor.  She  did  not  degrade  her- 
self. She  did  not  allow  herself  to  be  worthless  as  a  dog.  It  was 
the  love  for  her  daughter  which  gave  her  strength  to  hold  hereelf 
up  while  her  self-respect  was  thus  apparently  tortured  by  another 
and  held  down  by  herself.  She  loved  another  better  than  she 
loved  herself.  She  said :  "  True,  sir ;  but  even  the  dogs  eat  of 
the  crumbs  falling  from  the  table  of  their  masters."  She  assented 
to  the  truth  of  the  general  proposition  of  Jesus,  but  argued  that 
so  far  from  being  a  reason  for  her  rejection  it  contained  a  reason 
for  her  acceptance.  She  does  not  make  a  demand  for  even  the 
crumbs,  but  she  pleads  that  she  may  not  be  driven  from  even 
them. 

Simon  Peter  must  have  resembled  Martin  Luther  in  many  of 
his  characteristics.  When  Luther  read  this  passage  he  bui-st  out 
so  that  you  can  almost  hear  the  clapping  of  his  hands  in  his 
written  syllables :  "  Was  not  that  a  master-stroke  ?     She  snarea 


406       THE   THIRD   PASSOVER   TO   THE   FEAST   OF   TABERNAC3LE8. 

Jesus  in  his  own  words  ! "     With  what  deliijht  the  followere  of 
Jesus  must  have  regarded  the  swift  beauty  of  this  most  finely 

delicate  repartee.  How  could  Peter  contain  hini- 
fttes  holy  wit  ^^^^  *     ^^^w  he  must  have  glanced  from  the  face 

of  the  Pagan  at  her  prayer  to  the  sad  face  of  the 
wearied  but  good  Jesus,  who  was  gazing  down  into  her  eyes,  to 
c<?e  the  effect  of  his  speech.  And  when  the  reply  came,  the  most 
spiritual  hon  tnot  on  record,  if  the  exuberant  Peter  did  not  flow 
over  with  gesticulations  of  delight,  Jesus  broke  into  applause  at 
the  wit  of  the  speech  and  the  humility  and  faith  of  the  utterer. 
"  O  woman  !  great  your  faitli !  Be  it  unto  you  even  as  you  de- 
sire !  "  The  prophet  that  at  first  refused  to  listen  to  her,  and  then 
repelled  her,  and  then  seemed  to  insult  her,  now  that  her  faith 
has  triumphed,  gives  her  all.  "  Your  utmost  wish  in  its  very  form 
is  granted."  She  rose,  mthdrew,  and  found  on  her  return  that 
her  daughter  had  recovered  while  she  lay  pleading  at  the  sad  and 
lioly  Prophet's  wearied  and  dusty  feet. 

There  was  no  more  rest  for  Jesus.     lie  could  not  be  quiet  in 
Judaea,  nor  in  Galilee,  nor  in  a  heathen  country.     He  was  not 

disposed  to  hasten  any  crisis ;    but  if  he  must 
The  DecapoUs     ^^.^^.j,  j^  ^^^^  y^^  -^^  j^-^  ^^^^^  country.     He  resolved 
Matt.  XV. ;    Mark  _,  ,  •,  ,,  ^  ,  " 

^    ^^  to  return.  Jbrom  lyre  he  went  northward  "through 

Sidon,"  *  probably  going  l)y  a  circuit  through  the 
mountainous  country  which  lies  between  Tyre  and  Lebanon,  where 
lie  might  have  opportunity  for  solemn  retirement  and  deep  dis- 
coui-se  with  his  disci])les.  But  we  have  no  itinerary  of  this  jour- 
ney. He  may  have  crossed  from  the  Phoenician  boundaries  di- 
rectly to  Hei-mon,  and  down  by  the  east  bank  of  the  Jordan  towards 
the  lake,  and  thus  have  gone  through  the  midst  of  Decapolis. 
Nor  do  we  know  exactly  what  part  of  Decapolis  was  thus  visited. 
This  name,  which  means  "  Ten  Cities,"  arid  describes  a  region, 
was  east  of  the  Jordan,  except  a  little  territory  near  the  western 
bank,  at  the  southern  end  of  the  lake,  and  called  Scytliopolis. 
Upon  the  conquest  of  Syria  by  the  Romans  (b.c.  65)  these  ten 
cities  were  rebuilt,  colonized,  and  allowed  certain  peculiar  munici- 
pal privileges,  making  an  afisemblagc  of  little. principalities  some- 
what after  the  manner  of  the  Hanse  Towns  of  Gennany.     Various 

•  Aia  2i5a»ot  is  the  text  in  the  Codex  l  Alford.   Tragelles,    Meyer,   Lachmann, 
Sinait.,  and  is  now  the  accepted  rcmling,    and  others  following  it. 
being  well  authenticated,  Tischendorf,  | 


SIDOM.      SAIDE. 


UNSETTLED. 


407 


lists  of  names  are  given.  Perhaps  the  larger  number  of  authori- 
ties ao-ree  on  the  following :  namely,  Damascus,  now  the  oldest 
city  in  the  world  ;  Scythopolis,  whose  site  is  well  kno^^^l ;  Gadara; 
Pella ;  Philadelphia,  which  was  the  ancient  Eabboth  Ammon ; 


Gerasa,  "  whose  ruins  are  the  most  magnificent  in  Palestine  ; " 
Canatha  or  Iveneth ;    Paphana ;    Hippos ;    and  Dion.  *     These 
cities  were  inhabited  mainly  by  a  pagan  population,  and  in  the 
days  of  Jesus  the  whole  region  was  populous  and  prosperous. 
It  was  not  long  before  the  people  began  to  bring  their  sick  to 


*  "  Cellarius  thinks  that  Cffisarea, 
Philippi,  and  Gergasa  should  be  substi- 
tuted for  Damascus  and  Raphana  in 
this  list,  which  is  taken  from  Pliny  {Ifat. 
Hist.,  V.  16).  It  is  true  that  Pliny  is 
the  only  writer  who  extends  Decapolis 


so  far  north  as  to  include  Damascus, 
which  city  would  seem  to  be  excluded 
by  Josephus  (who,  however,  does  not 
furnish  a  list),  since  he  calls  Scythopo- 
lis 'the  largest  of  them.'  ''—McClintock 
&  Strong's  CycU>}>a'dia. 


408   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

the  great  Healer.     Matthew  describes  the  rapid  and  frequent 
cures  by  such  words  as  these  :  "  x\nd  great  multitudes  came  unto 

him,  having  with  them  lame,  blind,  maimed,  dumb, 
,  and  many  othei"s,  and  cast  them  down  at  his  feet  : 

and  he  healed  them."  Mark  singles  out  a  case 
wldch  he  describes  in  his  peculiarly  graphic  style.  Among  the 
in\alids  was  one  who  was  deaf  and  a  stammerer,  and  they  brought 
him  that  Jesus  might  lay  hands  on  him.  But  in  this  particular 
case  he  did  not  choose  to  exert  his  healing  power  in  that  way.  He 
took  the  patient  privately  from  the  multitude,  and  put  his  fingei-s 
into  the  man's  ears,  and  having  spitten,  he  touched  his  tongue,  and 
sighed,  as  in  prayer,  and  said,  "  Ephphatha,"  an  Aramaic  word, 
which  Mark  translates  "  Be  opened."  And  his  eai-s  were  opened, 
and  the  string  of  his  tongue  was  loosed,  and  he  spake  plaiidy. 
Jesus  charged  him  and  his  friends  that  they  should  not  publish 
this  transaction.  But  they  disobeyed  him,  and  in  proportion  to 
the  earnestness  of  his  charge  was  the  zeal  with  which  they  made 
the  cure  known. 

Each  reader  of  this  passage  must  have  his  own  opinion  of  the 
motives  of  the  great  Worker.  This  much  we  have  already  learned, 
that  Jesus  had  no  selfish  motives,  was  not  fanatic  nor  timid,  was 
neither  a  mairician  nor  a  charlatan.  "Whatever  else  be  denied, 
the  purely  sincere  deepness  of  his  nature  must  have  become  ap- 
parent. He  had  no  tricks  and  no  evasions.  We  must  always 
recollect  the  circumstances  under  which  an  act  was  performed, 
and  the  character  of  the  actor.  Jesus  was  now  in  a  region  in- 
habited principally  by  pagans,  among  whom,  however,  were  many 
Jews.  And  then  the  ruling  passion  wuth  Jesus  was  an  intense 
desire  to  do  good  to  their  souls  through  the  bodies  of  men.  Now, 
unless  we  could  have  the  spiritual  penetration  of  tliis  great 
Teacher,  and  see  each  particular  case  as  it  rose,  we  could  not 
fairly  criticize  the  variations  which  he  made  in  the  style  of  his 
mighty  deeds  ;  in  that  sometimes  he  merely  spoke,  sometimes  he 
touched,  sometimes  he  sent  the  patient  off  to  wash  in  a  certain 
pool,  s<jmctiines  he  healc<l  in  the  heart  of  the  crowd,  somctinu'^, 
as  in  this  case,  took  the  sufferer  into  privacy.  Although  we  can- 
not perceive  the  reason  in  the  patient,  we  may,  as  in  this  case, 
perceive  6<jme  reason  in  the  circumstances.  It  woidd  have 
been  contrary  to  his  plans  and  the  spirit  of  his  life  to  c.xcilo  a 
furor  in  this  pagan  population;  it  would  have  been  every  way 


UNSETTLED.  409 

injurious  to  Jew  and  Gentile,  to  allow  to  be  created  for  hirnseli 
the  reputation  of  magicdan.  He  took  the  man  into  privacy,  he 
prayed,  he  touched  him,  he  commanded ;  it  was  done  on  an  instant. 
The  Jews  said,  "  He  hath  done  all  things  well ; "  the  pagans  glo 
rifled  the  God  of  Israel. 

For  three  days  Jesus  was  with  this  mixed  multitude,  healing  and 
teaching,  the  crowd  probably  constantly  growing 
as  the  report  of  the  miracles  spread. 

At  the  close  of  the  third  day  Jesus  called  his  disciples  and 

said,  "  I  have  compassion  on  the  multitude,  because  already  they 

have  continued  with  me  three  days  and  have  noth-       „    ,. 

/  -     -  Feeding  of  foai 

ing  to   eat :   and  i  am   unwuhng  to  send  them    tji^ousand 

away  fasting  lest  they  fall  in  the  way."  They 
could  not  readily  cross  the  lake,  nor  visit  the  towns,  but  would 
be  compelled  to  return  to  their  mountain  homes  by  way  of  the 
passes  through  which  they  had  followed  Jesus.  The  disciples 
seemed  to  have  forgotten  his  great  miracle  in  feeding  the  five 
thousand,  or  they  may  have  thought  that  he  would  not  repeat 
so  signal  a  creative  act,  or  they  may  have  chosen  to  let  him 
indicate  how  the  wants  of  all  these  people  should  be  relieved. 
Their  reply  was,  "  Wlience  should  we  have  so  many  loaves  in  the 
desert  as  to  fill  so  great  a  multitude  ? "  Jesus  said,  "  How  many 
have  you  ?  "  They  answered,  "  Seven,  and  a  few  little  fishes.^^ 
Jesus  commanded  the  multitude  to  be  seated,  and  taking  the 
food  he  gave  thanks,  and  divided  it,  and  gave  it  to  his  disciples, 
and  the  disciples  to  the  multitude.  They  all  ate  and  were  satis- 
fied. And  they  took  up  of  the  fragments  seven  baskets  full. 
And  the  number  of  eaters  was  about  four  thousand  men,  besides 
childien  and  women. 

The  narrative  here  is  very  similar  to  that  of  the  ]:)revious  won- 
derful feeding  of  five  thousand  people.  Perhaps,  in  s<jme  par- 
ticulars, they  grew  alike  before  they  were  written ;  but  there 
are  points  of  difference.  The  assembly  here  was  largely  heathen, 
the  need  was  more  pressing,  the  number  of  caters  was  smaller, 
the  number  of  loaves  was  larger,  and  the  number  of  baskets  of 
broken  meat  gathered  after  the  meal  was  smaller  than  in  the 
former  instance.  It  is  also  to  be  observed  that  the  word  trans- 
lated "basket"  is  not  the  same  as  in  the  former  instance.  There, 
as  the  note  on  p.  3SS  shows,  it  meant  the  wallet  which  a  Jew 
ordinarily  carried  on  his  journeys.     Here  it  means  a  fish  basket 


410   THE  THIED  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

That  these  two  words  mean  different  things  is  apparent  from  the 
fact  that  they  are  not  confounded  in  the  two  narratives,  and  from 
the  otlier  fact,  that  wlien  Jesus  afterward  called  the  memory  of  his 
aisciples  to  the  two  instances  he  discriminates  in  the  use  of  the 
words,  keeping  the  former  to  the  first  and  the  latter  to  the  second 
instance. 

One  cannot  help  pausing  to  say  that,  if  these  narratives  had 
been  fabrications,  the  author  would  have  put  this  for  the  first  and 
the  other  for  the  second  miracle  ;  for  obviously  it  is  a  more  splen- 
did thing  to  feed  five  thousand  on  fi^^e  loaves,  and  take  up  iicelve 
baskets  of  fragments,  than  to  feed/bw;'  thousand  on  seven  loaves, 
and  save  only  seven  baskets  of  fragments.  Certainh'  it  is  not  the 
maimer  of  romancers  and  impostors  to  relate  the  greater  exploits 
first,  and  then  parade  the  smaller  deeds  of  their  heroes.  If  a 
writer  of  fiction  had  had  this  case  in  hand  he  would  certainly  have 
represented  at  least  ten  tliousand  eaters,  and  have  reduced  the 
num])er  of  loaves  to  two,  if  not  to  one.  We  may  not  comprehend 
all  the  physical  and  spiritual  phenomena  in  this  history,  but  it 
certainly  sounds  as  if  reported  by  an  honest  eye-witness. 

Jesus  dismissed  the  multitude  and  took  ship,  perhaps  a  ship 

which  the  disciples  kept  in  readiness  for  his  accommodation,  and 

went  to  the  western  side  of  the  lake,  to  the  coasts 

Dalmanutha.  of  Magadan  or  Magdala  as  Matthew  reports,  to 
Matt.    XV.,  XVI.;    J)aliiianutha   as  the   more   exact   Mark   records. 

Mark  viii. ;  Luke     „,  ,     .  .^.       .     ^,     ^  T^   i  i.i  -ii 

The  probability  is  that  Dalmanutha  was  a  village 

near  Magdala,  the  latter  being  generally  identified 
with  El  Mejdel,  a  poor  hamlet  near  the  lake  on  the  south  side  of 
the  plain  of  Gennesaret. 

"Whether  he  remained  here  a  short  time  and  encountered  the 
Pharisaic  party,  or  returned  to  Capernaum  and  there  had  this  de- 
cisive interview  with  them,  has  been  a  question. 
I  incline  to  believe  that  this  fresh  trial  took  place 
in  Capernaum.  It  was  obviously  premeditated  and  planned. 
Dalmanutha  was  so  obscure  a  place  that  we  cannot  think  they 
would  have  expected  him  there.  Wherever  they  did  meet,  it  was 
where  the  Pharisees  and  Sadducees  lay  in  wait  for  him,  and  this 
would  most  naturally  be  at  his  home  in  Cai)ernaum.  This  is  not  a 
matter  of  great  importance.  It  was  on  the  western  shore  of  the 
lake.  It  was  in  Galilee.  It  is  noticed  that  now  for  the  fii-st  time 
the  Sadducees,  the  "  rationalists  "  and  infidels  of  their  day,  had 


UNSETTLED.  411 

united  themselves  with  the  Pharisees,  the  Puritans  of  that  day,  to 
put  Jesus  to  a  new  trial.  Here  was  a  great  combination  of  pow- 
erful influences.  The  Sadducees  were  the  court  party.  Herod 
was  a  Sadducee.  They  were  the  refined  and  "liberal."  The 
progress  of  Jesus  thus  far,  if  it  had  attracted  their  attention,  had 
simply  provoked  their  contempt.  But  he  had  begun  to  be  anta- 
gonistic to  them.  He  was  rising  from  the  position  of  a  mere  "  or- 
thodox "  Jewish  sectary,  and  they  were  ready  to  attack  him  with 
all  the  illiberality  for  which  professed  "liberals"  have  always 
been  noted. 

Now  on  the  return  of  Jesus  to  his  home,  a  return  which  seems 
to  have  the  appearance  of  giving  his  own  people  a  fresh  oppor- 
tunity to  accept  him  and  his  doctrine,  these  par- 

"^,  i.T,  T  •  1      '  1      •  A  sign  demanded, 

ties,  whose  hostihty  was  deepening  and  widening, 

came  to  him  demanding  "  a  sign  from  heaven."  The  Jewish  peo- 
ple had  studied  their  prophets  with  a  perpetual  tendency  to  mate- 
rialism. In  their  minds  such  passages  as  Daniel  vii.  13  had  always 
a  sensuous  interpretation.  They  pressed  Jesus  for  a  sign  in  the 
heavens,  which  could  be  seen  of  all  men.  They  seemed  disposed 
to  drive  him  to  some  act  or  word  which  should  be  an  acknowledg- 
ment that  he  was  a  false  Messiah  :  certainly  the  Sadducees  held 
that  opinion ;  but  if  a  true  Messiah,  which  the  Pharisees  may 
secretly  have  wished,  then  he  must  be  forced  into  a  position  which 
should  make  him  the  powerful  head  of  a  lebellion  which  was  to 
break  the  Koman  yoke  and  render  the  Jews  the  ruler?  of  the 
world.  Thus,  for  most  opposite  reasons,  the  Sadducees  and  the 
Pharisees  conspired. 

His  reply  was,  "  "When  you  see  a  cloud  rise  out  of  the  west, 
immediately  ye  say  'A  shower  is  coming,'  and  so  it  is :  and  when 
the  south  wind  is  blowing  you  say,  '  There  will 
be  heat,'  and  it  cometh  to  pass.  You  hypocrites, 
you  can  discern  tlie  face  of  the  earth  and  of  the  sky,  and  how 
is  it  that  you  do  not  discern  this  time?  Yes,  and  why  even  of 
yourselves  do  3'ou  not  judge  what  is  right?  For  when  you  are 
going  M'ith  your  adversary  to  a  magistrate,  give  diligence  while  on 
the  way  to  be  delivered  from  him,  lest  he  drag  you  to  the  judge, 
and  the  judge  deliver  you  to  the  officer,  and  the  officer  cast  you 
into  prison.  I  tell  you  you  shall  not  come  out  thence  until  you 
have  paid  the  last  mite."  And  then  he  groaned  in  spirit  and  said, 
"A  wicked  and  adulterous  generation  seeks  a  sign.     No  sign  shall 


412   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

be  given  it  but  the  sign  of  Jonah."     Saying  this  he  left  them,  and 

the  words  and  tone  of  the  history  indicate  that  he  abandoned 

these  men  forever  to  the  hardness  of  their  hearts.     They  had 

finally  rejected  him.     They  might  have  had  most  beautiful  uses 

out  of  his  life,  but  they  would  not. 

The  parabolic  language  of  Jesus  seems  plain  to  us.     They  were 

weather  prophets.     When  the  ^^^nd  came  from  the  sea  on  the 

west,  they  predicted  rain  :  when  it  came  from 
Addressed     to 

weather  prophets.  ^^^  burning  deserts  on  the  south,  they  predicted 
heat.  The  laws  in  the  physical  world  acted  with 
such  regularity  that  a  certain  state  of  phenomena  being  given, 
another  condition  of  affairs  would  inevitably  take  place.  They 
ought  to  have  known  the  signs  of  spiritual  as  well  as  those  of  phy- 
sical meteorology.  His  life  was, in  the  nation,  what  west  wind  or 
south  wind  was  in  the  land.  They  ought  to  have  been  wise 
enough  to  fore-read  coming  events  by  what  was  obvious  before 
their  eyes.  One  is  not  more  difficult  to  understand  than  the 
other;  and  if  men  become  learned  in  one  department  and  re- 
main ignorant  in  the  other,  it  is  most  manifestly  because  they  do 
not  choose  to  study  the  latter.  If  in  their  ignorance  they  pre- 
tend to  knowledge,  they  are  hypocrites. 

And  he  brings  the  interest  of  what  he  calls  "  this  time ''  close 
home  to  them.  He  represents  himself  as  plaintiff  in  a  case  in 
which  his  nation  was  defendant,  and  himself  as 
dragging  them  to  the  judgment-seat  of  the  right- 
ful ruler.  It  was  a  matter  of  the  gravest  moment 
to  them  that  they  should  make  peace  with  him.  It  was  no  time 
to  be  indulging  in  study  of  ordinary  phenomena.  The  nation 
was  being  pulled  forward  to  its  crisis,  to  its  judgment,  and  he 
warned  them  that  unless  they  made  peace  with  him  they  should 
soon  suffer  the  extreme  fate  of  nations  by  being  utterly  destroyed. 
They  had  become  spiritual  adulterers,  which  means,  in  Jewish 
phraseology,  contaminated  with  heathenism.  To  such  heathens 
tliere  would  be  Vouchsafed  only  the  sign  of  the  prophet  Jonah. 
Let  them  ponder  that.  He  gave  them  no  explanation,  he  sug- 
gested no  apphcati(jn  of  the  reference  to  the  case  in  hand.  He 
left  them,  and  crossed  the  lake. 

Iti  the  excitement  of  this  interview  and  the  haste  of  the  de- 
parture the  disciples  forgot  to  carry  provisions  with  them.  The 
thoughts  of   Jesus  also  were  upon  other  things.      He  saw  how 


Plaintiff  and  de- 
fendant. 


UNSETTLED.  413 

partially  even  yet  his  disciples  entered  into  his  grand  life  of  self 

abnegation.     They  were  yet  very  secular;  they  were  yet  some 

how    hoping    for    sensuous    Messianic   displays. 

Their  thoughts  and  desires  lin2:ered  with  the  flesh-    ^,    _,t   T^^^ 

pots  of  the  Egypt  they  were  leaving.     He  said  to 

them,  very  solemnly:     "See  and  beware  of  the  leaven  of  the 

Pharisees  and  of  the  Sadducees  and  of  Herod."     That  is,  keep 

yourselves  from  hypocrisy,  and  skepticism,  and  secularism.    The} 

are  contagious.     They  spread  in  the  heart  and  in  a  community 

like  leaven. 

How  blind  they  still  were  is  apparent  from  their  commenta 
among  themselves.  They  said:  "It  is  because  we  took  not  loaves." 
Jesus  j^erceived,  it  and  said  :  "  AVhy  do  you  reason  among  your- 
selves, O  Little-Faiths !  because  you  have  not  loaves  ?  Do  you 
not  yet  perceive  ?  Do  you  not  yet  understand  ?  Have  you  your 
heart  hardened  ?  Ha\ang  eyes,  do  you  not  see  ?  and,  having 
ears,  do  you  not  hear?  When  I  broke  the  five  loaves  among 
five  thousand,  how  many  baskets  full  of  fragments  took  ye 
up  ? "  They  answered :  "  Twelve."  "And  when  the  seven  loaves 
among  the  four  thousand,  how  many  baskets  full  ?  "  They  said  : 
"  Seven."  And  Jesus  said :  "  How  is  it  that  you  do  not  under- 
stand that  I  did  not  speak  concerning  bread,  when  I  warned 
you  of  the  leaven  of  the  Pharisees  and  of  the  Sadducees  ? " 
At  last  their  dense  stupidity  was  penetrated,  and  they  perceived 
that  he  had  not  warned  them  to  break  from  all  communication 
with  these  sects,  but  to  guard  against  their  wicked  doctrines. 

They  were  now  at  Bethsaida-Julias,  in  Perea.      Matthew  re- 
cords (xi.  21)  that  Jesus  said  that  he  had  wrought  many  mighty 
works  in  this  Bethsaida;  but  the  only  one  dis- 
tinguished and  recorded  is  the  cure  of  a  blind       Bethsaida,     on 
man.     Mark  tells  the  story.      He  is  the  historian    ^^^  north-east  of 
who  seems  specially  attracted  by  what  has  the    ^j^ 
characteristic  of  progressiveness,  and  the  cm-e  of 
the  blind  man  was  of  that  kind.   He  did  not  seem  to  know  much 
of  Jesus,  or  to  take  any  special  interest  in  him,  or  to  have  any  no- 
ticeable degree  of  faith  in  him,  or  to  have  any  ardent  desire  for 
a  cure.     In  this  case  it  was  the  friends  who  seemed  to  have  a 
great  zeal  in  his  behalf.     They  brought  him  to  Jesus,  and  be- 
sought that  he  might  be  cured.    Jesus  took  the  blind  man  by  the 
hand  and  led  him  out  of  the  village.     What  conversation  they 


4:14:       THE   THIRD   PASSOVER   TO   THE   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 

had  is  not  recorded.  In  all  the  cases  of  his  miracles  we  have 
studied  there  seems  to  have  been  an  adaptation  of  the  cure  to  the 
spiritual  benefit  of  the  sufferer,  and  some  connection  between  hi? 
state  of  mind  and  the  method  of  his  cure.  The  intent  was  to 
develop  the  faith  of  the  subject.  In  this  case  Jesus  put  spittle 
on  the  eyes  of  the  man,  and  then  laid  his  hands  on  him  and  asked 
him  if  he  saw  anything.  The  man,  with  a  tone  of  joy,  and  in 
the  delightful  confusion  of  a  sudden  and  unexpected  relief,  ex- 
claimed :  "  I  see  the  men ;  for  I  see  them  as  trees,  walking." 
Then  Jesus  laid  his  hands  upon  his  eyes,  and  he  saw  clearly  :  he 
was  thoroughly  restored  and  saw  all  things  plainly.  The  man 
seems  to  have  lived  in  the  country.  Jesus  sent  him  to  his  house, 
telling  him  not  to  return  to  the  village. 


COPPEB   BUEKKL. 


CHAPTER   II. 


THE    GKEAT   CONFESSION. 


Then  Jesus  and  his  disciples  went  up  towards  the  region  of 

Csesarea   Philippi.      This  important  city  was  originally  called 

Paneas,  from  a  cave  and  a  temple  dedicated  to       ,,         ^ 

T-,,  .,.        ,  Near      Ccesarea 

1  an.     Philip  the  tetrarch  enlarged  and   beauti-    phiiippi.      Matt. 

tied  the  town,  and  gave  it  the  name  of  Caesarea,  xvi. ;  Mark  viii  ; 
in  honor  of  the  emperor  Tiberius.  His  own  ^^^®  ^^•'  ^^^' 
name  was  afterwards  added,  to  distinguish  this  ^^^ 
from  the  Caesarea  which  was  the  Poman  metropolis  of  Palestine, 
and  was  situated  about  half-way  between  Joppa  and  Dora,  on  the 
main  road  leading  from  Tyre  to  Egjq^t.  Caesarea  Philippi,  the 
northernmost  limit  of  the  travels  of  Jesus,  was  a  picturesque  and 
important  place,  and  seems  to  have  had  a  number  of  villages  de- 
pendent upon  it.  It  was  most  famous  as  being  the  spot  in  which 
the  principal  source  of  the  Jordan  is  found.  Jesus  gave  the  re- 
gion fresh  histoi'ic  interest. 

Somewhere  in  this  region  he  had  retired  for  private  devotion 
when  his  disciples  found  him.     It  was  another  crisis  in  his  life. 

The  hierarcliic   party  had  greatly  decreased  his 

1      . ,  rm  '  1  •  •      ,  1  •  Another  crisis, 

popularity,  ihey  were  working  against  him  per- 
sistently and  successfully.  How  far  they  had  succeeded  in  af- 
fecting the  dispositions  of  his  disciples  was  to  be  tested.  If  they 
had  become  so  intimidated  as  not  to  be  willing  and  ready  to  fol- 
low him  into  any  extremity,  then  his  work  was  a  failure.  He 
should  be  compelled  to  abandon  his  designs  totally,  or  reorganize 
his  plans  and  begin  afresh.  He  had  been  forced  from  Galilee. 
He  was  in  the  tetrarchy  of  Philip.  The  lines  were  drawn  more 
closely  about  him.  Some  movement  must  soon  be  made.  He 
made  it  now. 

Turning  to  his  disciples,  he  put  the  direct  question  :  "  Whom 
do  men  say  that  I  am  ?  "  This  was  to  draw  from  them  a  statement 
of  their  knowledge  of   current  and   popular  opinions  of   him, 


416        THE   'nilRD    PASSOVER   TO    THE    FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES. 

They  were  quite  frank,  and  replied :    "  Some  say  that  you  are 
John  the  Baptist  risen  from  the  dead;  others,  Elijah  ;  others,  Jeie- 

miah;  others,  one  of  the  prophets."      Lightfoot 
A  test  question,      ,  '      ,  '  _  ,     ,.         ■■       i     .      i 

shows  that  the  Jews  believed  that  the  pro- 
phets were  to  rise  again  at  the  coming  of  the  Christ.  "  The 
nearer  still  the  kingdon.  of  heaven  came,  but  so  much  the  more 
did  they  dream  of  the  resurrection  of  the  prophets."  It  is  re- 
markalJc  that  no  section  of  the  people  regarded  Jesus  as  a  divine 
personage— as  the  Messiah,  the  Christ— in  any  high  spiritual 
sense  ;  for  had  it  been  so  the  disciples  would  not  have  failed  to 
report  it.  According  to  their  account  Jesus  did  not  stand  so  high 
with  the  people  as  at  the  beginning  of  his  ministry. 

The  reply  of  the  disciples  is  really  a  curious  and  interesting 
study.  Herod  was  terrified,  and  really  believed  that  John  had 
come  back  from  the  dead  to  imperil  him.  The  Court  party  gave 
currency  to  this  belief,  because  John  had  emphatically  declared 
that  he  was  not  the  Messiah,  and  it  was  to  the  interest  of  the 
king's  friends  to  maintain  that  view,  namely,  that  this  man  Jesus 
was  not  to  have  Messianic  honors  paid  him,  nor  in  any  sense  be 
reo-arded  as  Messiah.  Messiah  icas  still  to  come.  They  were  in- 
terested  in  keeping  him  in  the  future. 

There  were  others  who  noticed  the  extraordinary  severity  of 
his  castigations,  and  they  said  he  was  Elijah,  so  like  was  he  to  that 
terrible  prophet. 

Others  noticed  how  he  was  withdrawing  himself,  and  l)ecoming 
more  and  more  sad.  Perhaps  at  this  period  of  his  ministry  there 
did  naturally  come  melancholy  cadences  into  his  speeches.  He 
was  a  man  of  sorrows.  He  was  acquainted  with  griefs.  He  was 
being  rejected  by  his  own  people,  whom  he  loved,  and  whom  he 
wished  to  bless.  He  was  being  driven  into  exile.  Such  melan- 
choly readily  suggested  the  prophet  of  the  Lamentations. 

To  others  he  seemed  only  as  some  of  the  ancient  prophets,  not 
individually  distinguishable  ;  so  low  was  the  estimate  of  most  of 
the  people. 

He  had  not  then  struck  root  into  his  nation  generally :  how 

miirht  it  be  with  his  own  fainilv  of  disciples?     He  determined  to 

test  it.     It  was  a  moment  of  profoundest  interest 

Not  struck  root.  ^^^  ^^.^^  ^^^^^  ^^  ^^^^^^^    rpj^^  question  and  reply  were 

to  constitute  a  bond  of  perpetual  union  between  them,  or  were  to 
be  the  signal  of  the  dissolution  of  this  important  little  community. 


,   .s^S^,-X^S}^'' 


CdLBAllkA    t-HlLlk  11. 


THE    GKEAT   CONFESSION.  417 

How  iniuortant  they  were  to  the  world  they  could  not  possibly 
have  known.     No  veiy  important  man  does  know  his  own  value. 

"  But  w^hom  say  ye  that  I  am  ?  " 

"  You  are  the  Messiah,  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  the  living  God,'' 
was  the  profoundly  solemn  answer  of  Peter.  It  was  a  jirofession 
of  faith;  it  was  a  confession  of  everything;  it  was 
an  act  of  worship.  He  acknowledged  Jesus  as  Peter's  solemn 
the  Messiah,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  claim-  ^°^^^«^«^- 
ants  to  that  high  and  holy  office ;  he  confessed  him  as  a  divine 
person ;  not  a  son  of  God,  but  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  in  a 
sense  in  wliich  it  could  be  applied  to  no  other  man.  He  does  not 
report  the  general  opinion  of  the  body  of  disciples,^'  but  per- 
forms an  act  of  personal  worship,  using  such  forms  and  words  as 
men  who  are  Christians  have  since  employed  in  prayer.  Xo  such 
admission  had  ever  before  been  made.  It  embodied  a  Messianic 
idea  loftier  and  broader  than  any  other  Jewish  mind  and  heart 
had  held.  They  believed  that  the  Messiah,  the  Christ,  should  be 
one  of  the  sons  of  men,  like  any  other  great  man,  and  should  be 
chosen  and  anointed,  by  reason  of  the  greatness  and  splendors  of 
his  virtues,  to  be  the  deliverer  of  his  people.  But  Peter  ac- 
knowledged his  Messiah  as  directly  begotten  of  God.  In  his  sol- 
emn phrase  he  did  not  use  the  word  "living"  to  distinguish 
God,  the  true  God,  from  dead  idols,  but  to  intensify  the  idea  that 
was  in  the  word  "  Son."  It  Avas  not  the  question  who  God  was, 
but  the  question  who  Jesus  was,  that  Peter  was  answering. 

Jesus  accepted  the  homage.  Let  us  remind  ourselves  that  we 
are  making  historical  studies  and  not  dogmatic  theological  asser- 
tions. The  question  now  is,  not  whether  Jesus 
was  right  or  wrong,  but  what  he  thought  and  said  ^^^^  receives 
and  did.  It  is  most  obvious  that  at  this  period  of  *^™^®- 
his  career  he  believed  himself  to  be  the  Son  of  God  in  a  sense 
separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  with  which  the  phrase  could 
be  applied  to  other  men.  He  was  the  Messiah,  the  Christ,  the 
Sent,  the  Anointed.     His  people  were   looking  for  a  temporal 


*  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  Peter  re- 
ports the  opinions  of  others,  but  when 
Jesus  asked  the  opinion  of  the  disci- 
ples Peter  fails  to  give  it.      We  do  not 


pies,  nor  "  I  think  that  you  are,"  etc., 
on  his  own.  behalf,  but  addressing  him 
with  the  worshippLag  assertion,  "You 
are  the  Christ."     The  state  of  mind  in 


know  from  him  what  it  was.     For  him-    which  this  was  uttered  is  to  be  consid- 
self    he    answers,    not    saying     "We    ered. 
think,"    on  behalf  of  his  fellow-disci- 1 

27 


418      TnE  TniKD  passover  to  the  feast  of  tabernacles. 

deliverer ;  he  was  the  only  deliverer  they  should  have,  and  he 
was  a  spiritual  deliverer.  With  such  sentiments  he  made  his 
solemn  reply  to  Peter :  "  Blessed  art  thou,  Simon  13ar-joua,  for 
flesh  and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  unto  thee,  but  my  Father  in 
the  heavens.  And  I  also  say  to  thee,  Thou  art  Peter,  and  on  this 
rock  I  will  build  my  congregation,  and  the  gates  of  Death  [Hades] 
shall  not  prevail  against  it.  I  will  give  thee  the  keys  of  the  king- 
dom of  the  heavens,  and  what  thou  shalt  bind  upon  earth  shall  be 
bound  in  the  heavens,  and  what  thou  shalt  loose  on  earth  shall  be 
loosed  in  the  heavens." 

Jesus  had  been  in  some  measure  and  by  certain  terms  acknowl- 
edged as  Messiah  in  early  parts  of  his  history,  but  no  confession 

had  yet  recognized  him  as  at  once  divine  and 
HisMessiahship   j^^^^^^j^^    Such  he  held  himself  to  be.    And,  more- 
a  revelation.  ,,111         ,  .  /■  1  •  i  i 

over,  he  held  that  that  view  01  his  nature  could  not 

be  reached  by  any  process  of  human  reasoning  or  any  leap  of  human 
imagination.  It  was  a  direct  revelation  from  heaven.  The  lit- 
eral words  of  Jesus  are :  "  Flesh  and  blood  have  not  apocalypsed 
it  to  thee,  but  my  Father."  From  such  a  mystery  no  human  hand 
could  have  raised  the  veil  and  made  the  apocalypse, — no  hand  lint 
God's.  It  is  manifest  that  Jesus  believed  his  own  character  and 
person  such  a  miracle  that  no  intellectual  analysis  of  his  words 
and  acts  could  enable  any  man  to  reach  the  apprehension  of  them. 
He  was  a  blessed  man  to  whom  the  Eternal  Father  vouchsafed 
such  a  revelation.  It  must  have  been  the  deepest  conviction  that 
drew  such  utterances  from  Jesus.  He  was  joyous  in  his  solemnity. 
He  calls  Simon  by  his  other  name,  Kephau,  Cephas,  Peter,  Rock. 
"  Kephau  "  was  probably  the  word  he  used,  speaking  in  the  Ara- 
maic tongue,  and  this  word  Grecized  was  Ke0a9,  and  translated 
into  Greek  was  JTerpo?,  of  which  our  English  is  "  Rock."  lie 
ascends  from  Bar-jona  to  Peter. 

This  whole  speech  of  Jesus  to  Peter,  which  must  be  acknowl- 
edged as  one  of  the  most  important — if  not  the  most  important — 

of  all  his  sayings,  has  been  a  source  of  great  per- 
Addreas  of  Jesus  pi^xity.     The  trouble  with  many  com mentatore  is 

their  hardened  ecclesiasticism.  AVlien  Churchism 
hangs  like  a  veil  (ner  the  faces  of  men,  they  do  not  see  the  face 
of  Jesus,  and  they  hear  his  words  as  men  hear  the  mumJjling  of  a 
priest  through  tlie  baize  curtain  at  the  church-door.  A  succeed- 
ing commentator  may  be  afraid  to  differ  from  his  predece8Soi-g,lest 


THE    GREAT   CONFESSION.  419 

he  be  charged  with  heresy,  or  at  least  irregularity.  Many  of  the 
Protestant  writers  are  as  papal  as  the  Roman  writers.  Roman 
Catliolicism  is  the  concentration  of  pajfecy  on  one  pope ;  secta- 
rian Protestantism  is  the  division  of  the  papacy  among  many  popes. 
Many  men  seem  afraid  to  know  what  Jesns  really  meant.  They 
hear  him  through  the  ear-trumpet  of  "  the  church ;"  they  see  him 
through  the  stained  glass  of  "  the  church."  To  reconcile  these 
sayings  of  Jesus  with  truth,  and  the  known  facts  of  history,  will 
be  a  perpetual  tax  on  the  ingenuity  of  those  who  at  the  same  time 
hold  to  Churchism,  If  a  man  can  only  dare  to  look  the  truth  full 
in  the  face,  and  accept  the  truth  and  its  logical  connections,  he  will 
have  less  difficulty  with  the  questions  of  the  Rock  and  the  Keys. 

Let  us  venture  to  utter  the  truth,  even  at  the  peril  of  being  cast 
out  of  the  synagogue. 

Jesus  never  intended  to  establish  "  a  church,"  in  the  modern 
sense  of  the  term,  namely,  a  close  corporation,  inside  which  should 
be  all  that  are  to  be  saved,  while  all  outside  should 
be  damned.  He  never  intended  to  institute  any  o  c  urc  . 
body  in  which  should  exist  the  distinction  of  clergy  and  laity, 
which  should,  as  a  whole,  dictate  to  its  members  and  to  the  Avorld 
what  their  faith  should  be.  He  abrogated  priesthood  as  a  corpo- 
ration by  making  every  man  a  priest.  The  churches  now  on 
earth  are  mere  human  economical  arrangements,  with  no  spiritual 
authority  to  declare  that  any  man  is  a  saint  or  a  sinner.  As  com- 
munities and  associations  for  propagating  the  principles  of  Jesus 
they  may  be  useful ;  as  hierarchies  they  are  hurtful.  They  may 
turn  a  man  out  of  their  body,  but  that  in  no  way  affects  his  rela- 
tions to  Jesus  or  to  God.  Jesus  was  full  of  Anti-Churchism. 
He  seemed  to  have  a  mission  to  destroy  Churchism,  which  was  so 
incrusting  human  hearts  that  they  could  not  grow  into  beauty  and 
ripen  into  maturity  in  the  sunlight  of  God's  love  and  smile.  He 
was  a  Seceder,  a  Dissenter,  a  Come-outer,  an  Independent,  any- 
thing you  please  to  call  him  but  Churchman.  If  he  were  living 
in  our  midst  now  he  would  endure  to  be  called  "glutton,"  "wine- 
bibber,"  "friend  of  publicans  and  sinners,"  and  make  no  more 
resentment  than  he  did  when  he  was  on  earth ;  but  he  would  not 
allow  himself  for  a  moment  to  be  shrunk  into  the  contemptible 
insignificance  of  a  mere  "  churchman."  Living  or  dying,  to  the 
multitudes,  to  his  disciples,  in  parable  or  plain  speech,  he  nevei 
used  the  word  "  church,"  so  far  as  the  records  show. 


-i20       THE   TiriRD   PASSOVER    TO    THE   FEAST   OF   TABERXACLES. 

Twice  in  Matthew — and  it  never  occurs  in  tlie  other  three  evan- 
gelists— a  word  in  the  original  is  translated  "church."*     If  it 
were  granted,  which  it  is  not,  that  the  word  means 
e     wor       ^r]jr^|;  jg  jjow  ordinarilv  understood  bv  church,  it 

'  church.  "  .    "  . 

would  be  a  most  remarkable  thing  that  this 
Teacher,  who  was  a  great  talker  in  every  sense,  should  have  only 
twice  alluded  to  the  subject  of  church.  But  when  we  come  to 
examine  these  two  passages  we  find  no  "  church  "  in  them.  One 
of  them  is  this,  which  records  the  confession  of  Peter.  "  On  this 
rock  will  I  build  my  church^''  are  the  words  of  the  common  Eng- 
lish version.  The  Greek  word  translated  "church"  is  cKKXTjcna, 
eccUsia,  which  does  not  mean  an  organization  of  any  kind,  but 
simpl}^  a  congregation.  An  assembly  brought  together  by  the 
common  crier  in  Athens  was  called  ecclesia.  In  all  the  English 
versions  before  the  days  of  Queen  Elizabeth  (except  "Wicklif  s) 
the  word  was  translated  "  conorreo-ation."  The  word  "  church " 
was  substituted  in  the  Bishops'  Bible  f<^r  the  word  "  congrega- 
tion," and  by  express  order  of  King  James  was  so  substituted  in 
the  authorized  version  of  1611,  in  every  place  where  it  occurs  in 
the  Kew  Testament.  In  the  Gennan  versions  the  Boman  Catho- 
lic translators  and  commentators  employ  the  term  kirche,  church, 
while  the  Protestants  use  gemeinde.,  congregation.  The  German 
Bible  published  in  1557,  by  Conrad  Badius,  has  "congregation." 

As  Jesus  performed  no  "  ecclesiastical "  act,  as  he  made  no  or- 
ganization of  any  kind,  as  he  gave  no  directions  to  his  disciples  to 
make  any  kind  of  close  corporation,  as  he  nowhere  spealcs  any- 
thing which  involves  the  idea  of  churchness,  in  any  measure  or 
sense,  and  as  he  broke  in  with  many  ruptures  upon  the  ecclesias- 
ticism  which  existed  among  his  own  countrymen,  teaching  that 
character  was  everything  and  mere  position  an  incidental,  we  have 
a  right  to  believe  that  he  was  no  churchman. 

Wliat,  then,  did  he  mean?  Simply  this.  Ilis  congregation, 
that  is,  all  who  lieard  his  call  and  came  to  it,  should  be  built  upon 
the  foundation  of  the  hearty  belief  that  lie  was  a 
.  ni«"congrcga-  ^.^.j^^^  pereonage,  t?ie  Son  of  the  living  G<^d,  and 
sent  and  set  apart  to  be  the  Deliverer.  "Whether 
ho  had  any  right  to  make  sucih  a  claim  is  a  question  for  the  de- 
partment of- theology.  All  that  we  concern  ourselves  to  know  ia 
this — what  did  he  mean  ?     He  certainly  meant  that  much,  and 

•  The  other  paasage  is  in  JIatt.  rviii.  17,  and  will  be  considered  in  its  place. 


THE   GREAT   CONFESSION.  421 

that  is  more  than  churchism.  He  meant  that  whoever  took  Jesus 
for  his  dehverer,  that  soul  was  of  his  congregation,  whether  bap- 
tized or  not,  whether  enrolled  in  any  society  or  church,  or  not 
All  other  things  had  fluxions,  but  this  belief  in  him  was  to  be  the 
one  invariable  element  of  life  ;  it  was  to  be  the  firmest  foundation 
on  which  character  could  be  built. 

lie  evidently  believed  also,  and  taught,  that  in  all  ages  there 
would  be  men  who,  like  Peter,  would  plant  and  stake  their  all 
upon  a  hearty  belief  in  Jesus  as  the  divine  Deliverer  of  human 
souls,  so  that,  whether  there  should  be  visible  churches  or  not,  his 
congregation  should  exist  forever.  The  "gates  of  the  grave,"  tlie 
under-world,  death, — for  the  word  translated  "  hell  "  in  the  com- 
mon version  means  this,  and  not  a  place  of  punishment, — "  the 
gates  of  death  shall  not  prevail  against  it ; " — which  simply  means 
that  men  may  be  born  and  may  die,  but  there  would  always  be 
those  who  believed  in  him  as  divine,  and  trusted  in  him  as  their 
Saviour:  and  these  should  constitute  his  "  congregation." 

Quite  naturally  can  the  words  which  follow  be  interpreted,  if 
one's  mind  be  turned  away  from  the  fixed  idea  of  churchism. 
All  the  controversy  on  the  meaning  of  the  powers 
of  the  keys  has  arisen  from  supposing  that  Jesus  ^  powers  o 

was  talking  "  church,"  to  which  subject  he  was 
making  no  allusion  in  any  way  whatever.  The  "  kingdom  of  the 
heavens"  does  not  mean  a  "church"  or  the  "church."  The  very 
breadth  of  the  expression  ought  to  have  led  men  to  see  that  it 
means  something  much  larger.  The  "kingdom  of  the  heavens" 
can  no  more  be  contained  in  the  church  than  the  whole  physical 
heavens  can  be  folded  up  and  laid  away  in  a  stone  cathedral.  He 
that  is  only  a  churchman  shall  have  only  the  keys  of  the  church. 
Whatsoever  he  binds  shall  be  bound  in  the  church,  whatsoever  he 
looses  shall  be  loosened  in  the  church.  But  that  is  his  limit.  He 
cannot  go  outside  this  human  organization  called  the  church. 
But  whosoever  receives  JesUs  as  divine,  and  trusts  him  as  his 
Saviour,  shall  have  the  kevs  of  all  heavens,  the  rauire  of  the 
universe,  and  all  home-rights  in  the  Father's  house  of  many  man- 
Bions. 

How  much  grander  and  more  reasonable  is  this  teaching  of 
Jesus  than  the  doo-mas  of  some  scholastic  theuloirians !  Take  anv 
of  their  theories,  and  how  little  and  immaterial  they  are  !  They 
narrow  heaven,  and  belittle  God,  and  degrade  Jesus.     They  pledge 


422        THE   TinRD   PASSOVER   TO   THE    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 

the  Infinite  One  to  sanction  any  decisions  of  a  very  frail  man, 
whom  Jesus,  in  abuost  the  next  l)reath  after  this  commendation, 
was  compelled  to  rebuke  and  call  Satan,  or  else  they  yield  into 
the  hands  of  a  corporate  body  of  men,  comprising  wise  and  fool- 
ish, learned  and  ignorant,  stnjng  and  weak,  good  and  wicked,  the 
monopoly  of  deciding  all  moral  questions  and  all  human  desti- 
nies. If  that  is  what  Jesus  meant  in  this  interview,  he  therein 
contradicted  all  that  he  had  taught  elsewhere,  which  was  that 
character  is  everything  and  office  nothing  as  concerns  a  man's  per- 
sonal salvation.  It  drops  him  immeasurably.  If  that  was  his 
meaning,  he  is  no  more  than  a  priest  and  a  Levite.  lie  ceases  to 
be  the  cosmopolitan  soul,  the  multitudinous  man,  the  loftiest  Son 
of  Man,  and  the  only-begotten  Son  of  God. 

If  there  be  any  consistency  in  his  doctrines,  Jesus  intended  to 

apply  to  all  men  who  made  Peter's  confession  this  proposition 

which  he  uttered  concerning  Peter.     It  would  be 

Its  true  TnftaTiinpr,  .    .       ,  i  i   •  i  •  ^ 

most  uncritical  to  take  this  solitary  passage  and 
interpret  it  into  a  signification  which  contradicts  all  his  other 
teachings.     To  say  that  the  power  of  the  keys  signifies  "  the  pre- 
rogative of   the  Apostles   either  to  admit  into   the  kingdom  of 
heaven  or  to  exclude  from  it,"  is  to  say  that  Almighty  God  abdi- 
cated in  favor  of  an  impetuous  though  generous  man,  who  was 
always  blundering,  if  Peter's  primacy  is  to  be  maintained  ;  or  that 
the  sceptre  of  the  "  King  eternal  "  was  transferred  to  a  body  of 
men  whom  their  teacher,  to  the  very  last,  chid  for  their  stupidity 
and  want  of  faith.     Contrast  with  this  the  real  meaning  of  Jesus. 
Whoever  accepts  him  as  the  Divine  Deliverer,  and  lives  sincerely 
in  that  faith,  shall  be  perpetually  binding  on  himself  certain  things 
or  casting  from  himself  certain  things,  but  all  his  decisions  he  shall 
afterwards  find  were  sanctioned  by  the  heavenly  Fathei*.     The 
power  of  the  keys  is  given  to  every  believer,  and  it  is  a  power  to 
be  exercised  over  himself  alone  and  not  over  another.     Sincere 
faith  in  Jesus  is  the  only  safe  guide  tlirough  earth  and  heaven, 
and  it  is  a  perfectly  safe  guide.     No  forms  nor  ceremonies  give 
entrance  into  this  kingdom,  nothing  but  the  heart's  unwavering 
belief  that  he  is  "the  Anointed  Deliverer,  the  Son  of  the  living 
God."     One  may  enter  "  the  church,"  man's  organization,  by  bap- 
tism and  other  rites,  with  oral  or  written  pr(»fession  of  creeds,  but 
one  can  enter  the  "  kingdoin  of  the  heavens "  only  as  he  takes 
Jesus  for  his  guide.     He  may  be  in  both  the  church  and  the  king- 


THE    GREAT   CONFESSION.  423 

dom  ;  but  being  in  one  is  no  evidence  whatever  that  he  is  in  the 
other.  Men  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the  west  and  sit  down 
in  "  the  kingdom,"  while  "  churchmen  "  may  be  cast  into  outer 
darkness. 

It  was  an  immense  assertion.  ^Vliether  he  had  any  right  to 
make  it  or  not,  Jesus  certainly  did  put  forward  the  claim  to  be 
the  only  medium  of  entrance  into  the  freedom  and  enjoyment  of 
the  kingdom  of  the  heavens. 

It  seems  to  have  satisfied  Jesus  that  he  had  secured  not  simply 
a  foothold  in  human  affection,  but  a  real  root  in  humanity.  lie 
charged  his  disciples  not  to  go  out  and  announce  him  as  the 
Messiah.  It  was  sufficient  that  they  believed  in  him.  The  mul- 
titudes were  looking  for  a  sensuous  millennium,  and  a  secular 
Messiah  to  reign  therein.  It  was  too  late  to  revolutionize  them. 
He  had  not  succeeded.  His  disciples  would  not  succeed.  The 
time  for  the  perception  of  the  beauty  and  grandeur  of  a  spiritual 
Messiahship  had  not  arrived.  It  would  come.  He  was  content 
to  await  its  coming,  so  that  only  the  "  seed  of  the  kingdom  "  were 
meanwhile  kept  in  the  earth. 

In  the  history  of  Jesus  appears  what  we  do  not  detect  in  other 
men.     He  had  a  control  over  history.     He  allowed  nothing  to  be 
antedated  in  fact,  while  he  anticipated  everything 
in  thought.     The  shadow  of  the  cross  on  his  path    , .  ,  ^ 

if..  ^  history. 

lay  as  distmct  as  that  which  Gustave  Dore,  in  his 
terrible  pictures,  throws  everywhere  on  the  way  of  the  "Wan- 
dering Jew."  He  saw  it.  He  talked  of  his  death,  before  it  oc- 
curred, with  as  much  definiteness  as  he  did  of  that  of  John  the 
Baptist  after  it  had  occurred.  His  disciples  could  not  see  the 
outline  of  the  shadow  on  the  path  until  Jesus  pointed  it  out  to 
them.  Now  he  begins  to  tell  them  "  plainly,"  says  the  record  in 
Mark  viii.,  that  he  must  go  up  to  Jerusalem.  He  had  absented 
himself  from  the  late  Passover;  now  he  ^^ must  go  to  Jerusalem." 
He  should  suffer  many  things.  The  conspiracy  formed  against 
him  by  the  elders  and  chief  priests  and  scribes  should  cuhninate 
in  bis  death.   He  should  certainly  be  killed. 

But, — on  the  third  day  he  should  rise  again  !  He  plainly  pre- 
dicted that. 

The  prediction  of  the  resurrection  seems  to  have  made  no  im- 
pression upon  them,  Wliether  it  was  because  he  talked  so  much 
in  parables  with  them  that  tlieir  exegesis  was  often  sorely  puz- 


4:24        THE    THIRD    PASSOVER   to    the    FKAST    of   TA13Eli^'ACLES. 


Rebukes  Peter. 


zlod,  so  that  they  knew  not  when  t<j  interpret  his  words  Hterally 
and  when  figuratively,* — or  whether  tlie  startling  and  astound- 
ing announcement  that  lie  Nvas  to  be  killed  came 
6  pre  ic  g^^  suddenly  after  his  iov  at   the  reco-'nition  of 

resurrection.  i  •    Tir       •   i    i  •  i       p  <■ 

his  Messialiship, — the  fact  comes  out  afterwards 

that  they  totally  forgot  the  prediction  of  the  resurrecti(jn.  The 
statement  that  he,  the  newly  ackncnvledged  Messiah,  was  to  be 
killed,  was  more  than  Peter  could  bear,  lie  seized  him  by  hand, 
or  dress,  or  perhaps  in  embrace,  and  exclaimed,  "  God  save  thee,t 
lord  ;  not  to  thee  shall  this  be !  "  lie  actually  undertook  tij  rebuke 
him,  as  Matthew  and  Mark  agree  in  recording. 

Jesus  turned  his  back  on  Peter,  saying,  "  Go  behind  me,  Satan : 
thou  art  my  stumbling-stone ;  for  thou  regardest  not  the  things  of 
God,  but  the  things  of  men."  A  moment  ago  the 
Kock  on  ^vllich  the  church  was  to  be  built !  if  we 
accept  the  interpretation  of  churchism :  then  it  is  fair  to  hold 
churchism  to  what  Jesus  says  now,  and  this  same  Peter  is  the  very 
devil  and  a  stumbling-stone !  But  the  words  no  more  apply  to 
Peter  here  than  there,  in  the  sense  of  a  closely  restricted  pei-sonal 
application.  They  contain  a  general  truth.  lie  who  cannot 
accept  the  self-abnegation  of  Jesus,  and  endure  the  humiliation 
of  a  violent  and  ignominious  death,  but  is  so  carnal  and  secular 
as  to  desire  a  reign  of  visible  temporal  glory,  is  a  stumbling-block 
to  the  work  of  Jesus  in  the  world.  "Wlien  they  met  face  to  face, 
as  Jesus  and  Peter  did,  it  was  a  personal  rebuke. 

Satan  is  the  Hebrew  name  for  the  chief  of  evil  spirits,  in  whose 
existence  as  a  personality  Jesus  certainly  believed.  The  general 
meaning  of  the  word  is  Tem2>ter,  or,  more  correctly,  Adversary, 
one  who  sets  himself  in  opposition  to  goodness  and  duty  and 
right.  It  may  have  been  used  in  this  general  sense  to  Peter,  but 
certainly  veiy  pointedly,  and  with  a  distinct  recognition  of  the 
personal  existence  of  Satan. 


*  The  reader  may  consult  John  iv. 
33;  Matthew  xvi.  7;  and  John  xi.  12, 
for  pnKsajjfs  in  which  Jesus  manifestly 
Bpoke  figuratively,  and  wliich  his  dis- 
ciples interpreted  literally.  At  other 
times  he  spoke  literally  and  they  under- 
stood him  figuratively :  see  Matthew 
XV.  15.  17;  John  xi.  11,  17;  and  John 
vi.  70 


f  The  phrase  in  the  Greek  is  an  ab- 
breviation, and  literally  is.  "  Propitioua 
to  thee,"  or  "  Gracious  to  thee,"  mean- 
ing that  the  goodness  of  God  should 
save  the  person  from  the  evil  spoken  ;  a 
sudden  ejaculatory  prayer  for  the  safety 
of  the  person  addressed.  The  very  form 
shows  the  great  excitement  of  Peter. 


TUE   GKEAT   COMFESSION.  425 

This  resistance  of  Peter  to  the  announcement  by  Jesus  of  his 
coming  death  is  proof  that,  notwithstanding  his  noble  and  loft}' 
acknowledgment  of  the  spiritual  Messiahship  of  Jesus,  there  still 
clung  worldly  notions  to  the  mind  of  Peter,  and  to  the  disciplea 
and  followers  generally.  lie  therefore  called  his  disciples  and 
the  people  near  to  himself,  and  delivered  a  discourse  to  them,  the 
substance  of  which  is  preserved  by  Matthew,  Mark,  and  Luke, 
and  which  was  as  follows : — 

"If  any  one  washes  to  come  after  me,  let  Mm  deny  himself,  and  take  up  hia 
cross  and  follow  me.  For  whosoever  may  wish  to  save  his  life  shall  lose  it ; 
and  whosoever  shall  lose  his  life  for  my  sake  and  the  gos- 
Ijel's,  shall  find  it.  For  what  shall  a  man  be  profited  if  lie  Addresses  his  disciples, 
should  gain  the  whole  world  and  lose  his  own  life,  or  be 
cast  away  ?  or  what  shall  a  man  give  in  exchange  for  his  life  ?  Wliosoever 
shall  confess  me  before  men,  him  will  I  confess  also  before  my  Father  which 
is  in  heaven,  and  before  the  angels  of  God ;  but  whosoever  shall  deny  me  and 
be  ashamed  of  me  and  of  my  words  before  men  in  this  sinful  and  adulterous 
generation,  him  will  I  also  deny  before  my  Father  which  is  in  the  heavens : 
for  the  Son  of  Man  shall  come  in  his  own  glory,  and  in  the  glory  of  his  Father, 
with  his  angels ;  and  then  he  shall  reward  every  man  according  to  his  works. 
Verily  I  say  unto  you.  That  there  be  some  standing  here  which  shall  not  taste 
of  death  tUl  they  see  the  Son  of  Man  coming  in  his  kingdom  with  power." 

"Wliich  seems  to  mean  this :  His  Messiahship  had  been  acknow- 
ledged, but  it  was  to  be  a  bitter  disappointment,  even  to  many 

who  acknowledo;ed  it,  because  he  was  going  to  be      ^^ 

o  '  Y  .        .  I^^  meaning', 

killed.  If  any  man  thought  of  becoming  his  dis- 
ciple, he  must  make  up  his  mind  to  abandon  all  hopes  of  pecu- 
niary advantage  and  personal  ease  and  indulgence.  He  must  go 
further.  He  must  deny  himself.  "WTiat  flesh  and  blood  call  for, 
he  must  often  refuse  even  to  himself.  He  must  submit  to  igno- 
miny and  torture.  Nothing  was  so  disgraceful  and  painful  as 
death  by  crucifixion,  in  which  the  condemned  was  compelled  to 
carry  the  cross,  which  was  to  be  the  instrument  of  his  torture,  to 
the  place  of  execution.  So  his  disciples  must  learn  perfect  sub- 
mission to  extreme  sufferings.  But  there  was  a  compensation 
even  here.  A  man  who  gives  his  life  up  for  the  sake  of  Jesus 
and  those  doctrines  of  philanthropy  which  he  preached,  should 
indeed  lose  luxuries,  comforts,  home  delights,'  and  many  a  sensu- 
ous pleasure,  but  after  all  should  find  the  truest  and  sweetest  usea 
of  life :  whereas  the  selfish  hoarder  of  his  vital  power?  should  find 
them  shrinking  within  him.     In  general,  vitality  is  maintained 


426   THE  THIRD  PA880VEK  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

and  strengthened  by  living  largely,  putting  out  the  energies 
widely,  life  being  not  income  but  outgo. 

In  that  case  why  should  a  man  lose  his  life  ?  If  he  kill  himself 
in  the  effort  to  grasp  the  whole  world,  even  if  that  effort  should 
be  imagined  to  prove  successful,  nothing  would  come  of  it.  He 
would  be  gone,  lost,  a  castaway,  out  of  existence ;  then  where 
would  there  be  any  use  of  pleasures  if  he  did  not  exist  to  enjoy 
them  ?  The  basis  of  everything  is  life.  The  universe  is  nothing 
without  life.  A  man  must  therefore  do  all  he  can  to  increase  his 
physical,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  vitality.  The  world  will  be  so 
much  world  to  him,  and  the  man  will  be  so  much  man  tu  himself 
in  proportion  as  he  has  life.  And  life  is  got  by  giving.  The  more 
a  man  gives  himself  to  his  generation  the  more  he  gets  out  of  it. 

Jesus  taught  that  to  follow  him  was  the  way  to  gain  life  by 

giving  it.     Men  must  therefore  confess  him  by  follo^ving  him. 

lie  was  going  through  a  dark  passage.   lie  would 

Theirhopesnot  ^^^  conceal  that  from  them.  But  tlieir  hope  of 
all  a  dream.  _ 

Messianic  glory  was  not  all  a  dream.     It  was  a 

mistake  in  so  far  as  it  was  secular,  but  it  was  a  truth  in  so  far  as 
it  recognized  him  as  the  conquering  Deliverer.  He  was  to  come  in 
glory,  in  his  own  glory  and  God's,  which  he  spoke  of  as  being  iden- 
tical, with  a  holy  familiarity,  in  such  style  as  no  man  before  his  time 
or  since  has  ever  dared  to  employ.  The  rewards  of  mankind  he 
represented  as  being  in  his  hands, — a  prodigious  claim !  He  knew 
the  works  of  every  man,  and  in  exact  accordance  with  those  woi-ks 
he  should  give  each  man  his  reward,  and  there  should  be  no  mistake. 
lie  closed  his  address  with  the  statement  that  there  were  those 
present  who  should  not  die  until  they  saw  the  Son  of  Man  cc^ning 

in  his  kingdom  with  power.  I  do  not  know  what 
Anincomprehen-  j^^  meant.  Did  liis  disciples  ?  Did  any  event 
Bible  Btatement.  .       .-,     -     it    .•  i«i  i 

ever  occur  in  their  life-time  which  corresponds 

with  this  statement?  If  so,  where  is  it  recorded?  I  know  what 
theories  liave  been  propounded  in  explanation,  have  read  the 
commentators,  am  familiar  with  the  views  of  theologians,  and 
have  perha]>s  a  theory  of  my  own  ;  but  the  plain  question,  to  be 
honestly  answered,  would  amount  to  this :  As  each  man  in  that 
company  died,  if  he  had  been  asked  in  his  last  moments  whetlier 
he  had  seen  any  event  which  was  to  him  a  fulfilment  of  these 
words  of  Jesus,  could  he  have  designated  any  such  event?  If  he 
could,  we  have  no  means  of  ascertaining  the  fact. 


CHAPTEE   III. 


THE   TKANSFIGUKATION. 


It  was  about  a  week  after  the  confession  made  by  Peter  that 
an  event  of  great  interest,  as  a  fresh  revelation,   occurred  in 
the   history   of    Jesus.      The   narrative,    as   col- 
lected from  all  the  New  Testament  historians,      Probably  Mount 

Hennon.       Matfc. 
is  this  :  ^  ^  3j^  .   jj^j^  j^  . 

Jesus  took  Peter,  James,  and  John  into  a  high    Lu^e  ix. 
mountain  apart.      As  he   prayed  he  was  trans- 
fiofured  before  them.    The  fashion  of  his  countenance  was  altered, 
and  his  face  shone  like  the  sun,  and  his  raiment  became  shinmg 
and  white  as  the  snow,  white  as  the  light,  whiter 
than  any  earthly  fuller  could  make  them.     Moses       ■;  ®    ^^^^  ^' 

in-  -IT  ration, 

and  Elijah  were  present  and  talking  with  Jesus, 

who  had  a  glorious  appearance,  and  they  spoke  of  his  death  at 
Jerusalem,  "which  he  should  accomplish."  The  three  disciples 
were  hea\^  with  sleep,  but  this  vision  kept  them  awake  by  its 
splendor.  As  Moses  and  Elijah  departed,  Peter  said  unto  Jesus, 
"  Sir,  it  is  good  for  us  to  be  here !  If  thou  wilt,  I  will  make  here 
tliree  tents;  one  for  thee,  and  one  for  Moses,  and  one  for  Elijah." 
He  spoke  at  random,  for  he  was  greatly  scared.  While  he  was 
speaking,  the  awe  of  the  disciples  was  increased  by  the  over- 
spreading of  a  bright  cloud,  out  of  which  came  the  words,  "  This 
is  my  Son,  the  Beloved,  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased :  hear  him." 
This  splendor  and  these  words  overpowered  them,  and  they  fell 
on  their  faces  greatly  afraid.  And  when  the  voice  was  past, 
Jesus  came  and  touched  them,  and  said,  "Arise,  and  be  not 
afi-aid."  And  when  they  lifted  up  their  eyes  they  saw  no 
man  but  Jesus. 

As  they  came  down  from  the  mountain  his  disciples  asked  him 
why  the  Scribes  taught  that  Elijah  must  first  come.  His  answer 
was,  "Elijah  truly  shall  come,  and  restore  all  things:  but  I 
say  unto  you.  That  Elijah  is  cvme  already,  and  they  knew  him  not, 


42S        THE   TUIKD   PASSOVER   TO   TUB    FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES. 

but  have  done  to  liiin  whatever  they  wished.     Thus  also  is  tho 

Sun  of  Man  about  to  suffer  by  them."     The  disciples  undei-stood 

him  to  mean  John  the  Baptist  in  this  last  speech. 

Why  Elijah  must  ^y,k]  as  they  descended  from  the  mountain,  Jesus 
first  come.  ,  ,     ,    "^  ,         ,,  m  n    i 

charged  them,  saymg,  "  Tell  the  vision  to  no  man 

until  the  Son  of  Man  be  risen  from  the  dead."     Luke  and  Mark 

say  that  the  injunction  was  obeyed.     The  disciples  did  nut  tell 

anything  of  the  vision  outside  their  own  circle,  but  inside  they 

held  discussion  of  the  meaning  of  the  perplexing  phrase,  "  risen 

asain  from  the  dead." 

It  would  appear  that  the  intimation  of  his  sufferings  and 
death  had  had  a  depressing  effect  upon  the  mind  of  his  dis- 
ciples. Under  this  cloud  they  struggled  and  questioned  their 
own  hearts  for  the  space  of  a  week,  when  the  event  of  the  trans- 
figuration gave  new  form  to  their  thoughts  and  hopes. 

It  is  not  known  precisely  what  muuntain  was  the  site  of  this 

transfiguration.     In  the  fourth  century,  fn^m  a  passing  remark 

by  Cyril  of  Jerusalem,  tradition  fixed  on  Mount 

Site  of  ^  the  T.^|^^j  jj^  Galileo,  famous  for  the  beautv  of  its 
Transfiguration.  i   r       .i  •  i        •  £  /->      i.     i    i>  i     *• 

furm  and  for  the  wide  view  or  Central  i  ulestme 

beheld  from  its  summit.      In  the  sixth  century  three  churches 

were  built  on  its  top,  suggested  by  Peter's  idea  of  three  booths. 

Subsequently  a  monastery  was  founded.     But  later  criticism  has 

displaced  the  claims  of  Tabor.     It  was  possible  for  Jesus,  by  a 

very  forced  march,  of  which  we  have  no  account,  to  reach  Tabur 

within  the  period  specified.    But  why  should  he  return  to  (julilee, 

where  his   enemies  were  seeking  him  to  destroy  him?     Mark 

(ix.  30)  informs  us   that  he  did  not  go  into  Galilee  until  after 

this  event.     Moreover,  Tabor  was  occupied,  to  its  summits,  by 

settlements,  and  had  been,  probably,  from  the  time  of  Joshua. 

Jesus   was   in   the  highlands   of    Gaulonitis,   in   the   region   of 

Cffisarea  Philippi.     "NVlioever  in  this  place  looks  up  for  a  "high 

mountain,"  immediately  sees  the  sublime  heights  of  Ilermon,  and 

the  almost  common  consent  of  travellers  and  critics  is  now  given 

to  the  theory  that  the  transfiguration  took  place  somewhere  on 

Ilermon. 

Jesus  had  with  him  tlie  three  representative  and  trusted  dis 

ciplcs,  Peter  and  James  and  John.     It  was  liis  custom  to  go  int«j 

the  muuntains  fur  evening  prayer,  and  sometimes  to  continue  his 

devotions  throui^h  the  entire  night.     lie  seems  to  have  dune  so  in 


iiilfii;ii!li!li.!'iiililM 


W'M 


im 


lilli     '^^' 


'h: 


THE   TRANSnGURATION.  429 

this  instance.     He  prayed  while  his  fatigued  disciples  slept.     At 

some  period  of  the  night  a  strange  awe  suffused  their  slumbers. 

They  woke  to  see  their  Master  in  a  state  of  glori- 

/j,.  TT-r  1  Ti,i  It-  The  witnesses. 

iication.    ills  race  slione  like  the  sun,  and  his  very 

garments  were  glistening,  snowy  white,  and  luminous.     Mark  was 

struck  with  that  fact,  %vhicli  must  have  been  narrated  to  him  by 

one  of  the  spectators,  and  his  simple  remark  is  that  they  were 

white  "as  no  fuller  on  earth  can  white  them."     This  was  the 

first  stage  of  the  marvel.     Then  two  unknoAvn  men  stood  with 

him.      They  entered   into   solemn   discourse   with   Jesus.      The 

disciples  learned   from  the   lofty  conversation  that  these  were 

Moses  and  Elias,  the  founder  and  the  defender  of  the  theocracy. 

They   spoke   to   Jesus   about    his   death,  which  was   shortly  to 

occur. 

It  was  an  awful  time  to  the  disciples.  It  seemed  to  flash  upon 
Peter's  mind  that  Jesus  was  now  about  to  declare  openly  that 
Messiahship  of  his  which  Peter  had  so  recently 
confessed ;  that  on  this  mount  he  was  about  to  fix  Peter's  conjec- 
the  seat  of  his  empire,  with  Moses  and  Elijah 
as  his  prime  ministers.  It  was  the  prevalent  belief  of  the  Jews 
that  Elijah  was  to  precede  and  herald  the  Messiah,  bring  back 
the  pot  of  manna  and  Aaron's  rod,  settle  the  controversies 
between  the  Jewish  schools,  purify  the  people  by  some  lustration, 
and  hand  the  nation  over  to  King  Messiah.  lie  seemed  now 
about  to  begin  this  grand  inauguration.  But  then,  on  the  in- 
stant, he  and  Moses  retire.  Peter,  in  his  general  confusion 
and  fright,  blunders  out  a  request  to  Jesus  to  be  permitted  to 
erect  there  such  booths  as  the  Jews  were  accustomed  to  put 
up  in  a  temporary  style  for  their  Feasts  of  Tabernacles,  so  that 
Moses  and  Elijah  might  remain  with  Jesus  and  carry  forward  the 
great  work. 

Before  Jesus  made  any  response  a  bright  cloud  encircled  them, 
and  the  disciples  were  sore  amazed  and  frightened  as  they  en- 
tered the  cloud.     A  new  marvel  broke  on  them. 
A  voice   sounded   from   the   brightness,  saying,  ^  voice. 

"  This  is  my  Son,  the  Beloved,  in  whom  I  am  well  pleased : 
hear  liim."  The  disciples  fell  on  their  faces,  and  remained  so 
until  Jesus  came  and  touched  them  and  encouraged  them  to 
arise,  when  they  found  that  they  were  alone  with  Jesus. 

Whatever  theory  may  be  adopted  as  to  this  history,  the  effects 


430   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

upon  the  minds  of  the  disciples  is  the  important  consideration : 
whether  it  was  a  vision  which  all  three  saw  consentaneously,  in 

all  its  parts,  in  a  dream,  or  whether,  being  awake, 
Inflnenceonthe  ^.  ^^^^^  -^^  g^^^j^  ^  i^hvsical,  intellectual,  and 
disciples.  i.    ^  ^ 

spiritual  state  as,  all  together,  to  have  witnessed 

these  phenomena,  it  is  certain  that  there  were  impressions  made 
upon  them  which  had  great  influence  subsequently  upon  theii 
character  and  conduct.  The  surpassing  glory  of  Jesus,  his  con- 
sistency with  the  law  and  the  prophets,  the  subjection  of  Moses 
and  Elijah  to  Jesus,  his  suffering  of  death  not  vitiating  his  claims 
to  the  Messiahship,  were  certainly  represented  with  gi-eat  power 
to  the  minds  of  these  three  representative  and  influential  disci- 
ples, and  by  them  brought  to  bear  upon  the  whole  body  of  the 
nearest  followei-s  of  Jesus. 

But  still  there  were  two  perplexities  created  by  this  vision  and 
by  the  words  of  their  Master.  One  was  the  "  being  raised  again 
from  the  dead,"  as  applied  to  Jesus.  If  he  were 
perp  exity.  ^^^^  Mcssias,  how  could  he  die  ?  How  could  death 
have  power  over  a  being  so  glorious  that  the  effulgence  of  his 
person  rendered  his  very  garments  glistening  ?  They  never  did 
find  a  satisfactory  solution  of  that  problem  through  the  whole 
life-time  of  their  Master.  That  he  was  in  some  mysterious  man- 
ner to  accomplish  at  Jerusalem  something  which  might  be  repre- 
sented as  a  death,  they  had  gathered  from  the  conversation  of 
Moses  and  Elijah ;  but  that  he  should  really  depart  this  life  by 
dying,  being  virtually  murdered,  and  that  his  spirit  should  come 
back  to  that  same  mangled  body  and  lift  it  from  the  grave,  and 
go  about  in  it  as  if  he  had  never  died,  is  a  series  of  thoughts 
which  seems  never  to  have  entered  their  minds. 

Their  second  trouble  was  to  reconcile  the  fact  that  they  had 
seen  Elijah  leave  Jesus,  apparently  not  to  return,  with  the  predic- 
tion of  ]\[alachi  (iv.  5,  G)  that  Elijah  must  fii-st 

not  er    per-     ^^^^^^q     which,  as  their  relif'ious  instructoi-s  had 

plenty.  '  '  ®  ,  , 

taught  them  to  believe,  meant  that  the  personal 

appearance  of  the  pr()})lR't  Elijah  was  to  i)rocodo  that  of  the  Mcs- 
sias. Here  he  had  shown  himself  to  only  three  of  the  disci- 
ples, and  not  to  the  body  of  the  people ;  and  instead  of  preceding 
Jesus,  had  really  a})i>cared  to  no  one  mitil  this  late  pcri(xl  in  the 
ministry  of  Jesus.  Their  Master  gave  them  to  undei-stand  that 
John  the  Baptist  had  fulfilled  all  predictions  of  a  forerunner  j 


THE   TKANSFIGUEATION.  431 

that  he  had  preceded  Jesus  with  the  power  of  Elijah,  and  had 
been  slaughtered,  and  that  the  fate  of  the  Baptist  prefigured  the 
sufferings  which  he  himself  was  to  endure.  His  own  approach- 
ing death  by  violence  seemed  as  plain  before  his  eyes  as  that  of 
John,  which  had  already  been  accomplished. 

After  these  wonderful  revelations  Jesus  enjoined  silence  on  the 
three  witnesses.  We  can  readily  conjecture  good  reasons  for  this. 
They  had  become  so  affected  by  this  interview  that  they  could 
carry  the  moral  influence  into  the  whole  body  of  the  disciples 
without  the  description  of  phenomena  wliich  might  give  rise  to 
perplexing  and  inharmonious  discussions.  Everything  was  to  be 
done  which  should  suppress  the  sensuous  Messianic  expectations 
of  his  followers.  The  very  criticism  made  on  this  transaction  by 
such  men  as  Paulus  and  Yenturini  and  Strauss  in  modem  days, 
shows  just  the  spirit  with  which  the  narrative  of  such  lofty  scenes 
and  experiences  would  have  been  met  by  the  multitude  and  by 
the  learned  men  of  that  time,  who  were  generally  coarse,  skepti- 
cal, and  profane.  When  no  good  can  possibly  come  of  speaking, 
and  much  evil  may,  it  is  wisdom  to  keep  silence. 

Immediately  upon  the  descent  from  the  mountain  occurred  a 
scene  which  stands  in  contrast  witli  the  lofty  splendor  of    the 
Transfiguration.     Jesus  came  to  the  nine  disci- 
ples whom  he  had  left  behind,  and  found  them  in  ^^^'^t.u-,-  ^' 
■^                                                          ^    '                                             sarea     Pmlippi. 

great  trouble  and  perplexity,  and  the  hostile  Mark  ix.  •  Matt. 
Scribes  vexing  them  with  questions,  and  the  ^^^- ;  I-^e  ix. 
multitude  about  them  in  a  tumult.  But  there 
must  have  been  something  in  the  natural  dignity  of  the  person 
of  Jesus,  and  perhaps  on  this  occasion  some  reminiscence  of  the 
glory  wherewith  he  had  shone  on  the  eyes  of  his  three  disciples 
in  the  Mount ;  for  the  people  were  amazed  at  his  appearance,  and 
ran  towards  him  and  saluted  him.  He  asked  them,  "Wliydo 
ye  question  among  yourselves?  "  The  disciples  gave  no  answer, 
nor  the  Scribes.  The  former  were  ashamed  of  their  weakness 
in  the  absence  of  their  Master,  and  the  latter  feared  his  power 
now  that  he  was  present.  The  question,  however,  was  soon  an- 
swered by  a  man  from  the  crowd,  who  came  forward  and  kneeled 
do^vn  before  Jesus,  and  said  :  "  Teacher,  I  have  brought  to  thee 
my  son,  mine  only  child,  who  has  a  dumb  spirit ;  and  where  it 
seizes  him  it  tears  him,  and  he  suddenly  cries  out  and  foams,  and 
gnashes  with  his  teeth,  and  pines  away,  and  the  spirit  with  diffi- 


432        THE   THIED    PASSOVER   TO    THE    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 

culty  departs  from  him  ;  for  he  is  a  lunatic  and  sore  vexed.  And 
I  spoke  to  thy  disciples  that  thej  should  cast  him  out ;  and  they 
could  not." 

Here  was  the  whole  case,  Mith  all  its  difficulties,  revealed. 
Here  was  a  spectacle  of  mental  and  physical  wretchedness,  an 
epileptic  and  lunatic  youth,  whom  the  disciples 
e  emomac  |^,^^  ^^^^  power  to  heal ;  and  because  they  failed 
when  they  tried,  the  party  antagonistic  to  Jesus 
had  stirred  up  the  multitude  to  profane  skepticism,  and  perhaps 
to  taunts,  rejecting  the  Master  in  the  persors  of  the  disciples,  who, 
under  these  jeers,  on  account  of  their  weakness,  grew  still  more 
impotent.  The  contrast  with  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration  was 
violent.  Hafaelle's  great  picture  in  the  Vatican  presents  to  the 
eye  the  idea  of  the  contrast,  but  fails  to  express  it  all.  The 
Mount  was  bright  and  warm,  and  full  of  celestial  health  and  har- 
monies, but  here  in  the  plain  were  physical  disease  and  mental 
disorder,  and  darkness,  and  clang  of  discordant  voices  and  pas- 
sions. It  smote  from  tlin  sensitiveness  of  Jesus  the  expression : 
"  O  faithless  generation,  how  long  shall  I  be  with  you  ?  How 
long  shall  I  suffer  you  ? "  What  long  pent  up  agony  suspired  in 
that  groan  !  He  had  lived  to  teach  them  that  faith  in  God  was 
evcrvthinfr  as  a  basis  of  character  and  as  an  encrfry  of  life  :  and 
it  all  seemed  to  come  to  nothing.  He  knew  the  power  and  good- 
ness of  God  so  well  that  want  of  tinist  in  Him  on  the  part  of 
others  gave  Jesus  the  greatest  suffering.  He  could  not  endure  it. 
It  was  not  the  sins  into  which  their  passions  betrayed  them  that 
was  most  grievous,  but  the  lack  of  faith  which  allowed  their  pas- 
sions such  power  over  their  lives. 

"  Bring  him  to  me,"  he  said.     And  as  they  brouglit  him  the 

boy  had  another  fit,  and  he  fell  and  wallowed  foaming.      And 

Jesus  asked  the  father:  ''How  long  since  this 
Bronght  to  Jesus.     ,  ^        ^  •      n  •,■,       a      ■>  t  ^  i        /  tt 

happened  to  mm  i        And  lie  answered  :    "  rrora 

a  child  : — and  often  it  has  cast  him  into  the  fire  and  into  the  wa- 
ters, that  it  might  destroy  him ;  but  if  thou  art  able,  have  com- 
passion on  us  and  help  us."  Jesus  replied  :  "  If  //loic  art  able  ! — 
all  things  are  possible  to  him  who  believes."  There  may  be  a 
doubt  as  to  the  precise  shade  of  meaning  which  Jesus  attached  to 
tbeso  words.  The  emphasis  makes  great  difference.  "  7/  thou 
art  able  !"  would  be  (pioting  the  man's  words  and  rebuking  him 
for  the  implication  of  inability  on  the  part  of  Jesus.     Repeating 


THE   TRANSFIGTJEATION.  433 

the  man's  words  without  any  emphasizing  would  be  to  say:  "It 
is  not  a  question  of  ability,  physical  or  intellectual,  but  purely  of 
faith ;  if  I  have  faith  enough  I  can  do  this ;  if  my  disciples  had 
had  faith  enough  they  might  have  done  it."  Both  these  mean- 
ings may  be  in  the  speech  of  Jesus,  but  I  think  that  over  them 
predominates  the  sense  given  by  the  words  when  emphasized  as 
above :  "  If  thou — the  father  of  the  child — art  able."  No  faith 
on  the  part  of  Jesus  would  have  availed  if  the  man  remained  un- 
believing :  and, — faith  is  strength.  "  If  thou  art  able  "  to  believe 
— is  the  reply  to  "  If  thou  art  able "  to  cure.  It  is  only  the 
repetition  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  that  the  greatest  power  of 
humanity  lies  in  its  trust  in  the  Father  God,  that  this  gives  a  man 
control  over  all  the  possibilities  of  the  universe,  and  that  things 
become  possible  to  men  in  proportion  to  their  faith  ;  that  as  a  man 
extends  the  radius  of  his  faith  he  enlarges  the  circle  of  his  possi- 
bilities. Faith  and  Love,  in  the  system  of  Jesus,  are  the  two  great 
wings  which  bear  a  man  upward  through  the  universe  to  the 
highest  attainments  and  enjoyments. 

The  father  must  have  felt  that  there  w^as  some  rebuke  in  the 
reply  of  Jesus.  He  burst  into  tears  and  said :  "  Sir,  I  believe ; 
do  thou  help  mine  unbelief."     This  is  at  once  so 

natural,  so  simple,  and  so  profound,  that  every  .  ®      ^    er  a 

,  f  \    \        ^      .  .  .         emotions. 

reader  must  reel  that  he  is  perusing  a  narrative 

of  actual  events.     The  father  believed  that  his  unbelief  was  in 

the  way  of  the  healing  of  his  child  ;  he  believed  that  Jesus  could 

do  something  to  destroy  that  unbelief ;  he  prayed  him  to  do  it, 

so  that  at  once  his  infidelity  and  his  child's  malady  might  be 

cured.     If  it  was  not  the  voice,  it  was  at  least  the  echo  of  faith. 

It  was  enough. 

By  this  time  the  people  had  begun  to  run  together.     He  made 

no  prayer,  but  said  authoritatively,  "  Dumb  and   deaf   spirit,   I 

charge  thee  come  out  of  him,  and  enter  no  more 

.,,.,,       4      1     1     •   1  .  11        •  ,1  Jesus  heals  the 

into  him.       And  shrieking,  and    having  greatly    ^ 

convulsed  him,  it  left ;    and  the   boy   lay  as  if 

he  were  dead,  so  much  so  that  some  of  the  spectators  pronounced 

him  dead.     But  Jesus  took  his  hand  and  raised  him ;  and  he 

stood  up. 

Wlien  they  entered  the  house,  his  disciples  privately  asked  him 

the  cause  of  their  failure.     He  plainly  traced  it  to  their  lack  of 

faith.     They  then  prayed,  "  Lord,  increase  our  faith."     Ilis  reply 

28 


434       THE   TUIKD   PASSOVER   TO    THE   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 

was,  "  If  you  have  faith  as  a  grain  of  mustard,  ye  might  sav  to 

this  sycamine  tree,  '  Be  rooted  up  and  planted  in  the  sea,'  and  it 

would  have  obeyed  you ;  or  to  tliis  mountain, '  Re- 

y     e      ci-    jjiove  hence  yonder,' and  it  should  obey  you.     And 
pies  could  not.  i  ■  i 

nothing  should  be  impossible  to  you."     He  also 

said  to  them,  "  This  kind  can  come  forth  by  nothing  except  by 
prayer."  It  was  a  strong  expression  of  the  value  attached  to  faith 
by  Jesus.  Stier  seldom  said  a  more  sensible  thing  than  his  com- 
ment on  this  passage.  "  Faith  cannot  make  it  its  concern,  in  a 
literal  sense,  to  be  removing  mountains  of  the  earth.  But  if  it 
could  be,  and  ought  to  be  its  concern,  then  faith  would  be  able 
really  [literally]  to  remove  mountains,"  All  the  possibilities  are 
within  the  reach  of  faith.  But  if  a  man  have  not  faith,  even  the 
possiljilities  become  impossibilities.  The  remo^dng  of  material 
mountains  is  a  matter  of  small  moment.  It  would  be  curious  to 
stand  on  a  peak  of  the  Alps,  and  see  a  spur  of  the  mountain  lifted 
by  a  ^vord  and  set  down  quietly  in  a  Swiss  lake  ;  but  it  would  be 
nothing  more,  Kothing  useful,  or  beautiful,  or  profitable  would 
be  in  it,  A  man  who  takes  from  his  fellow-men  a  mountain  of 
doubt,  of  intellectual  and  spiritual  difficulty,  is  greater,  does  a 
grander,  M'iser,  better,  lovelier  thing.  Very  cun-ently  in  the 
school  of  the  Rabbins  was  a  remover  of  such  difficulties  finelj 
f.alled  "  An  Uprooter  of  mountains." 


CHAPTER   lY. 


LAST  DATS   IN   GALILEE. 


To  such  a  pitch  had  risen  the  opposition  to  Jesus  that  he  no 

longer  dared  to  show  himself  openly  along  the  high-roads,  lest 

his  life  and  his  ministry  should  be  brought  to  a 

sudden  termination  by  violence.     He  could  not  go      Through  North- 
1  ,.iTi  o  •         -1X1  em  Galilee.  Mark 

down  to  the  lake,     oo,  crossing  the  Jordan  near    .        -^  ., 

'  o  IX.  ;   Matt.  xvii.  ; 

its  source,  by  field-paths  and  through  byways  Luke  ix. 
he  went  with  his  disciples  through  Upper  Galilee. 
In  Gaulonitis  he  had  declared  to  his  nearest  and  most  trusted 
disciples  that  his  end  was  approaching,  and  that  it  was  to  be  one 
of  great  shame  and  pain.  But  there  were  scattered  throughout 
Galilee  quite  a  body  of  people  who  in  such  measure  believed 
on  him  that  they  might  be  called  disciples.  To  these,  "  of  whom 
a  nucleus  of  more  than  five  hundred  brethren  survived  the  trial 
of  the  cross,"  he  now  made  the  same  announcement  in  plain  lan- 
guage, saying,  "  The  Son  of  Man  is  being  delivered  into  the  hands 
of  men,  and  they  will  kill  him  ;  and  when  he  is  killed,  after  three 
days  he  shall  arise."  Here  was  an  open  prediction  of  a  violent 
death,  and  of  a  resurrection  after  a  certain  specified  time.  And 
yet  they  could  not  understand  it.  They  could  see  no  necessity 
for  it.  It  was  so  contrary  to  all  their  expectations,  to  his  great 
power  and  mighty  M'orks,  that  his  death  was  utterly  incompre- 
hensible. The  resurrection  was  totally  unintelligible.  And  they 
were  af laid  to  ask  him  what  this  saying  meant ;  but  it  was  a  sad- 
ness and  a  sorrow  to  them. 

We  do  not  know  how  long  this  journey  was,  nor  what  spots  of 
Northern  Galilee  he  visited.  It  was  manifestly  not  intended  to 
be  a  circuit  of  preaching,  but  a  season  to  be  spent  in  instructing 
his  disciples,  especially  in  the  matter  of  his  great  trial,  which  he 
saw  approaching. 

After  some  time  he  brought  his  disciples  to  Capernaum.  On 
their  arrival,  Peter,  wht)  ^vas  the  most  demonstrative,  and  there- 


436   THE  THIRD  PASSOVER  TO  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES. 

fore  the  most  conspicuous  of  tlie  little  band,  was  a})plied  to  by 

the  collectors  of  the  didrachms.  This  didrachm  (or  double-drachm) 

was  of  about  the  value  of  thirty  American  cents 

tr  ^.  ^™  "  ^     in  ffold,  and  was  the  half-shekel  tribute  to  the  Tem- 
tax.    Matt.  xvn.  .  •      -ri 

pie  mentioned  in  Exodus  xxx,  13.     Every  Jew 

acknowledged  it.  Even  during  the  Babylonish  captivity  it  was 
conscientiously  and  punctually  paid.  It  was  not,  then,  a  tax  to 
the  Roman  government,  for  it  had  been  collected  long  anterior 
to  the  Roman  rule.  Jesus  had  been  absent  from  his  home,  and 
now,  upon  his  return  to  Capernaum,  being  in  arrears,  as  this 
money  had  been  due  since  the  previous  March,  it  was  expected 
that  he  would  attend  to  it.  And  yet  there  was  something  so  excep- 
tional in  his  character  and  history  that  the  collector  hardly  dared 
to  approach  Jesus  on  the  subject,  but  preferred  to  speak  to  his 
disciples.  After  he  had  passed  into  the  house,  they  said  to  Peter, 
"  Does  not  your  Teacher  pay  the  didrachm  ? "  As  all  paid  it, 
Peter  supposed  of  course  that  Jesus  would,  and,  generally  blun- 
derinjr,  often  throu2:h  his  gushino:  earnestness  and  generositv,  he 
said,  "  Yes."  Perhaps  he  felt  that  his  Teaclier's  honor  was  at 
stake,  and,  forgetting  what  he  had  a  short  time  ago  confessed, 
that  Jesus  was  the  Son  of  the  living  God,  and  thus,  as  Jesus 
declared  of  himself,  greater  than  the  Temple,  he  had  placed  his 
Master  in  the  difficulty  of  confessing  himself  to  be  liable  to  Tem- 
ple-tribute, or  of  taking  a  position  in  which  offence  would  be 
given  where  no  good  could  be  done. 

When  Peter  entered  the  house,  Jesus  said  to  him,  "  "Wliat  think- 

est  thou,  Simon  ?     From  whom  do  the  kings  of  the  earth  receive 

tariff  or  poll-tax,  of  their  own  sons  or  of  others  ?" 

Why    J  e  8  us    p^^^^  answered,  "  Of  others."     Of  course  a  prince 

Bhould  not  pay  it.  '  ... 

of  blood  royal  would  not  pay  a  capitation-tax ! 

"  Therefore  the  sons  are  free,"  responded  Jesus.  Peter  must 
have  heard  in  the  words  and  tone  a  very  deep  meaning.  Jesus 
claimed  to  be  a  son  of  Jehovah  in  a  sense  in  which  no  other  Jew, 
and  therefore  no  other  human  being,  could  utter  the  claim.  He 
was  a  son,  free  in  his  Father's  house.  Other  men  might  pay 
Temple-tax,  but  surely  not  he.  The  admission  of  Peter,  the  logi- 
cal connection  of  which  that  disciple  did  not  perceive,  took  back 
his  former  coiLfession  and  reduced  Jesus  to  the  level  of  an  itiner- 
ant teacher. 

From  this  predicament  his  Master  relieved  him,  saying,  "  But, 


LAST   DATS    IN   GALILEE. 


437 


LYSIMACHUS. 


that  we  may  not  offend  them,  go  to  the  lake  and  cast  a  hook,  and 

take  the  first  fish  that  comes  up  ;  upon  opening  its  mouth  tliou 

shalt   find   a   stater;    take 

that,  and  give  it  to  tliem 

for  me  and  thee."     It  is  to 

be  presumed  that  Peter  did 

so,  else  the  nar^-ative  would 

have  found  no  place  in  the 

history.     The  stater  was  a 

coin  equal  to  the  Hebrew 

shekel,  about  sixty  American  cents  gold,  and  was  therefore  two 

double  didrachms  :  it  paid  for  two.      But  it  is  to  be  noticed  that 

while  Jesus  put  himself  into  brotherhood  and  sympathy  with  his 

disciples,  there  is  always  a  dignified  reserve.     He  does  not  say, 

"  Give  it  for  us ;  "  but  "  for  ine  and  for  tlieeP 

This  was  a  miracle  or  nothing.     It  was  at  least  a  miracle  of 

knowledge,  being  out  of  the  usual  methods  in  which  knowledge  is 

gained.     It  was  not  a  creation.     There  was  no 

need  of  that.     And  Jesus  never  created  before    ,  ^  miracle   of 
1  f  TT     T  1  ^       ^  •       knowledge, 

the  eyes  or  men.     He  did  not  make  tlie  money  m 

the  fish.  The  fish  had  swallowed  it.  He  knew  it,  and  knew  that 
it  would  come  to  Peter's  hook.  And  it  came.  The  tax  was  paid. 
It  is  quite  easy  to  say  that  this  was  a  selfish  act,  that  it  was  ex- 
erted for  his  personal  benefit,  and  that  it  was  undignified  and  un- 
necessary. It  occurred.  There  is  nothing  else  undignified,  and 
unnecessary,  and  selfish  in  this  man's  life.  To  have  paid  this 
special  tax  would  have  been  to  surrender  what  he  had  claimed, 
and  to  let  his  disciples  down  from  the  high  place  to  which  he  had 
been  so  long  engaged  in  lifting  them.  As  the  Son  of  God,  in  a 
sense  higher  than  any  which  can  be  claimed  by  any  other,  which 
is  manifestly  what  he  thought  and  taught  himself  to  be,  he  sliould 
not  pay  the  Temple-tax.  Kings  do  not  tax  princes  of  the  blood 
royal.  As  God's  Only  Begotten  he  was  free  in  his  Father's 
house.  Nevertheless,  as  it  M'ould  have  been  most  imprudent  to 
plant  himself  on  that  claim  at  this  juncture  of  his  history,  and  as 
Peter  had  pledged  the  payment  of  this  tax,  he  performed  this 
miracle,  which  at  once  meets  the  case  and  declares  his  superiority 
to  other  men. 

Several  circumstances  now  combined  to  increase  in  the  disci- 
ples the  rigor  of  their  anticipations  of  a  sensuous  Messianic  reign. 


438      THE  Tiirnn  tassovee  to  the  feast  of  tabernacles. 

Jesus  had  told  them  that  the  end  approached.     The  intimatione 

of  the  darkness  and    sorrow  that   aM-aitcd  him,  with   which  he 

accompanied  this  prediction,  seem  to  have  mada 

Messianic  hopes;    little  impression  upon  them.     The  Messiah  was 

^.    V^','      *..  ■    to  reif'n.     All  sorrows  would  be  like  the  mom- 
xvui. ;  Luke  ivii. ,     ,  *-' 

jjy  ing  cloud  before  the  rising  sun.     Tlie  Transfigura- 

tion, the  miracle  of  the  stater  in  the  fish's  mouth, 
comljined  with  the  ground  he  took  as  to  his  non-liability  to  be 
taxed,  made  them  feel  that  the  kingdom  had  in  some  sense  been 
set  up,  and  that  the  time  of  the  distribution  of  honoi-s  must  be 
approaching.  Certain  things  had  excited  their  vanity.  Peter 
had  received  special  commendation  for  his  confession.  Peter  and 
.Tames  and  John  had  been  taken  to  witness  the  splendors  of  the 
Transfiguration.  A  miracle  had  been  performed  by  which  money 
had  been  procured  to  pay  Peter's  Temple-tax.  Poor  human 
nature  could  not  endure  all  this,  and  so  they  fell  into  a  dis- 
pute in  regard  to  the  Primacy.  Wlien  they  reached  the  pres- 
ence of  Jesiis  they  were  flushed  with  the  excitement  of  the 
discussion.  Matthew  says  that  they  came  and  submitted  the 
question  to  Jesus.  Mai-k  says  that  Jesus  perceived  the  thought 
of  their  hearts.  Their  very  visages  plainly  told  of  the  alter- 
cation they  had  had.  He  cpiestioned  them  as  to  wluit  had  been 
the  subject  of  dispute.  They  were  silent  with  shame.  But  he 
pushed  them  to  a  reply,  and  they  said  that  they  had  been  dis- 
puting on  the  question,  "  AVlio  is  the  greater  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  ? " 

Here  was  the  spint  of  chuix'hism  cropping  out,  with  its  official 

distinctions  and  strucfo-les  for  office,  which  have  been  the  curse  of 

religionists  in  all  ages.    It  was  a  fitting  time  to 

The  rule  of  pre-    gj^^^^  j^^^^  ^^^^^  kingdom  of  the  heavens  which  he 

preached,  the  limitless  field  and  perpetual  dura- 
tion of  principles  of  right,  was  set  against  everything  that  sa- 
vored of  churchism.  There  were  to  be  no  distinctions  in  that 
kingdom,  no  officers,  no  primacies.  He  called  the  twelve  out, 
and  laid  down  to  them  this  principle  :  "  If  any  man  desire  to  be 
first,  the  same  shall  be  last  of  all,  and  servant  of  all ;"  as  much  as 
to  say,  profoundest  humility  and  most  extensive  usefulness  con- 
stitute the  only  ground  of  distinction  in  the  kingdom  of  the 
heavens.  The  distinctions  there  are  of  character  and  not  of 
oflScc. 


LAST   DATS   IN   GALILEE. 


439 


A  little  child. 


John's  frank 
confession. 


To  impress  this  he  took  a  little  child  *  and  set  him  in  the  midst 
of  them,  and  when  he  had  taken  the  boy  in  his  arms  he  said  to 
his  disciples,  "  Unless  yon  shall  be  changed,  and 
become  as  little  children,  you  shall  not  enter  into 
the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  Whosoever,  therefore,  shall  humble 
himself  as  this  child,  he  is  the  greatest  in  the  kingdom  of  the 
heavens.  Wliosoever  shall  receive  one  of  these  children  in  my 
name  receiveth  me,  and  whosoever  shall  receive  me,  receiveth  not 
me,  but  him  that  sent  me." 

This  reminded  John  of  something.  The  wideness  of  this 
catholic  speech  condemned  a  little  act  of  sectarian  meanness  into 
which  the  disciples  had  been  betrayed.  It  was 
frank  in  John  to  say,  "  Teacher,  we  saw  one  cast- 
ing out  demons  in  thy  name,  and  we  forbade  him, 
because  he  followeth  not  us."  It  was  a  most  naive  confession.  It 
was  an  exhibition  of  denominationalism,  sectarianism,  churchism, 
in  its  very  essence,  but  in  its  best  manner.  It  gave  Jesus  an  op- 
portunity to  make  a  speech  that  ought  to  make  any  man  blush  to 
acknowledge  himself  a  churchman,  and  in  the  same  breath  claim 
to  be  a  Christian.  Jesus  said  :  "  Forbid  him  not ;  for  there  is  no 
one  who  shall  do  a  mighty  work  in  my  name  and  be  able  lightly 
to  speak  evil  of  me.  For  he  that  is  not  against  us  is  for  us.  And 
whosoever  shall  offend  one  of  these  little  ones  believing  in  me,  it 
were  better  for  him  that  a  millstone  were  hung  upon  his  neck 
and  that  he  were  sunk  in  the  depth  of  the  sea.  Woe  unto  the 
world  from  causes  of  offence  !  For  it  must  needs  be  that  offences 
come ;  but  woe  to  the  man  by  whom  the  offence  comes.  For  every 
one  shall  be  salted  with  fire.  Salt  is  good ;  but  if  the  salt  have 
become  saltless,  with  what  will  you  season  it  ?  Have  salt  in  your- 
selves, and  have  peace  one  with  another.  See  that  ye  despise  not 
one  of  these  little  ones ;  for  I  say  unto  you.  Their  angels  in  the 
heavens  always  behold  the  face  of  my  Father  in  the  heavens." 

The  connection  seems  to  be  this :  Forbid  no  one.  The  doing 
of  any  good  thing  is  suflScient  authority  for  the  doing.  Do  not  dis- 
com-age  that  follower  of  mine  who  follows  me  even  at  the  greatest 


•  There  is  a  church  tradition  that  this 
child  was  Ignatius,  who  afterward  be- 
came a  martyr.  But  there  seems  to  be 
really  no  proof  of  this.  The  lack  of 
such  personal  distinctions  as  minister  to 


individual  vanity  is  very  striking  in  the 
absence  of  the  names  of  many  parties 
mentioned  in  the  Scripture  histories. 
Where  there  is  no  high  moral  reason  fot 
it,  no  name  is  ever  mentioned. 


440       THE   THIRD   PASSOVER   TO    THE    FEAST   OF    TABERNACLES. 

distance  and  with  the  least  faith.  Schism  is  a  great  evil,  and 
schismatics  greatly  to  be  condemned.  But  who  are  schismatics  1 
Those  who  are  driven  from  a  church  because  they 
will  not  yield  the  truth  ?  No,  but  those  who  drive 
them  forth.  The  doom  of  a  destroyer  of  faith  is  terrible.  Incen- 
tives to  defection  will  naturally  occur,  but  woe  to  the  man  who 
makes  them.  Those  who  follow  me  will  be  subjected  to  severe 
trial.  As  every  sacrifice  before  being  presented  to  God  is  sprin- 
kled with  salt,  so  each  of  my  disciples  is  to  be  salted  with  fiery 
trials.  Salt  is  a  syinbol  of  spiritual  preservation.  Have  this 
spiritual  life  in  you.  If  it  be  gone  you  are  worthless.  Have  a 
keen,  shai-p,  active  spiritual  life  in  yourselves  as  individuals,  and 
be  at  peace  among  yourselves.  Have  life.  Let  othei-s  have  life. 
Strive  not  at  all  for  pre-eminence,  but  very  much  for  inner  life. 
And  see  that  you  do  not  despise  one  of  these  little  ones.  The 
angels  in  heaven  are  like  them.  God  sees  in  the  angels  the 
counterpart  of  His  humblest,  simplest  children.  And,  perhaps, 
he  also  meant  that  to  those  angels  He  commits  the  kee})ing  of 
little  children  and  of  child-like  men. 

In  this  connection  Jesus  continued  to  teach  them,  and  said  : 
"  Moreover,  take  heed  to  yourselves ;  if  your  brother  shall  tres- 
pass, go  and  tell  him  his  fault  between  you  and  him  alone  ;  if  he 
shall  hear  you,  you  have  gained  your  brother.  But  if  he  Avill  not 
hear  you,  take  with  yourself  one  or  two,  that  by  the  mouth  of 
two  or  three  witnesses  every  word  may  be  established.  And  if 
he  neglect  to  hear  them,  tell  it  to  the  congregation  ;  *  but  if  he 
neglect  to  hear  the  congregation,  let  him  be  to  you  as  a  heathen  f 
and  a  tax-gatherer.  Yerily  I  say  to  you,  AVliatsoever  ye  shall 
bind  upon  the  earth,  shall  be  bound  in  the  heavens  ;  and  whatso- 
ever ye  shall  loose  upon  the  earth,  shall  be  loosed  in  heaven. 
Again  I  say  unto  you.  That  if  two  of  you  shall  agree  ujion  earth 
about  asking  anything,  it  shall  be  done  for  them  by  my  Father  in 
the  heavens  ;  for  where  two  or  three  are  gathered  together  in  my 
name,  there  I  am  in  the  midst  of  them." 

In  this  teaching  of  the  method  of  mending  breaches  of  fra- 
temali  fidelity  Jesus  uttere  Bome  verv  profound 
HeaUiig  breaches.    ^^^^^^^^      ^^^.^^  ^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^  ^^  ^  congregation  of  fol- 
lowers of  Jesus.    One  is  offended  bv  his  brother.     I>et  him  not,  in 


•  See  what  was  said  on  the  transla-  I      f  'VNTiich  means  one  of  another  na- 
tion of  this  word,  page  420.  I  tion,  a  Gentile. 


LAST   DAYS    IN    GALILEE.  441 

turn,  be  an  offender,  but  let  bim  bring  personal  kindness  to  bear 
upon  tbe  offender  for  bis  restoration.  It  may  prevail,  and  greater 
love  come  tban  existed  before.  But  the  offender  may  be  incor- 
rigible. Let  tbe  offended  take  two  witnesses,  other  brethren,  so 
that  this  scandal  may  be  kept  from  spreading,  if  possible,  and  so 
that  if  one  continue  to  be  offensi^•e  while  the  other  is  peaceable, 
it  may  be  known  which  is  the  offender.  If  he  shall  continue  un- 
appeasable, take  the  case  to  the  congregation.  If  the  voice  of  the 
brotherhood  be  disregarded,  then  the  offender  may  be  to  the  of- 
fended as  if  he  were  an  "  outsider,"  a  Gentile,  and  a  tax-gatherer, 
that  is  to  say,  no  longer  an  object  of  fraternal  confidence,  but  a 
subject  for  missionary  zeal ;  certainly  not  a  person  to  be  hated, 
for  the  whole  teaching  of  Jesus  and  his  whole  conduct  taught  a 
different  lesson.  He  received  tax-gatherers  and  sinners,  and  ate 
with  them. 

Xow,  whatever  profound  principle  may  underlie  the  declaration 
of  what  is  bound  upon  earth  being  bound  in  heaven,  that  princi- 
ple Jesus  applies  to  every  believer,  to  all  the  dis-    ^  „ 

•  1  1  A  1  two  JlgTCG. 

ciples,  to  his  congregation,  and  not  to  the  Apostles 
alone.  That  the  whole  essence  of  modern  churchism  and  of  an- 
cient hierarchism  are  totally  absent ;  that  the  "  power  of  the  keys," 
as  it  is  called,  belongs  not  to  any  officials  as  such,  but  to  all  Chris- 
tians as  such,  appears  from  the  statement  of  Jesus,  "  If  two  of  you 
shall  agree  upon  earth  about  asking  anything,  it  shall  be  done  for 
them  by  my  Father  in  the  heavens  ;  "  and  from  the  reason  which 
he  assigns  for  this,  namely,  "  For  where  two  or  three  are  gathered 
together  in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the  midst  of  them."  These 
seem  to  be  among  the  profoundest  utterances  and  the  loftiest 
claims  of  Jesus.  Wherever  two  souls  exist,  to  both  of  whom  some- 
thing is  equally  necessary,  and  necessary  above  everything  else, 
so  that  they  go  to  the  heavenly  Father  with  this  united  and  para 
mount  petition,  it  will  be  granted.  It  cannot  be  a  trifling,  earthly, 
temporary,  egotistic  thing  ;  it  must  be  something  that  takes  hold 
of  eternity.  If  such  a  thing  be  asked  it  will  be  granted,  because 
nothing  contrary  to  God's  will  can,  under  such  circumstances,  be 
requested.  The  only  permanent  platform  of  union  fur  any  two 
souls  lies  high  up  among  the  loftiest  things  of  eternity. 

His  idea  of  a  true  church  now  comes  out.  It  is  not  a  hierarchy. 
It  does  not  rest  on  officials.  Any  two  souls  together,  united  in 
the  name  of  Jesus,  make  a  church,  with  all  powers  and  functions ; 


442       THE   THIRD    rA.«>OVEIi   TO    THE    FEAST   OF    TABERNACLES. 


for  there  i<  witli  tlicm  always  a  third,  and  tliat  pei'son  is  Jesus. 

There  may  be  a  true  church  without  bishops,  elders,  and  deacons. 

The  fountain  of  spiritual  power  and  authority  is 

1  ea  0    a     always  present  where  two  souls  are  spiritually  con- 

true  church.  .     .         ,         ^•^^^        it  1  11  "t     . 

joined.  Whether  Jesus  makes  good  these  claims 
is  a  question  for  individual  spiritual  experiences;  but  that  he  did 
make  the  claims  is  simply  what  we  must  record  as  history ;  and 
this  fact  tears  from  the  teaching  of  Jesus  all  that  men  have  in- 
serted therein  whereon  to  build  ecclesiasticism,denominationalism, 
sectarianism,  and  whatever  wc^uld  give  to  any  one  believer  in 
Jesus  what  does  not  belong  to  eyery  other.  His  was  to  be  a  holy 
catholic  church,  and  a  holy  catholic  church  is  one  in  which  are  no 
persons  who  are  not  holy,  and  in  which  is  no  one  who  has  what  is 
not  catholic,  common  to  all. 

Peter,  the  noble-hearted  blunderer,  apparently  ha^"ing  failed  to 
listen  carefully  to  the  discourse  of  Jesus,  but  pondering  what  had 

been  said  about  offences,  broke  in  with  the  ques- 
How frequently    tion,  "  Lord,  how  often  shall  my  brother  trespass 

must  I  forgive  ?  /  i  t  /<  •         i   •        o      m-n  •  r>ii 

against  me  and  i  lorgive  hiin  {  iill  seven  times  : 
That  seemed  a  large  measure  of  placability  to  Peter.*  But  fancy 
the  look  which  the  large-hearted  Teacher  gave  him  when  over 
against  Peter's  close  arithmetical  calculation  of  forgiveness  he  set 
a  statement  of  l)Oundless  compassion.  "  Until  seven  times  ?  1 
say  not  that,  but  until  seventy  times  seven ! " 

That  this  conii)assi()natencss  of  Christian  character  might  be 
impressed  upon  them  he  related  the  following  parable:  "There- 
Parable  of  the    fore  shall  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens  be  likened 
unmerciful     ser-    unto  a  liuuian  f  king  who  wished  to  compare  an 
^"**-  account  with  his  slaves.     And,  beginning  to  com- 

pare, there  was  brought  one  to  him,  a  debtor  of  many :{:  talents. 
And  he  not  having  wherewith  to  pay,  the  lord  commanded  him  to  be 


*  It  greatly  exceeded  the  rabbinical 
rule  of  three  times,  which  they  based 
on  Amos  i.  3  ;  ii.  G  ;  Job  xxxiii.  29,  30. 

f  In  the  common  version  it  is  "a  ccr- 
t<iiii  king,"  in  the  original  it  is  auBpumw 
0aai\fi,  a  man,  a  king  ;  but  it  seems  to 
me  that  the  translation  above  gives  the 
true  sense,  making  afOpuiru  emphatic. 
So  Meyer  says,  "da  das  ITi.MMKi.KEicn 
mit  einem  Mensculicuen  Eunige  ver- 
glichcn  wird." 


X  In  the  common  version  it  is  "  ten 
thousand  talents."  So  a  number  of  the 
MSS.  have  fxvpiav  tqXoi/tcui/,  V>ut  the  old 
reading,  as  in  the  CrxJra"  Sin.,  is  irnWuv, 
many.  If  the  former  reading  be  adopt- 
ed, it  means  an  infinite,  if  the  latter, 
an  indefinite  debt.  One  talent,  Attic, 
was  equal  to  0,000  denarii.  If  the  read- 
ing be  10.000  talents,  then  the  one  owed 
his  lord  000,000  times  as  much  as  hiB 
fellow-servant  owed  him. 


LAST   DATS    IN   GALILEE. 


UB 


sold,  and  tlie  Avife,  and  the  little  children,  and  all  that  he  had  and 
payment  to  be  made.    Then  the  slave  falling  down  worshipped  him, 
saying, '  Lord  have  patience  with  me  and  I  will  pay  you  all.'    Then' 
the  lord  of  that  slave,  moved  with  compassion,  released  him  and 
forgave  him  the  debt.     But  that  slave  going  out  found  one  of  his 
fellow-slaves   who   owed   him  a  hundred   denarii,*  and,  havino- 
seized  him,  he  throttled  him,  saying  '  Pay  if  you  owe.'  f   Then  hi*^ 
fellow-slave  falling  down  besought  him,  saying,  '  Have  patience 
with  me,  and  I  will  pay  you.'     And  he  would  not ;  but  going  out 
he  cast  hnn  into  prison  until  he  should  pay  the  debt.     Then  his 
fellow-slaves  seeing  what  was  done  were  very  sorry,  and  came  and 
told  their  own  lord  all  that  had  been  done.     Then,  liavino-  called 
him,  his  lord  says  to  him,  '  O  wicked  slave,  I  forgave  yon  all  that 
debt  because  you  did  entreat  me:  did  it  not  behoove  you  also  to 
pity  your  fellow-slave  as  I  also  pitied  you  ? '     And  his  lord,  beinc 
indignant,  delivered  him  to  the  tormentors  until  he  should  pay  all 
that  was  owing  to  him.     Thus  also  shall  ray  heavenly  Father  do 
to  you,  if  you  from  your  hearts  forgive  not  every  one  his  brother." 
The  moral  of  this  beautiful  parable  is  so  apparent  that  it  needs 
little  explication.     It  teaches  the  Christian  doctrine  of  For-ive- 
ness.     A  man  must  be  wide-hearted  who  is  a  sub-  ^ 

ject  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  The  parable  ^*^  ™'''^^- 
is  in  accordance  to  what  Jesus  taught  as  a  proper  prayer,  "  Foro-ive 
us  our  trespasses,  as  we  have  forgiven  those  who  trespass  against 
us.  When  the  slave  who  owed  to  the  master  vastly  more  than 
his  fellow-slave  owed  him,  appealed  for  mercy  to  his  lord,  he  pro- 
fessed  by  that  very  petition  to  believe  that  mercy  was  a  o-race 
which  every  man  should  show  his  fellow-man.  When  he  would 
not  forgive  his  fellow-slave  he  showed  that  that  profession  was  a 
he.  bo  when  a  man  asks  God  to  forgive  him,  he  announces  to 
^od  that  he  has  forgiven  his  fellows  their  wrongs  against  him. 
it  he  has  not,  he  is  lying  in  his  prayers.  It  is  not  simply  an  im- 
perative rule  of  government,  it  is  a  fundamental  principle  in 
human  nature.  No  man  can  solicit  what  he  does  not  believe  to 
exist.  If  a  man  do  not  feel  mercy  in  Umself  he  cannot  believe 
in  mercy  m  another. 


*  Say  $15  American  gold. 

\  And  yet  it  is  certain  he  did  owe. 
So  the  meaning-  must  be,  "Seeing  that 
thou  owest,  pay  me,"  which  signifies 


that  there  is  nothing  to  be  done  but  tc 
pay  when  anything  is  owing ;  no  room 
for  mercy  and  forgiveness. 


444     Tm:  third  passovek  to  the  feast  of  tabernacles. 

About  tliis  time  Jesus  made  another  missionary  demonstration. 

lie  organized  thirty-five  companies,  each  consisting  of  two  disci- 

])les  other  than  the  twelve  he  had  already  selected. 

The    mission  of       -^      ,  .  i-n^         •,  i  ^  ^  e 

the  seventy.  Luke  ^^  ^^  somewhat  difficult  to  keep  the  harmony  of 

X.  1-3,  IG ;  Llatt.  the  narrative  at  this  point,  and  modern  criticism 

vii  G  ;  X  23-25  ;  has  attacked  the  whole  account  of  the  Mission  of 

Luke  vi.  40 ;  John  ^j^^  Sevcntv,  as  given  by  Luke,  on  the  ground  that 

xiii.  10.  ./  '        o  J  )  fo  ^ 

there  is  no  trace  of  them  in  the  subsequent  history 
c»f  Jesus  or  his  early  ff)llowers.  It  would  seem  that  even  a  super- 
ficial view  of  the  work  assigned  these  seventy  should  be  an  answer 
to  that.  Jesus  was  shortly  to  go  from  Galilee  to  Jerusalem.  lie 
sent  these  messenerers  before  his  face.  His  time  was  shorteninfj. 
Seventy  men  could  rapidly  spread  themselves  and  make  prochi- 
mation  of  the  gospel.  It  was  not  intended  to  institute  a  perjjetual 
order.  Indeed  it  seems  to  have  been  a  temporary  arrangement, 
and  that  Jesus  probably  remained  in  Capernaum,  from  which,  we 
believe,  he  sent  forth  these  bands,  until  their  return,  and  then 
began  his  journey.  It  was  to-  be  a  brief,  quick  movement,  pre- 
paratory to  his  travels  towards  Jerusalem.  We  are  not  compelled 
to  understand  by  the  words  "  into  every  city  and  place  whither  he 
M'ould  come,"  that  Jesus  would  go  to  every  town  they  visited,  but 
that  he  would  not  enter  any  town  where  none  of  the  Seventy  had 
been. 

The  ground  occupied  by  these  swift  missionaries  we  cannot 
positively  describe,  but  it  is  probable  that  it  included  a  part  of 
Samaria,  and  much  of  Perea  and  Juda3a,  where  he  spent  the  last 
six  months  of  his  life.  The  commission  was  this  :  "  Go :  behold 
I  send  you  as  lambs  in  the  midst  of  wolves  ;  be  ye  therefore  wise 
as  the  serijent  and  harmless  as  the  doves.  Give  not  the  holy  to 
the  dogs,  neither  cast  your  pearls  before  the  swine,  lest  they  tram- 
ple them  with  their  feet,  and  turning  might  rend  you.  But  when 
they  pei-secute  you  in  this  city,  flee  into  another ;  for  verily  I  say 
unto  you.  You  shall  not  finish  the  cities  of  Israel  until  the  Son  of 
Man  come.  A  disciple  is  not  above  his  teacher,  nor  the  slave 
above  his  lord;  it  is  enough  for  the  disciple  that  is  i)erfect  that 
lie  be  as  his  teacher,  and  the  slave  as  his  lord.  If  they  have  called 
the  house-owner  Beelzebul,  how  much  more  those  of  his  house 
hold  !     Fear  them  not,  therefore." 

Tliey  were  simply  to  proclaim  his  coming  and  his  gospel.     But 
the  country  was  excited  against  him.     It  behooved  these  disciples 


LAST   DAYS    IN   GALILEE.  445 

to  uniie  the  innocency  of  doves  with  the  supposed  watchfuhiess  of 

the  serpent.     In  declaring  the  truths  which  it  was  the  mission 

of  his  life  to  establish  and  propa^-ate,  they  were 

,.       .     .        .  ,        ^     \^„     I        /       .,  To  proclaim  hi« 

to  use  discrimination,     it  were  lolly  to  give  the    coming 

consecrated  flesh  of  sacrifices  to  dogs.  It  were 
folly  to  present  jewels  to  swine,  who,  finding  that  these  did  not 
satisfy  hunger,  would  crush  them  into  the  mire  and  turn  in  their 
voracity  upon  the  givers.  Tet,  when  they  had  conducted  them- 
selves as  well  as  possible,  no  circumspection  could  keep  them  from 
being  assailed  with  malignity.  AVlien  one  town  rejected  them 
they  must  escape  to  another,  and  thus  give  the  whole  land  an  op- 
portunity of  knowing  what  it  was  that  Jesus  taught.  He  assured 
them  that  they  should  not  have  visited  all  the  towns  till  the  Mis- 
sion of  the  Son  of  Man  be  accomplished  by  the  establishment  of 
his  claims  as  Messiah,  if  that  be  the  meaning  of  the  saying,  "  Ye 
shall  not  finish  the  cities  of,  Israel  until  the  Son  of  Man  come." 
If  that  be  not  the  meaning — and  I  am  far  from  being  sure,  and 
give  it  as  the  most  plausible  conjecture — then  I  do  not  know  what 
Jesus  meant.  Tie  was  going  up  to  Jerusalem.  There  were  two 
things  to  be  secured,  namely,  an  increased  attention  to  himself 
and  his  words,  and  a  sufficient  interest  upon  the  part  of  the  popu- 
lace to  give  him  protection  against  the  growing  malignity  of  the 
church  party — the  priests,  the  scribes,  the  Pharisees.  All  this  might 
in  some  measure  be  produced  by  the  ministry  of  the  Seventy. 

The  Jewish  Feast  of  Tabernacles  was  now  at  hand.  It  was,  as 
Josephus  says,  the  holiest  and  greatest  of  their  festivals.  The  peo- 
ple would  be  assembled  in  great  crowds.     It  would 

be  an  occasion  for  a  powerful  prophet  to  make  an       Galilee  and  Sa- 
...       ,11  ,  1    1  ,.  maria.    John  vu. , 

impression  which  should  move  the  whole  nation.    ^^ .    -^^^  ^ 

The  younger  sons  of  Mary,  whom  we  should  call    xvii. 

the  lialf-brothers  of  Jesus,  did  not  believe  he  was  a  prophet,  yet 

perhaps  hoped  that  he  might  put  himself  forward  as  a  Messiah, 

such  a  Messiah  as  they,  in  common  with  their  nation,  hoped 

for — a  splendid    deliverer,   and    conqueror,   and    king.     They 

urged  him  to  go  into  Judi^a,  as  his  popularity  seemed  waning 

in  Galilee ;  and  moreover,  all  that  he  had  accomplished  was  to 

attach  a  few  fishermen  to  his  cause.     He  had  not  won  a  person  of 

any  social  or  ecclesiastical  distinction.     To  this  politic  advice, 

which  would  have  been  sound  if  Jesus  had  intended  to  claim  and 

maintain  such  a  Messiahship  as  they  su2)])osed,  he  returned  t\m 

reply :— 


4iG        THE    TllIKU    PASSOVKR    TO    THE    FEAST   OF    TAJJEIi^ACLES. 


"  My  time  is  not  at  present,  but  your  time  is  always  ready.  Tlio 
world  cannot  hate  you;  but  it  hatetli  me,  because  I  testify  that  its 
works  ai'c  e\il.  Go  you  up  unto  this  feast.  I  go  not  up  to  this 
feast;  for  my  time  is  not  yet  fulfilled." 

They  wished  him  to  jt^in  their  caravan,  and  go  uj)  publicly  and 
conspicuously.  His  time  had  not  arrived.  He  would  not  be  pre- 
ci])itated.  He  would  avoid  as  far  as  possible  giving  any  occasion 
to  his  enemies.  He  would  not  be  of  the  party  of  his  brethren. 
But  after  tliey  had  left  for  Jerusalem,  he  arranged  his  plans  and 
M-ent  up  to  the  metropolis  in  a  secret  manner.  He  sent  messen- 
gers before  his  face,  who  made  the  necessary  preparations,  so  that 
in  the  evening  he  could  enter  lodgings,  rest,  and  next  day  proceed 
on  his  journey.  They  were  going  along  the  bordei*s  of  Galilee 
and  of  Samaria.  At  one  of  the  Samaritan  villages 
the  party  were  refused  lodgings  because  they  were 
going  to  attend  the  feast  in  Jerusalem,  thus  wit- 
nessing against  Mount  Gerizim.  Sectarian  rancor  conquered  ori- 
ental hospitality.  James  and  John,  the  latter  generally  conceived, 
I  think,  to  be  a  sweetish  kind  of  characterless  young  man,  were 
60  enraged  that  they  desired  pennission  from  their  Master  to  call 
down  fire  from  heaven  to  consume  the  town.  They  were  not  con- 
tent that  Jesus  should  do  it.  They  desired  the  pei-sonal  gratifi 
cation  of  vengeance  on  these  people.  Jesus  rebuked  them.  The 
then  went  to  the  next  village  on  the  route. 


Inhospitable  Sa 
maritan  village. 


TALENT. — BTATEK  OF   TllVI'UnN. 


PART  VI. 

FEOM  THE   FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE 
LAST  WEEK. 

FROM  OCTOBEB,  A.D.  29,  TO  APRIL,  A.D.  30— SIX  MONTHS. 


CHAPTER   I. 


AT   THE   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES. 


In  the  mean  time  his  brothers,  with  many  other  friends,  and  all 

the  Jewish  people  who  could  travel,  had  gone  up  to  the  Feast  ol 

Tabernacles.      This  festival  is  spoken  of  in  the 

Talmud  as  the  Feast  par  excellence,  and  by  Jo-        ,        t  i,     •■ 
■'■  1  J  nacles.    John  vii. 

sephus  and  by  Plutarch  as  the  most  holy  and 
glorious  of  all  the  Jewish  Holidays.  It  was  celebrated  in  the  au- 
tumn, when  the  heats  were  abated  and  the  rains  had  not  begun. 
The  harvest  had  been  gathered,  and  the  Day  of  Atonement  had  just 
passed.  In  the  fulness  of  their  garners,  and  in  the  sense  of  free- 
dom from  the  guilt  of  their  sins,  the  whole  people  rejoiced  together. 
Moreover,  it  was  a  joyful  celebration  of  a  sad  passage  in  the  early 
history  of  their  nation,  when  their  fathers  had  dwelt  in  booths  in 
the  wilderness,  and  even  Jehovah's  sanctuary  was  in  a  tent. 

From  all  parts  of  the  laud,  and  even  from  many  foreign  parts, 
the  devout  poured  into  the  Holy  City.  No  good  Jew  allowed 
himself  to  sleep  in  a  house.  Boughs  full  of  green  leaves  were 
brought  from  the  country,  and  temporary  booths  constructed  on 
house-tops,  and  along  thoroughfares,  and  in  all  the  environs  of  the 
city,  until  Jerusalem  \\'as  covered  with  a  tem|)orary  forest.  Glad- 
ness reigned,  and  public  and  private  rejoicing  prevailed. 

The  Temple  service  partook  of  the  festal  air  of  the  occasion. 


us 


FliOM    FEASff   OF    TAJ3ERXACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST    WEEK. 


Evening  service. 


Immediately  after  the  regular  morning  sacrifices,  every  day,  a 

priest  went  with  a  gulden  vessel  to  the  fountain  of  Siloah,  on  the 

_,      ,  side  of  the  hill  on  which  the  Temple  stood,  and 

Temple  service.  .  ^  ' 

drew  water,  which  he  brought  through  the  water- 
gate,  accompanied  by  a  gay  procession  and  the  sound  of  trumpets, 
and  having  mixed  it  with  wine,  poured  it  on  the  sacrifice  upon  the 
altar,  amid  the  hallelujah  shouts  of  the  people.  This  probably 
reminded  them  of  the  supplies  of  water  Jehovah  had  given  to 
their  fathei-s  in  the  emergencies  of  the  wilderness.  The  joy  ful- 
ness of  this  ceremonial  was  so  great  that  it  passed  into  a  cunnnon 
proverb :  "  lie  that  never  saw  the  rejoicing  of  drawing  water 
never  saw  rejoicing  in  all  his  life."  * 

As  a  complement  of  the  morning  service,  and  retaining  another 
reminiscence  of  the  wilderness  life  of  their  ancestors,  namely,  the 
guidance  by  the  pillar  of  fire  through  the  night, 
there  were  set  up,  in  the  Court  of  the  "Women, 
two  great  golden  lamp-stands,  and  when  these  were  kindled  they 
threw  their  light  over  the  whole  city.  Then  all  the  Temple 
music  played,  and  the  members  of  the  Sanhedrim,  the  elders,  the 
rulei-s  of  the  synagogues,  the  doctors  of  the  law,  and  all  those  who 
were  distinguished  by  age,  piety,  and  learning,  danced  wildly  and 
recklessly,  in  the  sight  of  the  women  who  crowded  the  balconies, 
and  the  men  who  thronged  the  court ;  he  that  made  himself  the 
most  ridiculous  achieving  the  greatest  success.  Perhaps  this  ad- 
dition to  the  ceremonials  was  taken  from  the  dance  of  David 
before  the  Ark. 

There  was  another  peculiarity  of  this  festival.  In  addition  t«j 
the  usual  daily  sacrifices,  on  the  first  day  thirteen  young  bullocks, 
two  rams,  and  fourteen  lambs  of  the  first  year,  were  sacrific-ed ; 
the  next  day,  twelve  bullocks ;  the  third  day,  eleven ;  and  so 
decreasing  until  on  the  seventh  day,  on  which  seven  bullocks 
were  offered,  making  seventy  in  all.  This  number,  the  Jewish 
doctors  taught,  represented  the  languages  of  the  seventy  natituis 
of  the  world,  and  the  process  of  diminution  represented  the  gra- 
dual reduction  of  those  nations  until  all  things  should  amw  under 
the  reign  of  the  Messiah. f 

The  legal  limit  of  the  "Feast  of  Tabernacles"  was  seven  days. 


*  Jennings  in  his  Jewish  Antufuitiea 
((uotea  this  from  the  MMina,  tit.  Sweah, 
cap.  v.,  sect.  1. 


f  R.  Solomon  on  Numb,  xix.,  cited 
liy  Lightfoot  in  his  Tcmjile  Serviee, 
chap,  xvi.,  sect  1. 


AT   TITE   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES.  449 

but  it  was  followed  on  the  eighth  day  by  a  supplemental  festival 

of  rejoicing,  especially  over  the  ingathered  crops,  their  corn  and 

their  wine.    This  was  a  day  of  special  jollity,  from 

which  Jennino-s*  suo-gests  that  the  heathen  bor-    ,  ^    , 
^  ^'^  festival. 

rowed  their  Saturnalia.  Plutarch  even  made  the 
mistake  of  supjDOsing  that  it  was  kept  in  honor  of  Bacchus,  for  he 
says  (Symposia,  lib.  iv.  prob.  5) :  "  In  the  time  of  the  vintage  the 
Jews  spread  tables,  furnished  with  all  manner  of  fruits,  and  lived 
in  booths,  specially  of  palm  and  ivy  wreathed  together,  and  they 
call  it  the  '  Feast  of  Booths  ; '  and  then  a  few  days  after  [alluding 
probably  to  the  last  day  of  the  feast]  they  kept  another  festivity, 
which  openly  shows  it  was  dedicated  to  Bacchus ;  for  they  carried 
boughs  of  palms,  etc.,  in  their  hands,  with  which  they  went  into 
the  temple,  the  Levites  (who,  he  fancies,  wei-e  so  called  for  Eyto?, 
one  of  the  names  of  Bacchus)  going  before  with  instruments  of 
music,"  etc. 

It  was  to  this  gayest  of  all  festivities  that  the  men  of  the  nation 
were  gathering.  But  over  all  there  was  a  shadow.  The  wonder- 
ful words  and  works  of  Jesus  had  spread  themselves  through  the 
land.  The  mission  of  the  Seventy  had  freshly  excited  public 
attention.  Every  man  had  something  to  tell  or  to  hear  of  what 
Jesus  had  been  saying  or  doing.  Misrepresentations  and  exag- 
gerations were,  of  course,  rife.  Opinions  differed.  Parties  were 
beginning  to  crystallize.  Some  were  f(jr  him,  some  against.  The 
latter  were  more  and  stronger  than  the  former,  whose  favorable 
opinion  of  Jesus  we  find  much  modified  by  the  pressure  of  public 
sentiment.  They  said,  "He  is  a  good  man,"  while  the  othei-s 
said,  "Nay,  but  he  deceives  the  people."  Ilis  fi-iends  did  not 
dare  to  render  a  frank  expression  of  their  views  of  his  character 
and  his  operaticms. 

Suddenly,  in  the  midst  of  the  feast,  Jesus  appeared  in  the 
Temple  and  began  to  teach.     It  was  like  an  apparition. 

"What  course  he  had  come  they  knew  not.     He  was  not  at  the 

beginning  of  the  feast.   Ilis  absence  had  occasioned  much  anxious 

speculation  uiwn  the  part  of  friends  and  foes.    ^  ,    . 

m,        ,  .         ,  111.1  Jesus  at  the  feast. 

Ihe  days  were  going  by,  and  he  did  not  come. 

But  perhaps  on  AVednesday,  the  fourth  day  of  the  feast,  when 

expectation  of  his  coming  had  begun  to  flag,  he  calmly  walked 

*  Jewish  Ant.,  book  iii.,  sec.  6. 

29 


450        FROM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACXES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

into  the  Temple,  took  his  position,  and  began  to  unfold  his  doctrine 
as  if  notliing  unusual  had  occurred,  as  if  his  friends  were  not 
intensely  anxious  for  his  safety,  and  as  if  his  foes  had  not  been 
forming  plots  to  compass  his  destruction.  He  went  amply  with  wi(h' 
kiiowk'di^i',  and  jHjwerfidly  with  great  authority,  into  his  discoui-ses. 
The  Jews  listened  and  were  amazed,  and  started  the  inquiry,  "  How 
does  this  man  know  lettere,  never  having  learned?"  They  intended 
to  diiijvirage  him  by  calling  the  attention  of  the  peo])le  to  the  fact 
that  he  had  not  received  Kabbinical  instruction.  The  intention 
was  to  create  popular  prejudice  against  him,  as  if  he  were  an  in- 
terloper, not  being  a  graduate  of  the  schools,  not 

.  beiufj  in  the  succession  of  the  priests.     His  reply 

speech.  '^  _        _  ^     ^  ^  -^ 

was,  "  My  teaching  is  not  mine,  but  His  who  sent 
me."  He  did  not  mean  his  doctrines  simply,  but  also  his  mode  of 
teaching  and  the  spirit  with  which  he  taught.  They  charged  that  he 
usur]ted  the  office  of  teacher.  This  he  denied.  God  was  with  him. 
In  proof  of  this  he  says,  "  H  any  one  will  do  His  will  he  shall  know 
of  the  teaching,  whether  it  be  of  God  or  I  speak  from  myself." 
This  is  a  plain  way  of  practically  putting  the  teachings  of  any 
teacher  to  the  test.  If  a  man  be  living  in  perfect  purity  of  heart,  in 
strict  study  and  obedience  of  the  physical,  intellectual,  and  spiritual 
laws  and  ordinances  of  God,  he  will  render  himself  a  test  of  the 
truth  of  any  other  man's  teaching.  To  this  test  Jesus  submitted 
himself.  As  if  he  had  said:  All  of  the  nation  who  are  acknow- 
ledged to  be  living  pure  lives  confess  my  teaching  divine  :  try  it 
yourselves:  in  proi>ortion  as  you  do  what  you  already  know  that 
God  has  taught  to  be  the  duty  of  man,  in  that  proportion  will  you 
0})en  your  hearts  to  me. 

And  then,  in  disproof  of  the  allegation  that  he  was  an  in- 
truder into  the  teacher's  office,  he  submits  the  following  plain 
assei-tion  :  "  He  who  speaks  from  himself  seeks  his  own 
glory ;  and  he  wlio  seeks  the  glory  of  Him  tliat  sent  him,  the 
same  is  true,  and  unrighteousness  is  not  in  him."  The  former 
is  moved  by  a  narrow  and  low  vanity;  the  latter  by  a  high 
devout  spirit.  No  ordination,  no  anointing,  no  induction  into 
priestJKtod,  no  consecration  can  make  the  former  a  teacher  of 
morality.  His  selfish  vanity  breaks  his  claim.  Jesus  appealed  to 
them  whether  such  characteristic  had  ever  appeared  in  him.  J/e 
did  not  take  his  position  from  self-i)romptings ;  he  did  not  teach 
for  morality  what  was  merely  the  suggestion  of  his   personal 


AT  THE  FEAST  OF  TABEEXACLES.  451 

fancy  ;  lie  did  not  seek  to  glorify  himself,  being  willing  for  that 
purpose  to  warp  the  trutli  in  unrighteousness.  lie  was  so  con- 
scious of  his  rectitude  in  this  particular  that  he  rested  his  appeal 
on  the  opinion  of  all  the  people. 

That  was  his  defensive  speech:  he  then  made  an  atta(;k  upon 
his  enemies.  Tliey  could  not  comprehend  and  obey  him,  because 
they  had  not  sought  to  comprehend  and  obey  those 
"vrho  had  preceded  him,  whom  they  acknowledjired 
to  be  divinely  authorized  teachers.  There  was 
Moses,  the  founder  of  their  theocrac}',  the  acknowledged  law- 
giver. They  had  the  Decalogue.  They  were  living  in  violation 
of  it.  The  Jewish  priesthood  of  his  day  were  notoriously  licen- 
tious. Their  rabbis  and  elders  were  so  impure  that  when  they 
brought  to  Jesus  a  woman  taken  in  adultery,  his  speech,  which 
meant,  "Let  him  that  is  no  adulterer  throw  the  first  stone,"  so 
condemned  the  entire  assembly  that  not  a  man  of  them  could 
remain  in  his  preseiice.  And  now  they  stood  around  Jesus,  a 
band  of  conspirators  and  murderers.  He  showed  them  that  this 
was  not  a  mere  question  of  biblical  scholarship,  but  of  that  essen- 
tial religion  which  consists  in  doing  the  will  of  God.  What  is  the 
capability  of  elucidating  a  point  of  scholastic  perplexity  compared 
with  a  consecration  to  doing  the  will  of  the  Most  High  God  ? 

And  then  he  charged  the  rulers  that  they  were  at  that 
moment  seekino^  to  kill  him.  The  multitude  rei'arded  this  asser- 
tion  as  an  exaggeration  of  his  fancy,  and  said,  "  You  have  a 
demon !  who  seeks  to  kill  you  ?  " — meaning  that  he  was  dis- 
ordered through  melancholy.  They  did  not  know  what  secret 
machinations  were  then  at  work  among  the  rulers.  Jesus  gave 
them  a  reminiscence.  Some  time  ago,  in  that  same  city,  he  had 
marvellously  restored  an  impotent  man  to  strength ;  and  beneficent 
as  was  this  great  act  of  power,  it  wrought  in  the  hieran^hy  no 
sympathy  for  him,  no  disposition  to  co-operate  with  him  for  the 
welfare  of  the  people ;  but  because  it  infringed  some  of  their 
oppressive  regulations  for  observing  the  Sabbath-day,  they  had 
plotted  against  him,  and  had  never  ceased  to  endeavor  to  com- 
pass his  death. 

He  defended  that  past  act.  He  put  the  case  to  tliem  thus: 
"■'Moses  gave  to  you  circumcision  (not  that  it  is  of  Moses 
but  of  the  fathers),  and  ye  circumcise  a  man  on  the  Sab- 
bath.     If    a   man   receive   circumcision    on   the    Sabbath,   that 


452        FKOM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   TITE   LAST   -WEEK. 

the   law   of   !Moses  should  not   be   broken,  are   ye  angry    with 

nie  because   I   have   healed   a   man   on   the   Sabbath?      Judjxe 

not  according  to  appearance,  but  judge  righteoua 

e    e  en  a    is    ^^^(jorment."      That  is  to  say — Circumcision  was 
Sabbath  act.  .  . 

earlier  than  Moses,  who  merely  confirmed  in  legal 
enactment  what  the  fathers  had  always  practised  as  a  part  of 
Monotheism.  The  male  child  was  to  be  circumcised  on  the 
eighth  day,  even  if  it  fell  on  the  Sabbath,  because  circumcision 
was  an  important  sanitary  regulation.  But  the  Jewish  hierarchy 
had  sought  to  destroy  Jesus  because  he  had  made  a  man  every 
whit  whole  on  the  Sabbath, — such  poor  judges  were  they,  so 
utterly  incapacitated  by  reason  of  their  adherence  to  the  external 
letter,  utterly  unmindful  of  the  internal  spirit.  This  argument 
began  to  prevail  with  the  people,  and  incline  them  favorably 
towards  Jesus.  So,  very  shortly  after,  some  of  them  of  Jeru- 
salem said,  "  Is  not  this  he  whom  they  seek  to  kill  ?  And  lo !  he 
speaketh  boldly,  and  they  say  nothing  to  him.  Do  the  rulers 
know  whether  of  a  truth  that  this  is  the  Christ  ?  But  this  one, 
we  know  whence  he  is:  when  the  Christ  coineth  no  one  knoweth 
whence  he  is."  This  shows  how  the  multitude  fluctuated.  The 
courage  of  Jesus  struck  them  as  admirable.  They  had  be- 
come convinced  that  the  rulers  were  seeking  to  destroy  Jesus. 
Perhaps  they  had  been  paralyzed  by  finding  in  this  man  some 
indications  of  his  being  the  Messiah,  which  had  frightened  them. 
But  then  they  swung  away  from  that  feeling  by  the  reflection 
that  Jesus  was  a  Nazarene.  They  knew  him  to  be  a  citizen,  if 
not  a  native,  of  a  mean  town  in  the  provinces.  The  opinion 
was  that  the  Messias  should  arise  among  men  by  sudden  incania 
tion,  without  earthly  parentage.  But  this  man's  parentage  they 
supposed  to  be  known  to  them,  which  is  sufiicient  to  their  minds 
to  set  aside  all  supposition  that  he  was  the  Messias. 

Then  cried  Jesus  in  the  Temple,  teaching  and  saying,  "Yc 

both  know  me  and  know  whence  I  am :   and  I  am  not  come 

of  myself,  but  lie  who  sent  me  is  true,  whom  ye 

y  ongin.  j\\j^^  and  He  hath  sent  me."    They  thought  to 

humiliate  him  by  their  reference  to  his  liumble  extraction.  With 
a  loud  voice,  oj)enly  in  the  Temjile,  he  acknowledged  his  low 
earthly  relationsliips.  As  Lange  says,  "Ho  even  treated  with 
a  certain  cheerful  irony  the  supposition  that  therewitli  they  knew 


AT   THE   FEAST    OF   TABEKNACLES.  4E;3 

his  real  essential  origin."     But  when  he  speaks  so  fi-eely  of  his 

heavenly   descent  they   desired   to   arrest  him:   but  they  could 

not.     There  was  something  in  him  which  repelled  their  rudeness. 

John  says  that  it  was  God's  overruling  providence,  "  because  his 

hour  was  not  yet  come."     There  were,  indeed,  among  the  people 

those  who  believed  in   him  because  he  was  a  miracle-worker, 

for  they  said,  "AVlien  the  Christ  comes  will  he  do  more  signs  than 

this  one  does?"     Such  sentiments  among  the  people   rendered 

the  rulers  uneasy.     While  these  things  were  going  forward  the 

Sanhedrim  was  in  session  in  the  Temple,  "  in  the  stone  chamber 

between  the  fore-court  of  the  Gentiles  and  the  inner  court,"  as 

Tholuck  says.     The   Pharisees  probably  conveyed  to  them  this 

flux  and  reilux  of  public  opinion.     The  Sanhedrim  sent  officei-s 

with  orders  to  arrest  him. 

Then  said  Jesus,  with  a  tone  which  seems  to  have  disarmed 

them,  "  Yet  a  little  while  am  I  with  you,  and  I  go  to  Ilim  that 

sent  me.     Ye  shall  seek  me,  and  shall  not  find 

„      m  .  An       alarming 

me;    and  where  I  am  ye  cannot  come.       ihis    ^^^^^^ 

most  probably  meant  simply  that  for  the  present 
they  could  not  touch  him,  but  that  in  a  short  time  he  would  have 
a  more  complete  separation  from  them.  But  the  saying  alarmed 
them,  and  they  said,  "AYhere  is  he  about  to  go  that  we  shall  not 
find  him  'i  Is  he  abont  to  go  to  the  dispersion  among  the  Gen- 
tiles, and  teach  the  Gentiles  ? " 

Thus  they  were  perplexed  with  contradictory  emotions  and 
opinions.  They  affected  to  despise  him,  and  yet  they  could  thhik 
and  talk  of  notliing  else.  Jesus  was  the  topic  of  public  and  pri- 
vate discourse.  He  was  the  nation's  mystery — a  riddle  to  the  vul- 
gar, a  problem  to  the  thoughtful,  a  prodigy  to  the  multitude,  and 
a  terror  to  the  rulers.  He  was  admired,  and  criticised,  and  hated, 
and  dreaded.  There  was  such  a  sanctity  about  him  that  they 
could  not  lay  violent  hands  upon  him.  But  he  exposed  to  each 
party  the  meanness  and  corruption  of  the  other  until  he  became 
dreadful.  To  keep  him  was  to  be  perpetually  tormented.  To 
drive  him  from  the  country  was  to  send  him  out  to  preach  a  doc- 
trine which  should  embrace  all  mankind,  and  thus  break  up  the 
monopoly  of  religion  which  the  Jews  supposed  themselves  to  pos- 
sess. To  do  him  violence  was  perilous,  because  there  was  such  a 
profound  interest  in  the  man  and  such  a  division  of  popular  sen- 
timent.    They  were  terribly  perplexed. 


454        FROM    FEAST   OF    TABERNACLES    UNTIL    THE    LA?T    AXTiEK. 

The  "  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles,"  strictly  speaking,  closed  at  the 
end  of  the  seventh  day  ;  but  on  the  eighth  day  was  a  6upj3le- 
nieiitary  festival  which  concluded  the  whole,  and 
.y^^.^^^  ^^  which  was  "  the  great  day  of  the  feast."  On  the 
other  days  the  priests,  as  we  have  seen,  went  to 
the  fount  of  Siloani  and  drew  water,  which  was  brought  with 
great  rejoicing  into  the  Temple.  This  ceremonial  was  omitted  on 
the  eighth  day.  The  seven  represented  the  wandering,  the  eighth 
the  entrance  into  the  land  of  rest,  the  nation's  home.  The  water 
came  to  represent  in  symbol  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God.  It  had  been 
always  a  fact  to  notice  that  there  was  no  fountain  in  the  Temple 
limits  on  Mount  Moriah.  This  was  interpreted  to  signify  that  the 
refreshing  spirit  was  lacking  in  their  dry  ecclesiasticism,  and  the 
gift  of  that  spirit,  like  the  opening  of  a  fountain,  was  among  tlie 
most  precious  promises  of  prophecy.  Joel  (iii.  18)  foretold  that  it 
should  come  forth  from  the  House  of  the  Lord,  and  Ezekiel  (xlvii.) 
describes  its  breaking  forth  from  under  the  thresholtt  of  the  Tem- 
ple. It  was  the  great  expectation  of  the  spiritually  minded  Jews, 
and  most  probably  was  constantly  associated  in  their  minds  with 
other  unspeakable  benedictions  which  should  come  witli  the 
Messiah. 

It  was  on  this  day,  the  great  day  of  the  feast,  when  tlie  failure 
to  draw  water  from  the  fountain  of  the  Siloam  reminded  tlie  peo- 
ple of  the  absence  of  all  fountains  in  the  Temple, 
ounaino     i-    ^^^j  ^^^^  predictions  wliich  many  undoubtedly  ill- 
loam.  ^  ^  •      "       r  •       "    1 

terpreted  literally,  and  to  which  a  few  assigned  a 
high  spiritual  significance,  Jesus,  who  was  accustomed  to  sit  as  he 
taught,  rose  up,  and  lifting  liis  voice,  cried  out  to  the  multitude, 
"  If  any  one  thirst,  let  him  come  and  drink.  He  who  believes  on 
tne,  out  of  his  belly  shall  flow  rivers  of  living  waters,  as  the  Scrip- 
ture has  said."  He  made  allusion,  probably,  to  such  passages  as 
Isa.  xliv,  3,  Iv.  1,  Iviii.  11.  The  meaning  seems  to  be,  tliat  in 
that  man's  inmost  nature  shall  be  sources  of  refreshment  for  him- 
self, which  shall  yield  streams  of  refreshment  for  othei"s.  This 
api)eal  touched  the  hearts  of  some,  who  said,  "  Of  a  truth  this  is 
the  rroi)het."  Othei-s  grew  more  emphatic,  and  said, "  This  is  the 
Christ,  the  Messiah."  Othei-ssaid, "  No ;  for  doth  the  Christ  come 
out  of  Galilee  ?  Has  not  the  Scripture  said  that  the  Christ  comes  of 
the  seed  of  David,  and  from  the  town  of  IJethlehem,  where  David 
was  ? "     The  party  feeling  grew  strong.     Some  of  the  multitude 


AT   THE   FEAST   OF   TABEENACLE8. 


455 


called  out  to  arrest  him,  but  no  one  had  the  courage  to  lay  hands 
on  him. 

The  officers  sent  by  the  Sanhedrim  returned  without  him,  ant\ 
to  the   indignant  question,  "AVliy  have  ye   not 

brought  him?"thev  answered, '*  Never  did  man  ey  canno 

"  ^  -  '  _      arrest  him. 

speak  as  this  man  speaks."     The  enraged  Phari- 
sees taunted  them:  "Are  ye  also  deceived?     Have   any  of  the 
rulers  or  of  tlie  Pliarisees  believed  on  him  ?     But  this  cursed  mob 


THE    ASSEMBLY    OF   THE   SANHEDRIM. 

(From  an  aiuient  description.) 


do  not  know  the  law."  Here  Nicodemus,  a  member  of  the  San- 
hedrim, the  person  who  had  had  an  interview  with  Jesus  by  night, 
interposed  with  the  question,  "  Does  our  law  condemn  a  man, 
except  it  hear  first  and  know  what  he  does  ? "  It  seemed  to  be  a 
plain  and  honest  question,  but  so  excited  were  this  assembly  of 
judges  that  they  began  to  deal  in  invective,  saying,  "  Art  thou 


456        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST    WEEK. 

also  of  Galilee  ?  Search  and  look,  for  out  of  Galilee  arises  no 
prophet."  They  Mere  ready  to  quote  Moses  for  their  purposes, 
but  would  not  listen  when  it  made  against  them  and  tlieir  prac- 
tices; and  it  was  not  true  that  no  prophet  came  from  Galilee,  as 
Jonali  and  Amos,  and  perhaps  others,  were  of  that  country. 

So  the  assembly  was  broken  up  in  disorder,  and  every  man 
went  to  his  house,  while  Jesus  went  to  the  Mount  of  Olives,  and 
there  spent  the  night. 

Again  he  came  back  to  the  city.  The  Feast  of  the  Tabernacles 
had  ended.     The  lights  were  dead  in  tlie  great  candelabra  that 

had  shone  upon  the  city,  a  reminiscence  of  the 
Jemsalem;  the       jj^^j,  ^f  ^^.^  ^^.^^-^-^  ^^^  j^j  ^j^^j^.  f^^j^^^^  tlirOUgh 
Temple ;  the  Trea-     ,  ..  .  ^  ,  .    ^   ,    -,     ,  ,.  , 

snrv.  John  viii.  *^*^  Wilderness,  it  was  the  painful  darkness  fol- 
lowing a  great  light,  the  silence  of  a  deserted  ban- 
quet hall,  which  now  lay  upon  Jerusalem.  Jesus  entered  the 
Temple  to  teach  the  people.  Every  day  a  teacher  could  find 
hearers  there.  Now  he  might  still  find  many  who  had  come  up 
from  the  provinces  and  were  still  lingering  in  the  city.  As  soon 
as  he  was  seated  and  prepared  to  teach,  a  very  great  concoui*se 
gathyivd  about  him. 

In  the  mean  time  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  had  concocted  a 
i)lan  to  entrap  him,  and  to  raise  against  him  the  dislike  of  the 
people.  They  brought  to  him  a  woman  taken  in 
taken  in  adultery  adultery,  and  sat  her  in  the  midst  of  the  ci-owd,  and 
said  to  Jesus,  "Teacher,  this  woman  was  taken 
in  adultery,  in  the  very  act.  Now,  Moses  in  the  law  commanded 
us  that  such  should  be  stoned  ;  but  what  do  you  say  ? "  The  refer 
ence  was  to  Deuteronomy  xxii.  21.  The  woman  must  have  been 
unmarried,  but  betrothed,  as  stoning  was  prescribed  Ijy  the  law 
only  for  such  persons.  She  was  therefore  probably  young  and 
not  hardened.  This  must  have  been  a  most  painful  ordciil.  In 
n(jthing  does  the  superior  beauty  of  spiritual  goodness  over  hard 
and  technical  morality  appear  more  than  in  this  scene.  Jesus  was 
spotlessly  pure.  lie  did  not  assert  his  purity  by  bui-sting  into 
invectives  against  tlie"hoiTid  creature."  lie  modestly  bent  his 
head,  and  wrote  on  the  ground  with  his  finger.  He  had  no  pruri- 
ent curiosity.  The  subject  was  distasteful.  But  the  Scribes  and 
I'harisees  seemed  carried  away  with  their  zeal  for  purity.  They 
liad  (liiigged  the  poor  guilty  thing  before  the  jniblic  gaze.  They 
were   then    committing   a   sin   greater   than   hers,  as   malicious 


IHE   TOOL  OF   6IL0AM,    AT   THE   JUNCTION    OF   THE   YAT.T.F.Y   OF  KIDI'.ON    Willi 
THE   TYROPCEON. 


AT  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES.  457 

hypocrisy  is  worse  than  incontinence.     But  every  man  engaged 
in  this  exposure  had  himself  committed  aduUeiy. 

Jesus  did  not  wish  to  touch  the  question.  But  they  urged  it 
They  thought  it  would  embarrass  him.  If  he  should  say,  "  Stone 
her  !  "  he  would  be  advising  a  breach  of  Roman  law,  which  took 
such  power  out  of  Jewish  hands.  If  he  considered  the  case  mildly, 
the  populace  would  be  excited  against  him,  as  one  who  was  dis- 
posed to  relax  the  law  of  Moses.  These  bad  men  were  animated 
by  many  forms  of  vile  passions.     So  they  urged  the  question. 

Jesus,  blushing,  lifted  himself  up.      He  looked  through  each 
man's  eyes  to  the  bottom  of  his  soul.   He  said  :  '*  Let  him  among 
you  who  has  never  sinned  first  cast  a  stone  at 
her."     (See  Deut.  xvii.  Y.)     Again  he  blushed.       Caught  in  their 

rr\-,  ^  1  o^^^^  trap. 

and  stooped,  and  wrote.  The  word  smote  them. 
It  aroused  their  consciences.  The  oldest  Pharisee  among  them 
was  an  adulterer ;  so  was  the  youngest  Scribe  ;  so  was  each  man. 
Some  of  the  crowd  probably  knew  the  licentiousness  of  these 
hypocrites,  and,  if  so,  gave  them  such  significant  looks  as  must 
have  been  most  embarrassing.  The  oldest  Phai'isee  among  them 
sneaked  off ;  so  did  the  youngest  Scribe  ;  so  did  each  man.  When 
Jesus  again  rose  from  his  stooping  posture  they  had  all  departed. 
The  woman  had  not  moved.  He  said  :  "  Whei-e  are  those  your 
accusers  ?  Has  no  man  condemned  you  ? "  She  answered : 
"  No,  sir." — "  Neither  do  I,"  said  Jesus ;  "  go,  and  sin  no  more." 
She  had  sinned.  He  had  no  license  to  give  to  sin.  "Wliether  the 
popular  opinion,  or  even  his  indulgence,  should  witlihold  condem- 
nation, her  only  safety  was  in  abstaining  from  sin.  Nothing  could 
have  won  her  from  the  downward  course  on  which  she  had  en- 
tered so  much  as  this  exquisite  tenderness  of  Jesus. 

Perhaps,  pointing  to  the  huge  lamps  now  kindled,  he  ex- 
claimed :  "  I  am  the  light  of  the  world  :  he  that  follows  me  shall 
not  M^alk  in  darkness  but  has  the  light  of  life." 

On  the  spot  his  adversaries  endeavored  to  coun-      .  ^^,  ]^  ^    ^^^ 
'■  1  •        1  ■  1  •  with  his  enemies, 

teract  the  force  of  his  teaching  by  saying  to  him : 

"  You  bear  testimony  concerning  yourself ;   your  testimony  is 

not  true."     As  if  they  would  quote  him  against   himself,   and 

uro-e  that  self-ixlorification  was  his  aim.     Jesus  answered :  "  Even 

if  I  bear  testimony  concerning  myself,  my  testimony  is  true  ;  for 

I  know  whence  I  came,  and  whither  I  go ;    but  ye  know  not 

whence  I  come,  and  whither  I  go.     Ye  judge  according  to  the 


458        FKOM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

flesh  ;  I  judge  not  any  man.  And  even  if  I  do  judge,  my  judg- 
ment is  true ;  for  I  am  not  alone,  but  I  and  He  who  sent  me. 
But  it  is  also  written  in  your  own  law  tliat  the  testimony  of  two 
is  true.  I  am  a  witness  concerning  myself,  and  my  Father  who 
sent  me  witnesses  for  me."  Ilei-e  is  a  claim  to  a  mysterious  origin 
and  high  position  in  the  univei-se.  The  nature  of  the  case  was 
such  that  he  was  compelled  to  bear  witness  concerning  himself. 
Nay,  more,  his  \ery  nature  was  such  that  he  was  compelled  to 
testify  of  himself,  as  light,  which  shows  the  existence  of  other 
things,  makes  its  own  existence  kn(Avn.  Moreover,  they  were  so 
fleshly  that  they  could  not  of  themselves  discern  spiritual  things, 
80  that  he  was  obliged  to  sliow  them.  They  took  a  sinful  plea- 
sure in  discerning  in  man  wliat  they  might  condemn.  He  tcwk  no 
such  pleasure.  He  was  not  ready  to  judge  and  condemn  men. 
If  they  had  been  as  free  from  this  evil  dis})osition  as  he,  they 
would  not  seize  every  word  he  spoke  as  matter  for  condemna- 
tion. 

But  when  he  spoke  of  his  Father  as  being  a  witness  for  him, 
his  enemies  asked  :  "  Where  is  your  Father  ? "  His  reply  was : 
''  Ye  neither  know  me  nor  my  Father  :  if  ye  had 
F  th  ^^^  ^  ^  known  me  ye  would  have  known  my  Father 
also."  They  must  have  understood  him  to  mean 
that  he  felt  a  consciousness  of  being  one  with  God.  That  cer- 
tainly was  the  claim  which  Jesus  set  forth.  "Whether  he  was  mis- 
taken or  not,  whether  he  told  the  truth  or  a  falsehood, — those  are 
two  other  questions ;  but  whether  he  made  this  claim  is  a  ques- 
tion readily  answered.  He  most  manifestly  did.  And  no  one 
could  find  such  a  claim  made  by  any  man,  otherwise  very  good 
and  exemplary,  without  feeling  that  lunvever  mistaken  he  might 
be,  he  is  unquestionably  sincere  in  his  belief.  The  whole  ques- 
tion of  the  divinity  of  Jesus  is  narrowed  to  the  inquiring  whether 
liis  judgment  was  hurt  by  a  false  consciousness.  H  that  ques- 
tion be  determined  in  the  affirmative,  then  we  have  these  difficul- 
ties on  our  hands,  namely,  to  account  for  a  man  so  immacnlate, 
so  surpassingly  good,  so  ])r<)found,  so  rapid  and  poarching  a  reader 
of  the  hiniian  heart,  that  the  like  of  him  has  never  risen  among 
tlie  sons  of  men, — a  being  with  such  self-control,  such  vast  powers 
of  mind  and  wonderful  endowments  of  ])hysi(pie,  living  the  most 
resplendent  of  human  lives,  and  dying  a  siiblimest  death  of  mar- 
tyrdom, and  influencing  the  ages  by  his  life  and  death,  while  he 


AT  THE  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES.  459 

himself  was  inwardly  crazed  by  believing  himself  to  be  one 
person  while  he  was  in  reality  another, — living  and  dying  in  the 
belief  that  he  was  God,  while  in  point  of  fact  he  was  really 
inferior  to  even  any  man  who  knows  who  he  is. 

It  was  truth  or  blasphemy  which  he  was  speaking.  From  the 
standing-point  of  the  Jews  they  must  have  deemed  it  the  latter, 
and  yet  they  had  not  the  courage  to  lay  hands  oji  the  man  who 
had  committed  in  their  hearing  the  greatest  (^'ime  possible  under 
the  theocracy.     His  good  greatness  seemed  to  paralyze  them. 

Then  said  Jesus  again  to  them :  "  I  go  away,  and  you  shall  seek 
me,  and  in  your  sins  you  shall  die :  for  where  I  go  you  have  not 
the  ability  to  come."  The  Jews  said :  "  Will  he  kill  himself  ?  " 
lie  replied :  "  You  are  of  those  beneath ;  I  am  of  those  above ; 
you  are  of  the  world  ;  I  am  not  of  the  world.  I  said  to  you  that 
you  shall  die  in  your  sins ;  for  if  you  do  not  believe  that  I  am,  you 
shall  die  in  your  sins."  They  asked  him,  sarcastically :  "  Who 
are  you  ? "  lie  replied  :  "  What  say  I  to  you  from  the  first  ?  I 
have  many  things  to  say  and  to  judge  concerning  you,  but  the 
Father  who  sent  me  is  here ;  and  I  speak  to  the  world  those 
things  which  I  have  heard  from  Him."  John  inserts  the  explana- 
tory sentence — "  They  understood  not  that  he  spoke  to  them  of 
the  Father,  God."  So  utterly  obtuse  and  fleshly  were  they  that 
even  these  mystical  utterances  of  Jesus  were  incomprehensible. 
Then  he  said  to  them  :  "  When  you  have  lifted  up  the  Son  of  Man 
then  shall  you  know  th"&,t  I  am,  and  from  myself  I  do  nothing, 
but  as  the  Father  hffs  taught  me,  so  I  speak.  And  He  who  sent 
me  has  not  left  me  alone.  He  is  with  me,  for  I  do  always  those 
things  that  please  Him," 

Upon  this  many  of  the  people  believed  on  him.  There  was 
something  in  the  words  or  in  the  manner,  or  in  both,  which 
touched  them  and  awoke  them  into  faith.  But 
it  was  not  very  great  or  very  intelligent  faith,  as  ^^""^  ^^^'^""^  ""^ 
appears  irom  what  immediately  follows.  He 
said  to  such  :  "If  ye  continue  in  my  word,  then  are  ye  my  disci- 
ples indeed  ;  and  ye  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall  eman- 
cipate you."  He  saw  that  they  were  regarding  him  in  a  sensuous 
light,  as  a  political  deliverer  from  the  Roman  yoke,  and  therefore 
spoke  this  word  to  set  them  right.  He  had  exhibited  such  cour- 
age in  peril,  and  spoken  so  frankly  of  his  consciousness  of  being 
one  with  God  that  they  had  begun  to  think  that  they  might  have 


460    FKOM  FEAST  OF  TABEENACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  ■\\'EEK. 

been  misled  by  his  autecedeuts  and  his  manner,  and  that  this, 
after  all,  was  the  Christ,  the  Anointed,  the  Messias, — still  connect- 
ing him,  however,  with  their  hopes  of  freedom  from  the  Roman 
yoke.  This  speech,  which  claimed  that  all  his  triumphs  were  to 
be  spiritual,  opened  their  eyes  to  their  misapprehension.  More- 
over, it  touched  them  on  the  sorest  spot  of  their  hearts,  as  their 
reply  shows.  They  indignantly  answered  him  :  "  Seed  of  Abra- 
ham are  we,  and  to  no  man  have  we  been  slaves  at  any  time :  how 
do  you  say  then,  '  Ye  shall  be  emancipated  ? '"  So  blind  were 
they  as  to  foi-get  that  their  fathers  had  been  slaves  in  Egypt  and 
Babylon  for  generations,  and  that  they  were  virtually  at  that  very 
moment  the  slaves  of  the  Roman  Empire. 

Jesus  replied  :  "  I  most  solemnly  assure  you  that  whoever  is  do- 
ing sin  is  the  slave  of  sin.  And  the  slave  abides  not  in  the  house 
continually.  If,  therefore,  the  Son  shall  emancipate  you,  you 
shall  be  indeed  freed.  I  know  that  you  are  Abraham's  seed ;  but 
you  seek  to  kill  me  because  my  word  has  no  place  in  you.  I 
speak  what  I  have  seen  with  my  Father,  and  you  then  do  what  you 
have  seen  with  your  father." 

These  last  words  seem  addressed  to  the  crowd  promiscuously. 
It  excited  their  anger  greatly.  If  they  had  believed  on  him 
before,  they  dropped  him  now,  and  with  vehemence  replied,  "Abra- 
ham is  our  father." 

Jesus  said  unto  them,  "If  you  were  Abraham's  children  you 

would  do  the  works  of  Abraham ;  but  now  you  seek  to  kill  me,  a 

man  who  has  told  you  the"  truth,  which  I  have 

1  S^Tthtm^'  ^'^'''■'^  ^''^"'  ^''^-  '^^"'  "^^  "^^  Abraham.  You 
do  the  works  of  your  father."  This  still  more  in- 
censed them,  and  they  retorted, "  We  are  not  born  of  fornication. 
One  father  have  we,  God." — "  If  God  were  your  father,"  replied 
Jesus,  "  you  would  have  held  me  dear ;  for  I  proceeded  forth  and 
have  come  from  God ;  neither  came  I  of  myself,  but  He  sent  me. 
Why  do  you  not  understand  my  speech  ?  Because  you  cannot 
hear  my  discourse*  Ye  are  of  your  father  Diabolus  (the  Calum- 
niator), and  the  desires  of  your  father  you  are  minded  to  do.  lie 
was  a  manslayer  from  the  beginning,  and  in  the  truth  he  has  not 
an  abiding-})lace,  for  the  truth  is  not  in  him ;  when  he  speaks  a 

*  It  is  important  to  notice  the  din-  late  utterance  of  the  latter,  which 
tinction  between  XaAio  and  \070s,  the  means  a  reasonable  connected  line  of 
former  signifying  the  outward  articu-    thought. 


AT  THE  FEAST  OF  TABEKNACLES.  461 

lie  he  speaks  of  his  own,  for  he  is  a  liar  and  the  liar's  father. 
But  hecause  I  speak  the  truth  you  do  not  believe  me.  ^Ylio  of 
you  convicts  me  of  wrong  ?  *  Wliy  do  you  not  believe  me  if  I 
sj^eak  the  truth  ?  He  who  is  of  God  hears  the  words  of  God :  on 
this  account  you  hear  not,  because  yon  are  not  from  God." 

Upon  their  claiming  to  be  Abraham's  children  Jesus  showed 
them  that  they  had  none  of  the  characteristics  of  the  spiritual 
descendants  of  Abraham.     That  was  tantamount 
to  a  charge  of  spiritual  bastardy,  which  they  re-  ^®°°       ^^' 

pelled  by  claiming  God  as  their  father.  But 
Jesus  shows  them  that  they  have  not  the  characteristics  of  spirit- 
ual children  of  God,  because  they  hate  the  One  who  has  come  out 
from  God.  If  they  were  God's  spiritual  children  the  truth  would 
be  their  vernacular ;  but  they  cannot  receive  the  truth ;  it  is  as  un- 
intelligible to  them  as  an  unkno"svn  language.  He  then  pours  the 
awful  statement  into  their  ears  that  they  are  the  children  of  the 
Devil,  who  was  at  once  a  liar  and  a  murderer,  who  in  the  begin- 
ning sought  to  destroy  the  race,  and  endeavored  to  accomplish 
his  nefarious  designs  by  a  lie.  The  Jews  showed  this  disposition 
towards  Jesus — the  lying,  homicidal  spirit — in  that  they  sought  to 
kill  him,  not  for  any  error  of  thought  or  wrong  of  life,  for  he 
appeals  to  them  if  they  have  ever  been  convinced  on  evidence 
that  he  had  done  a  wrong  or  made  a  mistake.  It  was  a  great 
claim.  He  challenges  any  flaw  to  be  shown  in  his  doctrines  or 
life.  And  yet  they  hate  him  murderously.  If  they  were  of  God 
they  would  hear  the  words  of  God ;  but  their  failure  to  hear  the 
words  of  God,  which  Jesus  professed  to  speak,  is  proof  that  they 
are  not  of  God.     Then,  they  are  of  the  Devil. 

Jesus  rested  his  reproof  on  actual  facts  of  which  they  were 
cognizant,  such  as  their  known  desire  to  slay  him.     To  his  lofty 
rebuke  they  reply  with  coarse  invective:  "Is  it  not 
polite  in  us  to  say  that  thou  art  a  Samaritan,  and        Jesus  charged 
hast  a  demon  ?  "     They  were  eroino-  to  throw  at  ° 

him  the  two  hardest  words  known  in  Jewish  quar- 
relling, just  because  they  knew  no  harder ;  but  they  sought  to  in- 
tensify them  by  saying — It  is  really  a  stretch  of  politeness  to  call 

*  The  word  means  "error"  as  well  I  sigmfies  to  prove  the  fallacy  in  one's 
as  "fatilt,"    mistake    of   judgment  as    logic  as  well  as  to  fasten  upon  one  the 
well  as  sinfulness  of  life.     So  the  word    charge  of  wrong-doing, 
which   I  have    translated    ' '  convicts "  I 


462         FEOM   FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL    TME    LAST    WEEK. 

you  a  Samaritan:  are  we  not  doing  a  "handsome"  thing  to  restrain 
oiii-selves  and  go  no  further  than  to  say  "  you  have  a  demon  ?  " 

Jesus  cahnly  replied,  "  I  have  not  a  demon.  I  lionor  my  Father 
and  you  dishonor  me.  And  I  seek  not  my  glory.  There  is  one 
who  seeks  it  and  judges."  The  mention  of  God's 
judgment  arouses  his  com pa.ss ions,  and  he  says  to 
them,  "  I  solemnly  assure  you  that  if  any  one  shall  keep  my  word 
he  shall  not  see  death  through  the  ages."  The  Jews  replied,  "  Now 
we  know  that  vcmi  have  a  demoiu  Al)raham  is  dead,  and  the 
prophets,  and  you  say,  '  If  a  man  keep  my  word  he  shall  not  taste 
of  death  through  the  ages.'  Are  you  greater  than  our  father 
Abraham,  who  is  dead  ?  And  the  prophets  are  dead.  "Whom  do 
you  make  yourself?"  This  was  pressing  him  to  declare  his  exact 
position  toward  God  and  toward  Abraham, — to  reveal  himself 
wholly  in  all  his  claims.  He  simply  answers  that  if  he  glorified 
himself  his  glory  would  be  nothing;  that  his  Father  would  bring 
all  his  glory  to  light,  and  that  that  Father  was  the  God  whom  they 
professed  to  adore.  He  thus  claimed  to  be  the  Son  of  God  in  an 
exclusive  sense.  He  adds,  "  And  you  have  not  known  Him 
[although  you  call  Him  your  God],  but  I  know  Him,  and  if  I 
should  say  I  know  Him  not,  I  should  be  a  liar  like  to  you  ;  but  I 
know  Him,  and  I  keep  His  word."  He  presents  this  as  if  he  felt 
that  they  were  urging  him  to  deny  his  own  consciousness,  to  de- 
clare that  he  was  not  what  he  felt  himself  to  be,  one  with  God ; 
to  assume  a  lower  position  would  be  to  violate  his  own  nature,  to 
falsify  his  convictions,  and  to  deny  the  truth  of  God.  In  regard 
to  Abraham,  however,  he  said,  "  Abraham,  your  father  [as  you 
claim],  exulted  that  he  saw  my  day,  and  he  saw  it  and  was  glad." 

This  was  an  astounding  assertion.  They  said  with  sarcasm, 
"  You  have  not  fifty  years  yet,  and  has  Abraham  seen  you  ? " 

Jesus  replied  most  loftily,  as  if  from  some  far-<jff  eternity,  "I 

most  solemnly  declare  to  you  that  before  Abraham  was  born  I 

AM."     If  this  be  not  the  senseless  assertion  which 

JesuB  before      ^^^^  j^^^.^  ^^^^  j^.  ^^,  ^^^^  jj.  j^,  ^  aeclaration  of  the 

Abmham.  .  i-ix  r  ^^     r   ^  ■     \     • 

consciousness  which  Jesus  telt  or  his  being  m  ex- 
istence before  time  began,  before  measurements  of  duration  liad 
been  discovered,  in  eternity,  eternally  coexisting  with  the  15eing 
whom  he  calls  his  Father,  and  whom  we  all  suppose  to  be  (tod. 

The  Jews  took  up  stones  to  cast  at  him,  but  he  somehow  liid 
himself  from  the  frantic  multitude  and  went  out  of  the  Temple. 


CHAPTER    II. 


THE   FEAST   OF    DEDICATION. 


Where  Jesus  went,  and  how  long  he  stayed  in  any  place,  are 

questions  the  answers  to  which  escape  our  closest  investigations. 

He  travelled  and  taught.     This  is  nearly  all  we 

can  learn.     There  are  certain  incidents  recorded        Perhaps  some- 
,  .  where  near  Jen- 

by  his  biographers  which  seem  to  associate  them-    ^-^^     Luke  x 

selves  with  this  portion  of  his  history,  and,  even  if 
we  have  missed  their  precise  chronology,  may  as  well  be  intro- 
duced here.  They  seem  to  show  that  Jesus  was  en  route  towards 
Jerusalem  to  attend  for  the  third  time  the  Feast  of  the  Dedica- 
tion, a  festival  which  celebrated  the  renewal  of  the  Temple  ser- 
vice under  the  Maccabees. 

On  one  occasion  a  lawyer  stood  up,  with  the  intent,  if  possible, 
to  entrap  Jesus  in  his  sayings.  He  put  this  question  to  Jesus : 
"  Teacher,  by  doing  what  shall  I  inherit  perpetual 

life?"     To  this  Jesus  returns  two  questions,  im-        '^\^   lawyer's 

,  ,     .  question, 

portant  in  themselves,  and  increasing  their  impor- 
tance by  their  relation  to  each  other.  Probably  pointing  to  the 
phylactery  of  his  questioner's  robe,  on  which,  as  a  lawyer,  he  bore 
tlie  inscription  of  that  passage  of  Scripture  (Deut.  vi.  5)  which 
the  Jews  were  accustomed  to  repeat  daily,  he  said,  "  What  is 
written  in  the  law  ? "  Ilis  next  question  was, "  How  readest  thou  % " 
He  calls  his  attention  to  the  fact  that  a  man  must  first  know  the 
words  of  the  record,  and  that  then  the  mood  in  which  he  exam- 
ines them  will  have  influence  on  his  judgment.  So,  before  mak- 
ing answer,  Jesus  asked  the  la-sv^-er  what  response  he  had  been  alile 
to  get  for  himself  out  of  the  law.  His  reply  was,  "  Thou  shalt 
love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy  heart,  and  all  thy  soul,  and 
with  all  thy  strength,  and  with  all  thy  mind,  and  thy  neighbor  as 
thyself."  Jesus  said,  "  You  have  answered  rightly.  Do  this  and 
you  shall  live." 

Perhaps  this  touched  him  as  an  intimation  that  his  life  had 


4G4 


FKOM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 


Parable  of  the 
Good  Samaritan. 


been  in  fault,  and  tlierefore  he  could  not  understand  the  profound 
spiritual  subjects  which  lie  had  brought  forward  for  discourse, 
lie  may  have  felt  ]»iqued,  and  to  make  return  gave  Jesus  what 
perhaps  he  intended  to  be  a  quiet  touch  of  sarcasm  by  the  ques- 
tion, "  And  who  is  my  neighbor? "  As  if  he  had  said  that  he  had 
kept  the  law,  unless  Jesus  gave  to  the  term  neighbor  perliaps  a 
meaning  not  altogether  accepted  among  his  people,  thus  covertly 
seeking  to  rebuke  him  for  his  too  great  laxity  in  mingling  with 
the  hated  Samaritan  race. 

Jesus  replied  in  the  beautiful  parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan. 
^  A  certain  man  went  down  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho,  and  fell 
among  thieves,  who  both  sti-ij)ped  and  wounded 
him,  and  departed,  leaving  him  half  dead.  By  a 
contingency  a  certain  priest  was  going  down  that 
way :  and  when  he  saw  him  he  passed  by  on  the  other  side.  And 
likewise  a  Levite,  when  he  came  to  the  place  and  saw  him,  passed 
by  on  the  other  side.     But  a  certain  Samaritan,  as  he  journeyed, 

came  to  where  he  was,  and,  see- 
ing him,  was  moved  with  com- 
passion, and  coming  to  him  he 
bound  up  his  wounds,  pouring 
in  oil  and  wine,  and  set  him  on 
his  own  beast,  and  brought  him 
to  an  inn,  and  took  care  of  him. 
And  on  the  morrow  he  took  out 
two  denarii,*  and  gave  them  to 
the  innkeeper,  and  said,  '  Take 
care  of  him,  and  whatsoever  thou  spendest  more,  when  I  come 
again  I  will  repay  thee.'  " 

Then  Jesus  submitted  to  the  lawyer  the  question,  "  Wliicli  of 
these  three  seems  to  thee  to  have  been  neighbor  to  him  that  fell 
among  the  thieves?"  And  he  replied,  "  lie  who  showed  mercy 
on  him."     Jesus  said,  "  Go,  and  do  thou  likewise." 

The  road  from  Jerusalem  to  Jericho  was  proverbially  perilous 


*  To  English  readers  of  this  parable 
the  generoBity  of  the  Samaritan  in  leav- 
ing two  pennies  with  the  landlord  seems 
to  be  a  small  thing.  But  let  xis  recollect 
that  each  denarius  represented  a  day's 
labor.  It  would  surely  not  be  considered 
a  small  thing  if  a  New  York  laboring 


man  should  humanely  take  up  a  poor 
fellow  who  had  been  maimed,  and  leave 
ten  dollars  to  meet  his  expenses.  Per- 
Tiajis  t«n  dollars  now  in  New  York  would 
be  a  fair  representative  of  two  denarii  in 
Palestine  in  the  days  of  Jesus.  It  waa 
a  liberal  provision. 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  465 

by  reason  of  being  the  resort  of  highwa^Tnen.  Of  this  Josephus 
{B.  J.,  iv.  8,  3)  informs  us.  The  priests  and  Levites  who  lived  in 
Jericho   and  officiated  in  Jerusalem  were  accus- 

IP  11  r       From  Jerusalem 

tomed  to  take  the  longer  and  safer  road  by  way  oi  ^^  jericho 
Bethlehem,  but  on  this  occasion  they  had  chosen 
the  shorter  route.  Their  guilt  is  increased  by  the  fact  that  the} 
examined  the  condition  of  the  wounded  man  and  found  it  to  be 
so  very  desperate,  and  yet  their  selfish  love  of  safety  drowned  the 
voice  of  conscience  and  humanity  in  their  hearts.  If  the  lawyer 
thought  it  was  not  the  correct  and  regular  thing  for  a  Jew  to 
show  mercy  to  a  Samaritan,  Jesus  showed  him  the  beautiful 
picture  of  a  Samaritan  putting  his  own  life  in  peril  to  save  a  man 
whom  he  considered  a  heretic,  and  whom  he  knew  to  be  his  na- 
tional enemy. 

If  the  wounded  man,  however,  was  not  a  Jew, — and  Jesus  does 
not  say  he  was, — then  the  Samaritan  is  represented  as  having  the 

widest  possible  humanity.     He  had  met  a  man 

1                    ,                    TT      T  T         ,    1                        .1  A  lesson  of  wide 

who  was  a  stran2;er.     lie  did  not  have  even  the    , „„.,„ 

o  numamty. 

pleasure  which  comes  from  helping  an  enemy, 
which  is  always  an  intense  personal  gratification  of  one's  own 
nobleness.  The  person  before  him  presented  only  two  claims  to 
his  attention  and  his  kindness,  namely,  he  was  a  man,  and  in  trouble. 
Here  was  the  veiy  widest  humanity.  But  we  know  that  the  helper 
was  a  Samaritan,  and  by  introducing  this  feature  into  the  picture 
Jesus  taught  that  it  is  possible  to  have  humanity  with  heterodoxy, 
and  to  have  orthodoxy  without  humanity ;  and  he  also  teaches 
that  if  a  man's  orthodoxy  do  not  beget  humanity  it  is  barrenly 
worthless  ;  that  humanity  is  superior  to  orthodoxy,  and  inhumanity 
is  worse  than  heterodoxy. 

The  beauty  of  this  parable  in  an  sesthetical  view,  its  graphic- 
ness,  its  fulness,  its  wideness  and  completeness  of  action,  its 
genuine  humaneness,  are  all  heightened  by  the  fact  that  this  great 
Teacher,  who  selected  the  Samaritan  to  be  the  model  of  neighborly 
behavior,  had  himself  been  recently  insulted  and  rejected  by  the 
Samaritans. 

It  would  seem  to  have  been  on  this  journey  to  the  Feast  of  Dedi- 
cation that  Jesus  and  his  followei-s  went  to  the  little  neighbcring 
village  of  Bethany,  to  meet  a  household  consisting  of  three  per- 
sons, two  sisters  and  a  younger  brother,  of  whom  we  shall  have 
•nore  to  say  hereafter.  This  family  seems  to  have  attracted  and 
30 


466        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

held  the  friendship  of  Jesus.     The  sisters  were  named  Martha 

and  Mary,  the  former  prohahly  being  tlie  elder  and  the  keeper  of 

the  house.      Their  brotlier  was  named  Lazarus. 

Bethany.  Jiary    ■\Y}^gn,  or  how  often  previously,  or  M'hether  ever 

and  JIartha.  Luke     ,     -  ^  i      i  i  .        ,  .    ,  , 

J.  berore,  Jesus  had  been  in  this  house,  we  have  no 

means  of  knowing  jKisitively ;  but  it  would  seem 
from  the  air  of  the  narrative  that  Jesus  had  had  some  previous 
iiitercoui*se  ^vith  this  interesting  domestic  circle. 

Jesus  had  come  into  the  house  tired  with  travel  and  preaching. 
His  reception  by  the  sisters  shows  the  difference  in  their  tempera- 
ments.     Mary  sat  at  his  feet,  listening  lovingly  to  his  words. 


Mary  was  receptive.  But  Martha  went  bustling  about  the  house, 
preparing  many  things,  intent  upon  giving  Jesus  something  of  a 
festal  reception  as  he  came  from  his  tiresome  journey.  At  last 
lier  industry  passed  over  into  worry.  She  became  cumbered  about 
much  serving.  And  tlien  she  became  a  little  fretful.  And  she 
went  from  the  kitchen  to  the  sitting-room  and  broke  in  upon  the 
party  with  the  half-playful,  h!ilf-i)etiilant  speech  addressed  to  Mary 
through  Jesus,  "Dost  thou  not  care  that  my  si.-tcr  has  k'ft  nic 
to  serve  alone  ?  Bid  her  therefore  that  she  help  me!"  It  did 
not  occur  to  ^VFary  that  much  ])iv]):iration  would  lie  needed,  and 
she  loved  Jesus  so  that  she  went  straijiht  into  the  sittiufj-room  and 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  467 

took  a  stool  at  liis  feet,  in  the  confidence  of  innocence,  Martha 
loved  him  just  as  much,  and  knew  that  he  must  have  something 
to  eat,  and  water  to  wash  with,  and  a  comfortable  bed.  Mary 
thought  of  what  she  needed  of  Jesus.  Martha  thought  of  what 
Jesus  needed  of  her.  She  was  so  anxious  to  get  back  to  Jesu? 
that  she  felt  keenly  how  her  work  was  depriving  her  of  the  pleas- 
ure and  profit  of  the  company  of  her  illustrious  friend  and  guest. 
Mary  was  having  all  the  good  of  it.  Martha  was  not  envious  ol 
her  sister,  but  she  desired  to  have  some  of  the  happiness  of  that 
society,  and  if  no  one  helped  her  she  would  lose  it  all. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  has  generally  been  regarded  as  a  rather 
severe  rebuke  to  Martha,  and  a  boundless  compliment  to  Mary. 
I  venture  to  say  that  it  was  neither  the  one  nor 
the  other.  He  did  most  probably  convey  in  his  .  lywai" 
tone,  as  is  intimated  in  the  repetition  of  her  name, 
some  dissatisfaction  with  Martha's  course.  It  was,  however,  only 
the  dissatisfaction  of  love,  not  of  anger.  He  desired  to  have  her 
there  where  Mary  was.  He  loved  the  sisters  equally.  He  was 
not  satisfied  that  Martha  should  be  worrying  in  the  kitchen,  and 
he  should  be  losing  her  society.  He  did  not  undervalue  care  for 
his  personal  comfort.  No  man,  sinner  or  saint,  ever  does.  It 
was  a  token  of  her  love  substantially  given.  He  must  have  ut- 
tered the  words  tenderly,  with  the  tone  of  love,  reproving  love  for 
putting  itself  to  trouble.  He  did  need  food  and  a  resting-place, 
but  he  also  needed  her  company.  And  so,  with  a  loving  smile 
and  a  kind  look  that  pleaded  his  love  against  his  words,  he  ut- 
tered this  sentence  that  had  in  it  more  of  warning  than  of  re- 
proof. 

She  loas  in  peril.  She  was  undertaking  too  much  for  her  means. 
That  was  making  her  over-careful.  She  was  becoming  distracted 
and  worried,  anxious  and  troubled.  She  was  losing  her  self-con- 
trol. She  was  in  danger  of  losing  her  whole  enjoyment  of  those 
for  whom  she  was  working.  Now,  no  true  man  can  see  his  friend, 
especially  if  that  friend  be  a  woman,  making  over-exertion  for 
his  comfort,  and  be  unconcerned.  Unless  he  be  entirely  selfish 
he  will  interfere.  So  Jesus  did  as  soon  as  she  opened  the  door 
and  looked  in. 

Nor  did  the  reply  of  Jesus  imply  that  only  one  dish  was  neces- 
sary. That  is  an  absurd  interpretation  of  his  words.  Nor  did  it 
mean  that  religion  was  that  one  thing.     This  is  a  mystical  inter- 


468    FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  "WEEK. 

pretation.  The  plain,  common-sense  meaning  of  this  part  of  the 
reply  is,  that  he  required  only  one  thing  in  his  reception,  namely, 
love  of  him.  Martha  had  that.  All  then  that  was  necessary  was 
simple  attention  to  his  simple  wants. 

AVliat  he  says  of  Mary  is  not  so  much  complimentary  as  defen- 
sive. "We  must  recollect  that.  It  was  not  a  volunteered  statement. 
Martha  knew  that  she  loved  Jesus,  and  helieved  that  Mary  did 
too ;  but  thought  that  her  sister  had  a  very  indifferent  way  oi 
showing  it ;  and  Martha  intimated  as  much.  Jesus  simply  meant 
to  defend  Mary.  lie  said,  "  Martha,  you  shall  not  take  away 
Mary's  share  in  this  loving  reception  of  me.  She  has  chosen  the 
part  of  goodness  as  well  as  you."  The  fact  is,  that  the  reply  of 
Jesus  was  a  sweet  speech  to  both  the  women,  and  both  felt  pleased 
and  improved  by  it. 

There  is  no  record  of  what  followed  ;  but  I  have  no  doubt  that 
when  Martha  shut  the  door  behind  her,  Jesus  intimated  somehow 
to  Mary  that  she  should  go  to  the  help  of  her  sister,  for  he  saw 
that  Mary's  peril  was  in  the  direction  of  quietism,  as  Martha's 
was  in  the  direction  of  worry.* 

From  Bethany  Jesus  went  up  to  the  metropolis.  While  passing 
he  saw  there  a  man  who  had  been  blind  from  his  birth. f     This 


*  I  venture  to  refer  the  reader  to  two 
published  sermons  of  mine,  entitled, 
Mary;  or,  Religion  in  Beauty,  and 
Martha  ;  or,  Religion  in  Rervice. 

f  I  can  unite  with  Dean  Milman, 
who,  in  a  note  to  the  text  of  his  Hist. 
Christianity,  in  loco,  says  :  "I  hesitate 
at  the  arrangement  of  no  passage  in 
the  whole  narrative  more  than  this  his- 
tory of  the  blind  man."  The  Harmo- 
nists have  two  opinions,  one  placing  it 
at  the  time  when  Jesus  escaped  from 
the  wratli  of  his  enemies  in  the  Tem- 
ple, and  the  other  in  the  time  I  have 
given  it  in  my  text  above.  In  favor  of 
the  former  it  may  be  urged  that  the 
narrative  seems  so  closely  connected 
that  we  can  hardly  imagine  an  intervaL 
Moreover,  we  know  that  that  conflict  in 
the  Temple  was  on  the  Sabbath,  and  that 
this  healing  took  place  on  the  Sabbath, 
(ix.  14.)  The  objection  to  that  view  is 
that  Jesus    evidently    departed    alone 


from  the  Temple,  while  at  the  healing 
of  the  blind  man  his  disciples  were  with 
him.  Archbishop  Trench  replies  that 
it  is  easy  to  suppose  that  they  could  have 
extricated  themselves  as  Jesus  did  him- 
self; but  the  Archbishop  must  have 
overlooked  the  fact  that  they  were  not 
present  at  that  violent  interview.  The 
argument  from  the  Sabbath  is  not  con- 
clusive, because  the  conflict  took  place 
on  a  festal  Sabbath,  and  this  healing  on 
a  regular  weekly  Sabbath.  Both  might 
have  fallen  on  the  same  day,  but  it  ia 
not  known  that  they  did.  I  have  been 
inclined  to  place  it  where  it  stands  in 
the  text,  because  the  connection  of  the 
conclusion  of  the  narrative  seems  to 
me  quite  as  close  as  that  which  is  urged 
for  the  beginning,  and  the  conclusion 
(John  X.  22)  connects  itself  wth  the 
Fea.'<t  of  Dedication,  at  which  his  disci- 
ples were  with  him,  as  they  were  not 
on  the  former  occasion.     Moreover,  a 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION. 


469 


was  the  first  time  that  the  disciples  were  in  Jerusalem  with  Jesus. 

As  they  were  passing  a  certain  place  they  saw  a  man  who  had 

been  blind  from  his  birth.      It  occurred  to  the 

disciples    to    extract    from   their   Teacher  some        erusa  em.       a 
^  „    blmd  man.    John 

light  on  a  dark  difficulty,  as  old  as  the  history  of   ^ 

human  thought. 

Traces  of  the  profound  study  given  by  men  to  such  questions 

as  the  existence  of  evil  in  the  universe  of  the  good  God ;  the 

transmission,  if  not  of  mental  and  moral  traits,    _  .  ,     ., 

,  n  -,  .  ^  ,  •        1     i  •       Existence  of  evil. 

at  least  oi  penalties  ;  the  connection  between  sm 

and  suffering ;  and  kindred  problems,  are  almost  everywhere  in 
the  stream  of  recorded  thought,  as  far  up  towards  the  fountain- 
head  as  the  literature  of  the  world  enables  us  to  ascend.  It  is 
probably  impossible  to  say  when  men  first  began  to  have  these 
conceptions  in  shapely  manner  in  their  minds.  But  this  much  is 
certain,  that  very  early  in  the  history  of  human  society  we  discover 
that  the  doctrine  of  retribution  was  not  held  merely  loosely 
as  hypothesis,  but  was  imbedded  in  the  human  mind,  and  spring- 
ing up  in  all  forms  of  human  literature  and  art.  The  heathen 
classics  are  full  of  it.  The  students  of  the  old  Greek  dramatists 
can  never  forget  with  what  power  it  comes  out  in  the  writings  of 
-^schylus,  the  father  of  classic  tragedy  ;  how  he  shakes  his  read- 
ers with  the  grand  horrors  of  the  Prometheus,  the  Agamemnon, 
the  Eumenides /  how  in  them  and  his  other  tragedies  which  ha%e 
survived  we  are  thrilled  by  the  perpetual  reproduction  of  ances- 
tral guilt,  the  punishment  of  successive  generations  of  sinners 
who  are  pressed  into  the  commission  of  atrocities  by  the  doom 
which  lay  mountain  heavy  on  their  race.     Nor  will  they  fail  to 


great  difficulty  lies  against  the  other 
date,  namely,  that  Jesus  would  scarcely 
have  left  the  Temple  in  a  secret  man- 
ner, and  then  immediately  perform  a 
miracle  which  wovdd  attract  all  eyes  to 
him  at  the  moment  of  a  popular  tu- 
mult, nor  would  there  have  been  space 
during  the  remainder  of  the  day  for  the 
events  to  have  occurred  which  are  con- 
tained in  the  narrative.  It  is  a  beauti- 
ful thought  that  it  exhibits  his  godlike 
calmness  to  be  able  thus  in  his  own  peril 
to  stand  stUl  and  work  this  beneficent 
miracle.      If  I  were  writing  a  poem  in- 


stead of  a  history,  I  should  take  the 
other  date,  in  favor  of  which  are  Lange, 
Olshauseu,  Meyer,  Stier,  Trench,  and 
MUman ;  against  whom,  and  in  favor  of 
the  view  I  adopt,  stand  Liicke,  Tho- 
luck,  De  Wette,  Alford,  and  Rev.  Mor- 
ris Dods,  who  translated  and  edited 
Lange' 8  ''Life  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 
Macknight  places  the  healing  on  the 
day  of  the  escape  from  the  Temple ; 
the  recognition  and  subsequent  proceed- 
ings during  the  visit  at  the  Dedication. 
The  reader  must  examine  and  decide  foi 
himself. 


470        FROil   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   TIIE   LAST   WEEK. 

remember  how  the  greatest  of  Greek  dramatic  authors,  in  liia 
wonderful  (Edi_pus,  seems  to  attempt  an  imitation  of  the  intrica- 
cies of  Divine  Providence,  and  the  inevitability  of  the  blow  of 
retribution  from  the  opening  of  the  plot  to  the  tremendous  catas- 
trophe ;  nor  with  what  splendid  diction  and  terrible  beauty  the 
same  doctrines  are  set  forth  by  Euripides  in  his  wonderful  PhcB- 
dra  and  overwhelming  Medea.  Indeed,  the  whole  ancient  classic 
tragedy  surges  with  the  heaving  billows  of  sinful  passion  under 
the  beating  tempests  of  tremendous  retribution. 

The  ancient  idea  of  penalty  was  personified.     Nemesis,  daugh- 
ter of  Darkness  and  kinswoman  of  Shame,  was  the  agent  of  the 
gods  in  the  punishment  of  the  violation  of  law, 

^*"    and  was  the  special  avenger  of   family  crimes, 
gan  idea.  ^  "  "^ 

'  AVith  the  scent,  the  swiftness,  and  the  certainty 
of  a  sleuth-hound,  she  followed  guilt  through  all  the  windings  of 
society  and  all  the  doublings  of  blood,  until  she  smote  it  with  the 
scourge  that  infuriated  or  the  sword  that  destroyed.  The  skill  of 
even  Phidias  was  employed  to  embody  in  marble  the  popular  con- 
ception of  this  personation  of  penalty. 

This  same  idea  of  the  inevitable  following  of  pain  upon  trans- 
gression, at  whatever  intervals  and  through  whatever  prosperi- 

„.    „  ties, — from  which  was  always  made  the  illogical 

The  Hebrew  idea.  '        .  .     ^  «•     .         ,  ,  ■,  ., 

conclusion  that  no  sunermg  takes  place  with- 
out sin, — lay  dark  and  heavy  on  the  Hebrew  mind.  In  that  sim- 
plest, grandest,  and  most  solemn  of  all  the  ti-agedies,  the  book 
Joh^  we  see  a  very  powerful  representation  of  this.  A  man  serv- 
ing God  with  such  consecration  and  such  constancy  that  even  the 
Almighty  spoke  of  him  as  His  perfect  servant,  suddenly  topples 
from  the  pinnacle  of  human  prosperity  to  the  dunghill  oi  the 
lowest  debasement ;  from  surroundings  of  comfort,  which  made 
him  seem  like  a  secure  god,  into  privations  and  pains  which 
ranked  him  among  the  most  pitiful  of  the  feeble.  AVlien  his 
friends  drew  near  to  condole  with  him,  they  knew  him  not. 
They  beheld  a  blackened  ruin  lie  where  there  had  stood  a  palace 
of  delights.  The  sight  was  so  appalling  that  Eliphaz  the  TcMuan- 
ite,  and  Bildad  the  Shuhite,  and  Zophar  the  Naamathite,  lifted  up 
their  voices  and  we])t,  and  rent  their  mantles  and  crowned  them- 
selves with  dust,  and  sat  down  with  the  sufferer  seven  days  and 
seven  nights,  and  never  a  man  of  them  essayed  to  break  with 
syllables  the  awful  silence  of  that  transcendent  grief.   And  when 


THE   FEAST    OF   DEDICATIOX.  471 

they  did,  wlien  they  had  taken  a  week  to  contemplate  the  situa- 
tion and  study  the  case  of  Job,  these  three  great  men,  whom  Job 
had  thought  worthy  to  be  his  friends,  embodied  their  philosophy 
in  such  words  as  these : 

Eliphaz  said  :  "  Who  ever  perished,  being  innocent  ?  or  where 
were  the  righteous  cut  off?  Even  as  I  have  seen,  they  that  plough 
iniquity,  aiul  sow  wichedness,  reajp  the  same.''''  Bildad  said :  "  Can 
the  rush  grow  up  without  mire?  Can  the  flag  grow  without 
water?  "Whilst  it  is  yet  in  its  greenness,  and  not  cut  down,  it 
withereth  before  any  other  herb.  So  are  the  jpaths  of  all  that 
forget  God ;  and  the  hypocrite's  hope  shall  perish^  Zophar 
boldly  said:  ^^ Know  that  God  exacteth  of  thee  less  than  thine 
iniquity  deserveth^ 

And  amidst  all  this  intimation  or  assertion  of  secret  sin,  Job  was 
without  fault.  But  it  was  impracticable  for  these  men  to  conceive 
it  possible  that  there  could  be  so  much  suffering  and  no  sin.  We 
hnow  that  Job  was  in  the  midst  of  prodigious  pains  which  were  in  no 
way  a  punishment  for  either  his  own  sins  or  the  sins  of  any  other. 

So  when  we  come  down  to  the  days  of  Jesus  and  the  passage 
of  our  text,  we  find  the  great  Teacher  confronted  with  a  case  of 
special  privation,  and  his  disciples  plumplv  put 
the  direct  question  to  him :  "  Who  did  sin,  this 
man  or  his  parents,  that  he  was  born  blind  ?  "  Here  is  a  sad  case, 
a  man  who  had  never  beheld  God's  great  expanse  of  the  heavens 
or  fruitful  field  of  the  earth — a  man  who  had  never  seen  the  love- 
light  in  the  eye  of  mother  or  wife  or  child — a  man  to  whom  the 
angel  rays  of  holy  light  had  never  come  flooding  in  from  all  the 
forms  of  nature  and  of  art,  full  of  reports  of  beauty.  It  was  a 
dire  privation.  It  never  occurred  to  the  disciples  to  ask  the  pre- 
vious question :  "  Wliy  came  he  thus  ? "  They  never  question 
their  prejudices  and  their  old  ideas  which  they  had  received  from 
their  fathei-s.  If  they  had  ever  read  the  book  of  Job  they  had 
forgotten  its  moral.  ^\\q,^ presumed  sin.  Here  is  suffering,  where 
is  the  sin  ?  Suffering  has  only  one  parent.  Sin.  All  they  seemed 
curious  to  know  was,  Who  was  the  sinner  ?  It  broke  upon  them 
like  a  new  day  on  what  they  supposed  the  noon  of  their  intelli- 
gence when  the  Master  said.  Neither  hath  this  man  sinned,  nor 
his  parents.  It  M-as  an  utterance  which  smote  the  mouth  of 
Poetry  with  the  hand  of  Silence,  and  emptied  the  garnered  treas- 
ures of  Philosophy  into  the  sea. 


472        FEOil   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL    THE   LAST   ^^^;EK. 


It  is  not  at  all  necessary  to  suppose  that  the  disciples  believed  in 
the  doctrines  of  pre-existence  and  metempsychosis,*  or  had  even 
heard  them.  There  is  no  sufficient  proof  that  these  Platonic  idea^ 
had  spread  generally  among  the  Hebrew  people,  or  that  they  pre- 
vailed to  any  extent  even  in  the  schools  of  the  Rabbis. 

Here  is  the  ray  of  light  which  Jesus  let  in  on  one  case,  and 

which  maybe  applicable  to  millions:  "jS^either  hath  this  man 

sinned,  nor  his  parents ;  but  that  the  works  of  God 

What  Jesus  ^^^^^^^^  ^^  ^^^^^  manifest  in  him."  Not  that  the 
thought  of  it.  •        1      •         J-  1-1 

man  had  never  committed  sm  oi  any  kmd,  not 

that  his  parents  were  faultless,  but  that  this  blindness  was 
neither  punitive  nor  the  result  of  sin.  It  was  the  grand  -i-ev- 
elation  to  the  world  that  suffering  may  exist  without  sin,  and  as 
part  of  the  working  of  a  beneficent  law  whose  sweep  describes  a 
circumference  too  large  for  human  vision,  but  enclosing  a  vast 
field  of  God's  benign  operations ;  of  this  circle,  the  segment,  if 
visible  to  us,  is  too  small,  too  fine  a  point,  for  us  to  find  the  cen- 
tre, measure  the  radius,  and  calculate  the  area,  with  all  the  aids 
of  all  the  geometry  known  to  man.  Jesus  says  that  a  man  may 
suffer  for  God's  sake,  and  by  the  cure  of  the  blind  man  and  the 
results  of  that  cure  he  demonstrated  this  blessed  fact. 

Jesus  added  the  saying,  "  Wliile  it  is  day  we  must  work  the 
works  of  him  who  sent  us.  Night  comes,  when  no  man  can 
work.  As  long  as  I  am  in  the  world  I  am  the  light  of  the  world." 
The  proverbial  expression  "  Night  comes,  when  no  man  can  work," 
simply  meant  that  he  who  did  not  his  work  in  the  day  cannot  do 
it  in  the  night ;  that  when  a  man  neglects  an  opportunity  to  do 
what  he  should  do,  he  cannot  recover  it :  and  Jesus  applies  this 
general  principle  to  himself  and  his  disciples.  As  he  was  the 
light  of  the  world,  what  fitter  thing  than  that  he  should  open  the 
eyes  of  the  blind  ?  So,  he  spat  on  the  ground,  and  made  clay  of 
the  spittle,  and  anointed  the  blind  man's  eyes  therewith,  and  said 
to  him,  "  Go,  wash  in  the  pool  of  Siloam." 

Anciently  a  virtue  was  supposed  to  be  in  saliva  for  disorders  of 


*  The  doctrine  of  metempsychosis 
was  widely  icccived  among  the  Jews  of 
the  Jliddle  Ages,  especially  among  the 
Cabalists,  who  explicitly  taught  that 
blindness  from  the  birth  was  to  be  ac- 
counted for  by  this  doctrine ;  but  we 
cannot  learn  that  it  was  taught  in  the 


times  of  Jesus.  Lightfoot  quotes  the 
Rabbins  as  teaching  that  the  embryo 
might  sin  in  the  womb,  and  as  quoting 
for  proof  the  stnigglo  between  Jacob 
and  Esau.  (Gen.  xxv.  22.)  Tholuck 
believes  that  this  was  merely  the  pri- 
vate opinion  of  particvilar  individuals. 


THE    FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  473 

the  eyes,  as  we  learn  from  Livy  [Hist.  JVat.,  xxviii.  7).  Suetoniiig 
(  Vesp.,  vii.)  and  Tacitus  (Hist.,  iv,  8)  give  accounts  of  the  restoring 
of  a  blind  man  by  the  Emperor  Vespasian,  and 
Ijoth  speak  of  the  use  of  saliva,  the  latter  repre-  jjg^^ijj^ 
senting  the  blind  man  as  begging  the  Emperor  to 
anoint  his  eyes  with  spittle.*  Jesus  himself  in  a  similar  case  em- 
ployed it  in  the  healing  of  a  blind  man  (Mark  viii.  23),  and  also 
in  the  case  of  one  suffering  from  a  defect  in  the  organs  of  speech 
and  hearing.  He  did  not  always,  however,  use  outward  applica- 
tions, as  we  see  in  the  case  of  the  blind  man  near  Jericho  (Mat- 
thew XX.  34).  Why  he  did  so  in  this  case  we  do  not  positively 
know.  Trench's  suggestion  seems  good :  "  Probably  the  reasons 
which  induced  him  to  use  these  means  were  ethical ;  it  was  per- 
haps a  help  for  the  weak  faith  of  the  man  to  find  that  something 
external  was  done."  It  may  also  have  been  a  test  of  his  faith, 
as  faith  was  the  psychological  basis  on  which  Jesus  wrought  his 
miracles.  It  could  hardly  have  been  to  wash  off  the  clay  which 
would  have  obstructed  the  use  of  the  eyes  after  the  miracle  had 
been  wrought,  as  this  would  not  have  been  a  sufficiently  import- 
ant thing  to  mention,  much  less  to  command.  The  short  history 
is,  that  "  he  went  and  washed,  and  came  seeing." 

The  recovery  of  his  sight  made  so  great  a  change  in  the  appear- 
ance of  the  man  that  some  of  his  neighbors  doubted  his  identity, 
although  they  still  saw  a  great  resemblance  to  the  blind  beggar. 
When  he  affii-med  that  he  was  the  very  man,  they  asked  him, 
"  How  were  your  eyes  opened  1 "  lie  answered,  "  The  man  who 
is  called  Jesus  made  clay,  and  anointed  mine  eyes,  and  said  to  me, 
'  Go  to  the  Siloara  and  wash : '  then  I  went  and  washed,  and 
received  sight." — "  Where  is  he  ? "  said  they.  "  I  do  not  know," 
said  he. 

The  people  noticed  that  the  man  had  been  healed  on  the  Sab- 
bath.    It  was  expressly  forbidden  by  some  of  the  Rabbins,  accord- 
ing to  Lightfoot,  to  put  saliva  on  the  eyelids  on 
the  Sabbath :  in  case  of  inflammation  of  the  eyes,    „  , ,    , 
however,  some  did  allow  this  to  be  done.     There 
being  some  difference  of  opinion  among  their  religious  teachers 
and  rulers,  the  man's  neighbors  brought  him  to  the  Pharisees. 
The  wish  has  often  been  expressed  that  some  miracle  of  Jesus  had 

*  Trench  says  that  abundant  quota-  I  in  Wetstein,  in  loco. 
tions  to  the  same  eSect  are  to  be  found  | 


474        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   TUE   LAST   WEEK, 

been  submitted  to  judicial  iuvestigation.  Kow  here  is  precise!} 
such  a  case.  Jesus  had  given  sight  to  a  man  blind  from  his  birth. 
The  man  was  no  fool,  but  rather  a  quick-witted,  genial  pei-sou. 
The  best  intellects  of  the  nation  emplcn'cd  themselves  in  invcsti 
gating  the  phenomena  and  circumstances  of  the  case.  These  in- 
tellects were  not  credulous,  but  exceedingly  skeptical ;  not  spiritu- 
alistic, but  exceedingly  materialistic;  not  friendly  to  Jesus,  but  ex- 
ceedingly hostile.  If  it  be  possible  to  disprove  the  alleged  work- 
ing of  a  miracle  we  have  now  an  ojtportunity.  Let  us  study  the 
investigation  and  results. 

The  Pharisees  asked  him  how  he  had  received  his  sight.  That 
presumed  blindness  and  a  cure.  The  man  admitted  both,  and  to 
the  point  of  their  question,  namely,  the  inanner 
catechised.  ^  ^  ^^  '^^^  healing,  he  replied,  "  He  put  clay  on  my 
eyes,  and  I  washed,  and  I  see."  There  must 
have  been  some  peculiar  quality  in  the  clay,  and  if  so  it  arose 
from  the  saliva  of  Jesus,  for  the  same  dust  from  which  to  make 
the  clay,  and  the  same  water  of  Siloam,  had  been  open  to  the 
use  of  millions  of  men,  and  yet  no  other  blind  man  had  been 
healed. 

This  was  so  manifest  to  all  his  inquisitors  that  a  schism  was 
immediately  produced.  No  one  doubted  that  a  very  wonderful 
thing  had  been  done,  if  there  were  no  fraud  or  collusion  in  the 
case.  Their  hostility  to  Jesus  came  out  in  the  saying,  "  This  man 
is  not  from  God,  because  he  docs  not  keep  the  Sabbath."  liut 
some  replied,  "  How  can  a  man  that  is  a  sinner  work  such  signs  ? " 
Here  was  a  dilemma.  The  miracle  could  not  be  denied,  if  there 
were  no  fraud,  and  they  could  not  give  up  their  ideas  of  Sabbath- 
keeping  so  far  as  to  accept  a  good  man,  although  he  had  sustained 
his  claims  by  a  miracle. 

They  turned  again  to  the  healed  man  and  said,  "  "Wliat  do  you 
say  of  him,  seeing  he  has  opened  your  eyes?"  This  question  in- 
volves the  admission  on  their  part  that  Jesus  had  given  the  man 
sight  in  some  wonderful  way,  if  his  story  be  true,  or  else  tlie  ad- 
mission of  that  upon  the  man's  part,  or  both.  That  he  believed  it 
was  a  miracle  is  manifest  from  his  reply,  "  He  is  a  prophet."     But 

the  inquisitors  were  not  willing  to  be  imposed 
His  parents  ex-  \p,        .      ,         .    ^         ^  .        ,     .. 

^jj^g^  upon.     Ihey  had  no  interest  ni  admitting  a  mira- 

cle, but  the  contrary.    They  called  his  parents 

and  asked  them  three  questions:  "  Is  this  your  son  ?  "     "  Was  he 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION. 


475 


bom  blind  ?  "     "  How  does  he  now  see  ? "     To  which  his  parents 

replied  :  1.  "  We  know  that  this  is  our  son  ;  "  2.  "  "We  know  that 

he  was  IjoTn  Wind ,  "  3.  "  "VVe  know  not  how  he  now  sees,  nor  do 

we  know  who  has  opened  his  eyes :  he  is  of  full  age,  he  shall 

speak  for  himself."     The  Pharisees  in  Sanhedrim  had  already 

agreed  that  if  any  man  should  acknowledge  Jesus  to  be  the  Christ, 

the  Messiah,  he  should  be  put  out  of  the  synagogue,  that  is,  endure 

the  sentence  of  the  thirty  days'  excommunication.*     Of  course 

such  a  decree  did  not  promote  in  any  way  the  interests  of  truth 

or  the  interests  of  Jesus.     The  fear  of  it  made  the  parents  dodge 

the  question.     But  we  are  not  to  conceive  of  them  as  heartlessly 

selfish,  for  they  knew,  as  they  said,  that  their  son  was  a  man,  and 

they  knew  that  he  was  very  shrewd  and  ready.     They  were  willing 

to  trust  him  to  take  care  of  himself. 

He  was  recalled  and  put  on  his  oath.     "  Give  glory  to  God :  we 

know  that  this  man  is  a  sinner."     This  address  certainly  does  not 

mean  that  he  was  to  ascribe  all  the  glory  of  his 

^     /-111.  7      T  The  patient  put 

cure  to  God,  and  give  no  reverence  to  Jesus,  as    on  oath 

Hammond  and  Jeremy  Taylor  teach.     It  was  a 

form  of  adjuration,  similar  to  that  which  Joshua  put  to  Achan, 

(see  Joshua  vii.  19).f     They  pretended  in  his  absence  to  have 

found  the  existence  of  fraud,  and  so  they  desire  him  to  purge 

himself  bv  takinsi:  an  oath  and  tellino-  the  whole  truth  and  nothinor 

but  the  truth,     AVliile  the  man  is  not  to  be  overcome  by  their  au- 


*  "  There  appear  to  have  been  two, 
or  some  say  three  kinds  of  excommuni- 
cation among  the  Jews,  greatly  differ- 
ing in  degrees  and  intensity,  and  our 
Lord  often  alludes  to  them,  not  as 
though  they  were  a  slight  matter,  but 
as  among  the  sharpest  trials  which  his 
servants  would  have  to  endure  for  his 
name's  sake.  The  mildest  was  an  ex- 
clusion for  thirty  days  from  the  syna- 
gogue, to  which  period,  in  case  the  ex- 
communicated showed  no  sign  of  re- 
pentance, a  similar  or  a  longer  period, 
according  to  the  will  of  those  that  im- 
posed the  sentence,  was  added  :  in  other 
ways  too  it  was  made  keener ;  it  was 
accompanied  with  a  curse  ;  none  might 
hold  communion  with  him,  no,  not  even 
his  family,  except  in  cases  of  absolute 


necessity.  Did  he  show  himself  obsti- 
nate still,  he  was  in  the  end  absolutely 
separated  from  the  fellowship  of  the 
peox^le  of  God,  cut  off  from  the  congre- 
gation,— a  sentence  answering,  as  many 
suppose,  to  the  delivering  to  Satan  in 
the  apostolic  church.  1  Cor.  v.  5 ;  1  Tim. 
i.  20.  Our  Lord  is  thought  to  allude 
to  all  these  three  degrees  of  separation, 
Luko  vi.  22,  expressing  the  lightest  by 
the  a0opi^6ii',  the  severer  by  the  oviSi^ea', 
and  the  severest  of  all  by  the  fK)3oAAen'. 
Yet,  after  all,  it  is  doubtful  whether 
these  different  grades  of  excommunica- 
tion were  so  accurately  distinguished  in 
our  Lord's  time." — Trench. 

f  Compare  1  Samuel  vi.  5,  and  Ezra 
X.  11. 


476        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   TIIE   LAST   WEEK- 

tliority  and  influence  of  position,  be  is  nevertheless  a  little  more 
reserved.  He  quietly  but  firmly  answered,  "  If  he  be  a  sinner  I 
do  not  hnov)  it :  but  I  do  know  one  thing ^  that  being  blind  I  now 
see."  On  theories  he  would  not  convict  himself  ;  but  he  planted 
himself  on  facts.  They  could  not  shake  him  away  from  those. 
He  was  no  fool  and  no  coward,  but  he  was  careful. 

They  then  endeavored  to  cross-question  the  man,  probably  hop- 
ing that  he  would  contradict  himself  or  else  say  something  which 
they  could  use  to  the  damage  of  Jesus.  They 
said,  "  "Wliat  did  he  to  thee  ?  How  opened  he 
thine  eyes  ? "  This  persistence  began  to  arouse  the  resentments  of 
the  man,  and  he  gives  them  a  sarcastic  answer.  "I  have  told 
you  already,  and  ye  did  not  hear  :  why  do  you  wish  to  hear  again  ? 
Will  even  you  wish  to  become  his  disciples  ? "  Or  perhaps  the 
grateful  man,  intending  to  add  himself  to  the  number  of  the  dis- 
ciples of  Jesus,  ventured  to  intimate  as  much  to  these  persecutoi-s 
of  his  benefactor  and  himself.  This  enraged  them,  and  they  re- 
viled him  and  said,  "  You  are  his  disciple ;  but  we  are  the  disci- 
ples of  Moses.  "We  know  that  God  spake  to  Moses ;  but  this  one 
— we  know  not  whence  he  is." 

The  man  then  began  in  turn  to  question  and  press  them.  They 
were  the  acknowledged  teachers  of  morals  and  religion.  They 
ought  to  be  able  to  meet  so  plain  a  case  as  this.  He  said,  "  In  this 
is  the  wonderful  thing,  that  you  [great  divines]  know  not  whence 
he  is,  and  yet  he  has  opened  mine  eyes.  "We  know  that  God  does 
not  hear  sinners  ;  but  if  any  one  be  a  worshipper  of  God,  and  does 
His  will,  him  He  heareth.  From  the  aeon  [the  beginning  of  time] 
it  has  not  been  heard  that  any  one  opened  the  eyes  of  one  bom 
blind.     lie  could  do  nothing  if  he  were  not  from  God."  * 

This  enraged  them.     The  man  they  had  endeavored  to  detect 

in  a  fraud  became  their  teacher  of  morality  and  theology.     He 

was  cool  while  they  were  heated.     Again  they 

Enrages  the  in-         .,    ,        ,  .  .^^.  ,      ,         ,  ,  ^     , 

quiaitora  railed  at  hnn.     With  churchly  arrogance  they  ex- 

claimed, "You  were  altogether  born  in  sins,  and 
do  you  then  teach  us  ? "  They  charge  that  his  blindness  was 
God's  mark  upon  him.  for  his  sin,  showing  him  to  be  both  physi 
cally  and  spiritually  defective.     They  forgot,  in  their  blind  rage. 

*  According  to  Grotius.  opening  the  |  cxlvi.  8 ;  Isa.  xlii.  7.  It  was  a  miracle 
eyes  of  the  blind  was  an  acknowledged  never  known  to  be  wrought  by  Moses 
sign  of  the  Messiah.     Midrash  in  Ps.  I  or  any  other  prophet. 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  477 

that  they  now  admit  that  he  had  been  bom  blind,  while  they  have 

epent  their  strength  to  show  that  it  was  all  a  fraud,  which  he  had 
colluded  with  Jesus  to  perpetrate.  Their  verdict  escaped  in  their 
wrath.  Wliatever  else  the  investigation  developed,  it  proved  that 
Jesus  had  opened  the  eyes  of  one  born  blind,  by  anointing  his 
eyes  with  a  clay  made  of  common  street  dust  and  spittle.  Never- 
theless they  cast  him  out  of  the  synagogue  and  excommunicated 
him.  From  their  days  to  this  the  churchmen,  who  are  their  suc- 
cessors, have  sought  to  drive  away  and  excommunicate  those 
whose  eyes  Jesus  has  opened. 

Jesus  heard  that  the  man  was  excommunicated,  and,  having 
found  him,  said  to  him,  "Dost  thou  believe  on  the  Son  of  Man?" 

lie  knew  that  that  meant  the  Messiah,  but  he  did 

,  ii-m-'i  XXI  .1.    Jesus  meets  him. 

not  know  who  the  Messiah  was.     He  knew  tliat 

the  person  speaking  to  him  was  Jesus,  whom,  however,  he  had 

learned  to  regard  thus  far  only  as  a  miracle-Avorker  and  a  prophet. 

His  confidence  in  Jesus  was  great :  he  said,  "  Lord,  who  is  he,  that 

I  may  believe  in  him  ?  "     As  if  he  had  said,  "I  will  receive  any 

one  as  Messiah  who  shall  be  set  forth  as  such  by  you."     Jesus 

answered,  "  You  have  both  seen  him,  and  he  it  is  that  is  talking 

with  you."     The  man  said,  "Lord,  I  believe,"  and  worshipped 

him.     We  cannot  know  the  height  of  that  worship  until  we  know 

the  idea  which  the  name  "  Messiah  "  conveyed  to  that  man.    How 

much  of  God  was  in  the  Son  of  Man,  the  Christ,  the  Messiah, 

according  to  this  man's  measure  of  thought,  so  much  of  God  he 

worshipped  in  Jesus.     No  man  ever  does  more. 

Jesus  said,  "  For  judgment  am  I  come  into  this  world,  that  they 
who  see  not  might  see,  and  that  they  who  see  may  become  blind." 
Did  he  not  speak  this  in  a  soliloquy?  The  tone  indicates  it. 
Reflecting  upon  the  unsuccessful  effort  he  had  made  to  enlighten 
those  of  his  people  who  were  considered  the  enlightened  class, 
but  perversely  preferred  darkness  to  light,  and  contrasting  this 
with  the  physical,  intellectual,  and  spiritual  illumination  he  had 
shed  upon  this  blind  beggar,  it  was  natural  that  this  reflection 
should  occur  to  him.  The  blind  through  him  found  light,  and 
those  who  thought  themselves  enlightened  were  demonstrated  to 
be  blind. 

Some  Pharisees  near  by,  who  had  probably  been  watching  him 
as  he  talked  with  the  excommunicated  man,  now  approached,  with 
the  question,  "  Are  we  blind  also  ? "     His  reply  was,  "  If  you 


478        FEOM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

were  blind  you  would  have  no  sin  ;  but  now  tliat  you  say, '  "We  see, 
your  sin  remains  "     He  varies  the  words  a  little 

ansees  engage  ^^  jjjake  their  condemnation  more  pointed.     The 
Jesus  in  conversa-    .  ,         ,  ,    .        ,    "  ,        ,  ^        , .    , 

tJQQ  tact  tliat  they  claimed  to  be  already  enlightened, 

and  yet  resisted  the  truth,  fastened  their  guilt 
upon  them. 

Then  followed  a  discourse  which  our  modern  professoi-s  of 

rhetoric  would  pronounce  an  outrageous  mixture  of  metaphors, 

but  which  has  perhaps  never  confused  any  learned 

Discourse  of  the  ^j.  unlearned  reader  by  its  shifting  of  figures,  as 

shepherd  and  the        ,  .  ''  .      i  .,      ,  -, 

gj^gg  when  at  one  time  a  person  is  described  as  a  door 

who  had  at  another  been  represented  as  a  shei>- 
herd,  and  again  another  pei-son  is  represented  at  one  time  as  a 
sheep  and  at  another  time  as  a  shepherd.  His  relation  to  all  true 
people  as  the  true  SliejpJierd  of  the  sheej>,  and  the  relation  of  all 
false  people  to  him  as  enemies  of  him  and  of  the  flock  of  God,  is 
what  Jesus  sets  forth ;  and  this  is  a  severe  reproof  of  the  religious 
leaders  of  his  time. 

The  Jews  were  descendants  of  shepherds,  and  still  fed  many 
flocks,  so  that  they  were  familiar  with  the  allusions  to  shepherd 
life  \\\\\\  which  their  whole  sacred  literature  abounded,  and  which 
abound  in  tliis  discourse  of  Jesus.  In  the  translation  of  this  dis- 
course I  have  put  many  explanatory  words  in  brackets  to  fill  out 
the  pictures  to  our  eyes ;  for  the  speech  opens  with  a  picture  of 
a  fold  by  night,  with  the  night-watch  on  guard,  and  the  thieves 
occasionally  climbing  over  the  low  walls. 

"  I  most  solemnly  assure  you,"  said  Jesus,  "  that  he  who  [as  a 
pastor  of  the  flock  of  God]  entei-s  not  through  the  [appointed] 
door  into  the  sheepfold,  but  climbs  up  some  other  way,  is  a  thief 
and  a  robber ;  but  he  who  [frankly]  enters  in  through  the  door  is 
a  [true  and  genuine]  shepherd  of  the  sheep.  To  him  the  door- 
keeper opens,  and  the  sheep  hear  his  voice,  and  he  calls  his  own 
sheep  by  name,  and  leads  them  out.  AVlicn  he  puts  forth  his  own 
sheej)  he  goes  before  them  [into  the  pasture],  and  his  sheep  fol- 
low him ;  for  they  know  his  voice.  And  a  stranger  will  they  not 
follow,  but  will  flee  from  him ;  for  they  know  not  the  voice  of 
strangers." 

Having  uttered  these  sayings,  he  looked  upon  them  and  saw 
that  they  had  failed  to  appreciate  the  intent  and  meaning  of  his 
words.     He  was  determined  that  they  should  feel  some  of  ita 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  479 

force,  so  he  ex]3licitly  said :  "  I  most  solemnly  assure  yon  that  1 
am  the  door  of  the  sheep.  All  who  ever  came  [professing  to  be 
the  Shepherd  of  Men  and  were  not,  such  as  your 
Pharisaic  pastors]  are  thieves  and  robbers :  but  the  . 
sheep  did  not  hear  them.  I  am  the  door:  through 
me  if  any  one  enter  he  shall  be  saved  [from  false  spiritual  pas- 
tors], and  shall  go  in  and  out  and  "find  pasture.  The  thief  comes 
not,  except  that  he  might  steal  and  kill  and  destroy.  I  am  come 
that  they  might  have  perpetual  life,  and  have  it  abundantly.  I 
am  the  Good  Shepherd.  The  good  shepherd  gives  his  life  for  the 
sheep.  But  the  hireling  [such  as  you],  who  also  is  not  a  shep- 
herd, whose  own  the  sheep  are  not,  sees  the  wolf  coming,  and 
leaves  the  sheep  and  flees,  and  the  wolf  catches  and  scatters  them, 
because  he  is  [merely]  a  hireling  and  cares  not  for  the  sheep.  I 
am  the  Good  Shepherd,  and  know  mine,  and  mine  know  me.  As 
the  Father  knows  me,  I  also  know  the  Father,  and  I  give  my  life 
for  the  sheep.  And  other  sheep  I  have  which  are  not  of  this 
fold  ;  those  also  I  must  bring,  and  they  shall  hear  my  voice,  and 
there  shall  be  one  flock,  one  shepherd.  On  this  account  my  Father 
loves  me,  because  I  lay  down  nw  life,  that  I  may  take  it  again. 
No  one  took  it  from  me,  but  I  lay  it  down  of  myself.  I  have  author- 
ity to  lay  it  down,  and  I  have  authority  to  take  it  up  again.  This 
injunction  have  I  received  of  my  Father." 

It  seems  quite  plain  from  all  this  that  Jesus  felt  that  he  held  a 
relation  to  all  the  good  qiiite  different  from  that  held  by  any  other 
man,  and  quite  superior ;  that  such  intimacy  ex- 
isted between    God 'and   himself  that   he   only,       delation  of  Je- 

,  .  ,      ,  ,  .     ,  .  .   .  11     SU8  to  the  good, 

together  with  those  who  came  m  his  spirit,  could 

bring  men  together,  from  Jewish  and  from  Gentile  folds,  and 
bring  all  to  God.  He  made  another  intimation  of  his  approach- 
ing death,  but  claimed  to  have  power  over  life  and  death,  so  that 
his  sacrifice  of  himself  was  not  the  sullen,  despairing  abandon- 
ment of  a  defeated  revolutionist  to  his  fate,  but  was  a  voluntary 
endurance  of  death  for  a  high  object.  It  was  this  which  made 
his  Father  love  him,  this  high,  heroic  dutifulness. 

This  profound  speech,  containing  a  sharp  reproof  of  the  un- 
faithfulness of   these  venal   shepherds,  made  a 

great   division   among  his  hearers.     Some  said,  division 

T,  TT     1  1  1  •  1  11      mi        .      1       .  amongst  them. 

"  He  has  a  demon,  and  is  mad.       That  is  the  im- 
pression, or  something  similar,  made  on  all  weak  and  shallow  men 


480        FEOM  FEAST   OP   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST  WEEK. 

by  the  discourses  of  those  who  are  of  very  profound  and  loftv 
nature.  Jesus  caught  them  up  so  suddenly  to  such  a  lofty  height 
that  their  heads  grew  dizzy.  Others,  not  yet  undei'standing  him, 
but  having  strength  of  mind  to  maintain  their  self-possession 
in  some  measure,  replied:  "These  are  not  the  words  of  a  de- 
moniac. Can  a  demon  open  the  eyes  of  the  blind  ? "  They  ap- 
peal to  the  well-known  miracle  of  the  cure  of  the  blind  man, 
which  the  investigation  had  established,  and  in  which  the  people 
retained  their  confidence,  although  the  man  had  been  excom- 
municated. 

It  was  the  Feast  of  the  Dedication,  kept  in  honor  of  the  cleans- 
ing of  the  Temple  and  the  restoration  of  the  Temple  service 

upon  the  deliverance  of  the  nation  by  the  Mac- 
A  challenge.  ,  /.  ,  •  r     -i       c^     - 

cabees  from  the  oppression  or  the  bjTians,  a.c. 

164.  (See  1  Mace.  iv.  52-59.)  It  was  winter.  Jesus  was  walk- 
ing in  the  Temple,  in  Solomon's  portico.  The  Jews  encircled  him 
and  said  to  him,  "  How  long  do  you  agitate  us  ?  If  you  be  the 
Christ  [the  Messiah]  tell  us  plainly."  It  is  a  fact  to  notice  that 
Jesus  never,  in  so  many  words,  declared  his  Messiahship  to 
them.  He  does  not  now.  His  reply  is :  "I  told  you,  and  you 
believed  not.  The  works  that  I  do  in  the  name  of  my  Father, 
they  bear  witness  of  me.  But  you  believe  not,  because  you  are 
not  of  my  sheep.  My  sheep  hear  my  voice,  and  I  know  them, 
and  they  follow  me,  and  I  give  them  j)erpetnal  life ;  and  thev 
shall  never  perish,  and  no  one  shall  pluck  them  out  of  my  hand. 
The  Father  who  gave  to  me  is  greater  than  all,  and  no  one  is  able 
to  pluck  them  out  of  the  Father's  hands.  I  and  my  Father  are 
One." 

The  claims  here  made  by  Jesus  are  of  the  most  exalted  kind. 
The  lives  of  all  the  good  are  in  his  hands.     He  gives  them  a  per- 
petuation of  their  lives.    Nothing  can  destroy  them 
Exalted  claims.     ^  i         rr,  .       i    .  n 

because  he  guards.     Ihis  clanns  power  over  ail 

the  forces  of  the  univeree.  God  is  above  all,  and  Jesus  and  God 
are  one.  Such  were  his  claims,  right  or  wrong.  He  did  not 
choose  to  declare  himself  to  them  as  Messiah,  for  reasons  which 
we  can  conjecture,  but  he  does  not  hesitate  to  declare  himself  to 
be  God.  The  infuriated  Jews  so  understood  him.  Again  they 
took  up  stones  to  stone  him.  He  said  to  them,  "  Many  good  works 
have  I  showed  you  from  the  Father;  for  which  work  of  these  do 
you  stone  me?  "     Their  reply  was  :  "  We  do  not  stone  you  for  a 


THE   FEAST   OF   DEDICATION.  4S1 

good  work,  but  for  blasphemy  ;  because,  being  a  man,  you  make 
yourself  a  god."  If  what  Jesus  had  said  was  not  the  truth,  then 
it  certainly  was  blasphemy,  and  the  Jews  were  not  prepared  to 
acknowledge  the  truth,  and  Jesus  did  not  withdraw  the  claim ; 
but  he  did  answer  them  by  a  quotation  from  Psalm  Ixxxii.  G.  He 
said,  "  Is  it  not  wntten  in  the  law,  '  I  said,  You  are  gods? '  If  he 
called  them  gods  to  whom  the  word  of  God  came,  and  the  Sciip- 
ture  cannot  be  broken,  do  you  say  to  him  whom  the  Father  has 
sanctilied  and  sent  into  the  world,  '  Thou  blaspheinest,'  because  I 
said,  '  I  am  a  Son  of  God?'  If  I  do  not  the  works  of  my  Father, 
believe  me  not ;  but  if  I  do,  although  you  believe  not  me,  bel  eve 
the  works,  that  you  may  know  and  believe  that  the  Father  is  in 
me  and  I  in  the  Father." 

This  speech  of  Jesus  is  an  argument  from  the  use  of  language. 
The  phrase  "  Son  of  God  "  it  was  not  blasphemous  to  apply  to 
a  man,  for  the  Scripture  did  it  repeatedly.     But 
Jesus   must   also   have  meant  mu(;h   more   than       Supposed  blas- 
,  111  T         r  1  •     1  •    T       1    •  phemous  assump- 

that,  or  else  be  descending  from  his  high  claims  ;    j.^^^^^ 

that  the  latter  was  not  the  case  appears  from  the 
conduct  vi  his  enemies  immediately  upon  the  conclusion  of  the 
speech.  It  must  be  noticed  that,  in  commenting  on  the  passage 
of  Scripture  he  had  quoted,  he  made  an  argument  involving  this: 
If  those  to  whom  the  word  of  the  Father  came  were  called  "  gods," 
it  is  not  blasphemy  for  him  who  is  the  very  revelation  of  the 
Father  to  call  himself  "  god."  But  that  he  had  not  done  in  this 
mild  and  usual  form  ;  he  had  explicitly  declared  himself  one  with 
the  everlasting  Father,  and  it  was  their  inference — a  fair  and 
logical  inference — that  he  claimed  to  be  a  god  and  to  be  the  God. 
He  now  appeals  to  his  works.  If  they  cannot  receive  his  testi- 
mony without  such  aids  to  their  undei'standing  as  appeal  to  their 
senses,  here  are  his  works.  They  are  the  works  of  God.  You 
ought  to  believe  that  he  who  does  those  things  is  in  God,  and  G(jd 
in  him.  So  the  Jews  undei-stood  him  ;  so  lie  undoubtedly  meant, 
if  we  have  his  very  words  in  this  record.  Jesus  believed  himself 
to  be  in  God,  and  God  to  be  in  him,  and  himself  and  Gcxl  to  be 
One. 

Wlien  he  announced  this  the  Jews  sought  to  capture  him,  but 
he  escaped  out  of  their  hands. 
31 


CHAPTER    III. 

m   PEREA. 

Jesus  must  have  felt  that  the  end  of  his  caree/  was  approach- 
ing .     lie  left   the  dense    atmosphere   of   hostility,  and   passed 
across   the  Jordan   into   Perea,  the   territory  oi 
of  Jordafl"'^'  John    ^erod  Antipas.     Tlie  name  Perea  included  all 
X.  that  territory  lying  aloni^  the  east  of  the  Jordan, 

extending  from  the  foot  of  Ilauran  to  the  desert 
on  the  south  of  the  Dead  Sea.  The  river  rendered  the  laud  fer- 
tile, so  that  it  was  a  district  of  vineyard;?,  and  the  proximity  of 
the  mountains  of  Gilead  and  Moab  preserved  the  salu])rity  of 
the  climate. 

Jesus  came  back  to  the  place  where  John  had  had  a  revelation 

of  the  Messiah  in  the  son  of  Mai-y.     To  the  spot  where  he  was 

Ijaptized,  but  which  he  had  never  since  revisited, 

.,'   '    ..  Jesus  returned,  as  if  to  reijrird  himself  foi-  his 

of  his  baptism.  _  '  ^ 

coming  conflict.  It  was  a  remon  inhabited  by  a 
juixed  jiopulation,  and  its  distance  from  the  capital  removed  it 
from  the  fierce  religious  contentions  of  the  day.  lie  might  have 
a  little  rest  from  those  conflicts.  Moreover,  the  testimony  which 
John  had  boi-ne  in  his  Ijehalf  was  still  I'eiiiembered  by  the  people. 
Wlien  he  performed  works  which  far  surpassed  even  John's  pro- 
l»hecies  of  liiu),  the  people  resorted  to  him  in  multitudes,  saying, 
''John  indeed  wrought  no  sign ;  but  all  things  that  John  said  of  this 
man  were  true."  And  many  believed  on  hira  there.  How  long 
he  stayed  we  do  not  know,  but  his  sojourn  Mas  probably  several 
weeks. 

The  time  was  occupied  by  journeys  and  teachings.     It  is  prt>- 
Are  there  few    '''"^hle  that  it  was  at  this  period  that  one  said  to 
that    be    saved?    him,  "Lord,  are  they  few  that  are  being  saved?" 
Luke  xiii.  Hjy  answer  was  : 

"  Strive  to  enter  in  lliron<fli  tlie  narrow  door;  for  many.  I  say  nntoyou,  will 
PC 'k  to  enter  in,  and  shall  not  be  al)le.     From  the  time  when  the  master  of  tho 


m  PEREA.  483 

house  has  risen  and  has  shut  the  door,  and  you  begin  to  stand  without  and  to 
knock  at  the  door,  saying,  '  Lord,  oiien  to  us,'  answering  he  shall  say  to 
you,  '  I  know  you  not  whence  you  are.'  Then  you  shall  begin  to  say,  '  We  hav 
eaten  and  drunk  in  thy  presence,  and  thou  hast  taught  in  our  streets.'  And 
he  shall  say  to  you,  '  I  know  you  not  whence  you  are ;  depart  from  me,  all 
workers  of  iniquity.'  There  shall  be  weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth  when  you 
shall  sec  Abraham  and  Isaac  and  Jacob  and  all  the  prophets  in  the  kingdom 
of  God,  and  you  throAvn  out.  i\jid  they  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the 
west,  and  from  the  north  and  the  south,  and  shall  recline  in  the  kingdom  of 
God.  And  see,  they  are  last  who  shall  be  first,  and  they  are  first  who  shall  be 
last." 

The  question  was  proposed  by  some  frivolous  person  in  the 
crowds  about  him,  some  person  not  yet  enough  attached  to  him 
to  be  called  a  disciple :  "Who  shall  be  of  the  kingdom  of  the 
Messiah  ?  ISTow  there  comes  forward  in  the  reply  of  Jesus  what 
we  shall  find  repeatedly  presented  hereafter,  the  idea  of  the  last 
becoming  fii'st,  and  the  first  falling  behind.  Many  would  like  to 
be  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  but  are  not  able  to  enter  in,  simply 
because  they  do  not  take  the  legitimate  measures.  They  '*  are 
not  able  "  to  break  into  the  kingdom  nor  to  sneak  into  it,  and 
these  are  the  only  ways  they  try.  He  represented  their  final  for- 
lornness  by  the  picture  of  a  head  of  a  household  whose  family 
had  been  wandering  about  beyond  the  hour  for  retiring,  and  his 
resolute  determination  that  if  they  would  not  keep  his  regulations 
they  should  stay  outside.  No  matter  what  the  privileges  of  any 
man,  if  he  do  not  come  in  God's  ways  he  cannot  come  at  all ;  and 
no  matter  whence  a  man  may  come,  if  he  come  aright  he  shall 
have  admittance. 

Tlie  same  day  certain  of  the  Pharisees  came  and  said  to  him, 
"  Depart  hence,  for  Ilerod  desires  to  kill  you."  They  invented 
the  story  to  induce  Jesus  to  leave,  or  they  had  reason  to  know 
tliat  Ilerod  had  animosity  towards  the  Teacher.  This  latter  is 
quite  compatible  with  his  desire  to  see  Jesus.  Natures  like 
Herod's  are  fitful.  Jesus  seems  to  have  received  the  statement 
as  a  message  from  Ilerod,  &ince  he  made  this  reply :  "  Go  and  tell 
that  fox.  Behold,  I  cast  out  demons  and  I  do  cures  to-day  and  to- 
morrow, and  the  third  day  bring  tliem  to  an  end.  Nevertheless, 
I  must  walk  to-day,  and  to-morrow,  and  the  folk)wing  :  for  it  can- 
not be  that  a  prophet  perish  out  of  Jerusalem  !  "  This  was  not 
the  language  of  precision,  but  of  irony  and  melancholy.  John 
had  perished  by  tlie  liands  of  Ilerod,  but  as  a  general  rule  the 


484        FKOM   FEAST   OF   TABEKNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST   "WEEK. 

hatred  whicli  produced  martyrdom  had  its  seat  at  the  nation's 
ecclesiastical  headquarters,  Jerusalem, 

It  was  while  engaged  in  this  wcn-k  that  Jesus  received  the  news 
of  the  illness  of  his  friend  Lazarus.  Upon  receiving  the  message 
he  said,  "This  sickness  is  not  unto  death,  but  for  the  glory  of 
God,  that  the  Son  of  God  may  be  glorified  thereby." 

Notwithstanding  this  news  Jesus  accepted  an  invitation  to  eat 

with  a  Pharisee  on  the   Sabbath.     This  Pharisee  was  probably 

a  member  of  the  Sanhedrim  or  a  president  of  the 

e      ropsica     gynao-ofi^ue,  as  he  is  called  one  of  the  rulers  of  the 
man.     Liike  xiv.        »       o  o      ^ 

Pharisees.     At  that  dinner  was  a  man  who  had 

the  dropsy.  The  invitation  was  not  an  honest  one,  as  the  Phari- 
sees were  lying  in  wait  to  find  something  against  Jesus,  and  this 
iuau  may  have  been  placed  there  for  the  very  purpose  of  trapping 
Jesus  into  doino:  somethins:  on  the  Sabbath :  but  the  man  himself 
does  not  seem  to  have  had  any  sinister  intent.  Jesus  knew  the 
thoughts  of  the  company,  and  asked  this  question  :  "  Is  it  lawful 
to  heal  on  the  Sabbath-day  or  not?"  And  they  were  silent. 
The  question  was  incisive,  was  such  as  answered  itself,  and 
made  a  defence  for  Jesus.  He  healed  the  man  and  sent  him  ofF, 
and  uttered  this  further  defence:  ""Wliich  of  you  having  an 
ass  or  an  ox  fallen  into  the  pit  on  the  Sabbath-day,  will  not 
straightway  pull  him  out  on  the  Sabbath-day  ? "  As  if  he  had 
said,  that  if  their  compassion  for  the  beast  or  regard  for  their 
property  should  lead  them  to  pull  a  brute  out  of  the  water, 
surely  he  ought  to  be  allowed  to  heal  the  human  being  who 
had  the  dropsy. 

He  then  addressed  them  this  parable : — 

"When  you  are  bidden  of  any  man  to  a  wedding,  recline  not  on  the 
chief  seats,  lest  a  more  lionorablc  man  tlian  you  be  bidden  of  him ;    and 
he   who  Imde   you   and   him   coming   shall   say   to   you, 
On    taking    a    low    .Qjy^.  pj^^e  to  this  one,'  and  then  you  begin  witli  shame 
**  to  take   the   lowest   place.      But   wlien   you   are   bidden, 

go  and  recline  in  the  lowest  place,  that  when  he  who  invited  you  comes 
he  may  say  to  you,  '  Friend,  go  up  higher ;'  then  you  shall  liave  honor 
in  the  presence  of  them  who  recline  with  you.  For  every  one  who 
exalts  himself  sliall  be  huinl>led,  and  he  who  humbles  liimself  shall  be 
e.xalted." 

The  value  of  the  parable  is  in  the  e.\hil)ition  it  gives  us  of  the 
quick  sight  which  Jesus  had  for  all  the  small  details  of  social 


m  PEREA.  485 

intercourse,  and  tlie  lesson  of  simple,  blithe  enjoyment  of  plea- 
sures, not  seeking  distinction,  letting  the  honor  come,  or,  if  it  do 
not  come,  being  happy  without, it  all  the  same. 
He  followed  this  up  wnth  an  address  to  his  host. 

"Wlien  you  make  a  dinner  or  a  supper,  call  not  your  friends,  nor  youi 
brethren,  nor  your  kinsmen,  nor  your  rich  neighbors,  lest  they  also  invite 
you  in  return  and  a  recompense  be  made  you.  But  when  you  make  a  feast, 
call  the  poor,  the  maimed,  the  lame,  the  blind.  And  you  shall  be  blessed; 
for  they  cannot  repay  you :  but  you  shall  be  recompensed  in  tlie  resurrection 
of  the  just." 

Men  sometimes  invite  others  to  their  entertainments  in  order 
to  be  invited  again.  This  Jesus  pronounces  wrong.  He  is  not 
to  be  understood  as  teaching  that  a  man  is  never  to  entertain  rich 
people  or  kinsfolk,  but  that  when  he  does  so  he  has  no  recompense 
beyond  the  pleasure  which  the  party  gives  him.  If  he  will  really 
have  a  reward  from  God  for  the  feast,  he  must  bid  those  who 
can  never  repay  him,  bestowing  his  hospitality  for  no  personal 
advantage. 

Then  one  of  the  guests  said,  "  Blessed  is  he  whoever  eats  bread 
in  the  kingdom  of  God."  The  remark  seems  quite  natural  when 
we  recollect  that  in  the  current  Jewish  notions  the  resurrection 
of  the  just  was  the  same  thing  as  the  setting  up  of  the  kingdom 
of  God,  which  was  to  be  inaugurated  with  a  great  feast.  It  led 
to  the  delivery  of  the  following  parable : — 

"A  certain  man  made  a  great  supper,  and  bade  many:    and  sent  his 

slave   at   supper-time   to   say  to   those   who   were  bidden,    '  Come,   for  all 

things  are  now  ready.'     And    they    all   with    one    voice 

began  to  make  excuse.     The  first  said   to  him,   'I  have      Pa-^bie of  the  Great 

^  '  Supper, 

bought  a  field,  and  must  go  out  and  see  it:  I  pray  thee 

have  me  excused.'  And  another  said,  'I  have  bought  five  yokes  of  oxen, 
and  I  go  to  prove  them:  I  pray  thee  have  me  excused.'  And  another 
said,  '  I  have  married  a  wife,  and  on  this  account  I  cannot  come.'  And  the 
stTvant  came  and  told  his  lord  these  things.  Then  the  master  of  the  house, 
being  angry,  said  to  his  slave,  'Go  out  quickly  into  the  broad  places  and 
streets  of  the  city,  and  bring  in  hither  the  poor,  the  maimed,  the  blind,  and 
the  lame.'  And  the  slave  said,  '  Lord,  it  has  been  done  as  you  have  com- 
manded, and  yet  there  is  room.'  And  the  lord  said  to  the  slave,  'Go  out  into 
tlie  highways  and  hedges,  and  compel  them  to  come  in,  that  my  house  may 
be  filled.  For  I  say  to  you,  That  none  of  those  men  who  were  bidden  shali 
taste  of  my  supper.'  " 


486    FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  ^VEEK. 

The  lessons  seem  quite  plain.  The  kingdom  of  God  is  a  feast, 
and  men  have  been  invited  thereto.  They  decline  to  come,  not 
on  acconnt  of  business,  buying  Iffnd  and  oxen,  or  marriage,  as  all 
these  are  lawdful  things,  but  on  account  of  too  much  devotion 
to  these  things,  and  the  failure  to  adjust  their  affairs  so  as  to 
discharge  all  duties  properly.  The  "  compelling  "  the  uninvited 
to  come  in,  to  fill  up  the  places  of  the  recreant  invited  guests, 
is  readily  understood  when  we  reflect  that  these  people  were  so 
poor  and  worthless  and  unknown  that  the  messenger  would  have 
the  greatest  difficulty  in  convincing  them 'that  the  invitation  was 
for  them.  Kebuke  to  the  Jewish  nation  was  herein.  They  had 
declined  the  invitation  of  God,  and  now  God  would  fill  their 
places  with  the  Gentiles. 

Great  multitudes  flocked  to  him  on  this  journey.     Luke  reports 

that  he  gave  them  this  description  of  such  discipleship  as  he 

required,  and  enforced  his  teaching  with  striking 

Terms  of  disci-  illustrations,  and  the  repetition  of  what  he  had 
pieship.  Luke  xiv. 

elsewhere  spoken. 

This  is  the  address : — 

"  If  any  one  come  to  me  and  hate  not  his  father,  and  mother,  and  wife, 
and  children,  and  brethren,  and,  sisters,  and  yet  more,  even  his^  own  life, 
he  cannot  be  my  disciple.  Wlioever  beai-s  not  his  cross,  and  comes  after  me, 
cannot  be  my  disciple.  For  who  of  you,  Avishing  to  build  a  tower,  does 
not  sit  down  first  to  count  the  cost,  whether  he  has  the  means  to  finish 
it?  Lest  haply,  after  he  has  laid  the  foundation,  and  not  beinjf  able  to 
finish  it,  all  who  see  it  begin  to  mock  him,  saying,  Tliis  man  began  to  build, 
and  was  not  able  to  finish.  Or  what  king,  going  to  war  against  amytluT 
king,  sits  not  down  first  to  consult  whether  he  is  able  with  ten  thousand 
to  meet  liim  that  comes  against  him  with  twenty  thousand?  And  if  not, 
he  being  yet  afar  off,  he  sends  an  embassy  and  asks  for  peace.  So  like- 
wise every  one  of  you  who  forsakes  not  all  Ihat  he  has  cannot  be  my  dis- 
ciple. Now,  salt  is  good,  but  if  the  salt  become  insipid,  with  what  shall 
it  be  seasoned?  It  is  fit  neitlier  for  the  land  nor  for  manure:  they  cast  it  out. 
He  that  hath  ears  to  hear,  let  him  hear." 

This  was  a  sifting  speech.  It  taught  them  that  it  was  no  holi- 
day amusement  to  be  his  disciple,  but  that  it  involved  a  subordi- 
nation of  all  the  passions  to  their  consecration  to  liim.  In  using 
the  cross  as  the  symbol  of  self-denial,  Jesus  seems  again  to  have 
given  prophetic  intimation  of  his  death;  but  in  the  minds  of  the 
disciples  there  could  have  been  no  such  connection.  Internally 
the  erection  of  a  Christian  character  is  like  the  erection  of  any 


IN   TEEEA. 


487 


Publicans   and 
sinners.  Lukexv. 


I 


other  great  structure  ;  a  man  must  lay  his  plan,  he  mnst  study  to 
know  what  is  necessar}-  to  execute  it,  and  he  must  assure  himself 
that  he  has  the  requisite  resources.  The  conflict  of  Christian  life 
is  like  any  other  war.  One  must  consider  the  opposition,  and 
how  and  with  what  he  is  to  meet  it.  These  illustrations  mean 
o)ily  to  impress  the  necessity  of  entering  on  discipleship  with  am- 
plest determination  to  go  forward  to  complete  success. 

Then  crowds  of  publicans  and  sinners  drew  near  to  hear  him. 
Luke  says,  "  all  the  publicans  and  sinners."  He  received  them 
kindly,  and  taught  them  the  ways  of  the  kingdom 
of  the  heavens.  This  gave  the  Pharisees  occasion 
to  murmur.  They  said,  "  This  man  receives  sin- 
ners and  eats  with  them."  In  reply  Jesus  delivered  those  three 
parables  of  surpassing  beauty  which  were  to  illustrate  his  favorite 
proposition,  that  the  Son  of  Man  had  come  to  seek  and  to  save 
that  which  was  actually  lost.  They  ought  to  be  read  consecutively 
without  break,  and  so  we  give  them. 

"  What  man  of  you,  having  a  hundred  sheep,  and  having  lost  one  of  them, 
does  not  leave  the  ninety  and  nine  in  the  desert  and  go  after  the  lost  one  until 
he  find  it  ?  And  when  he  has  found  it,  he  lays  it  on  his 
shoulders,  rejoicing.  And  coming  into  the  house  he  calls 
together  his  friends  and  neighbors,  saying  to  them,  Rejoice 
■u-ith  me,  for  I  have  found  my  sheep  which  was  lost.  I  say  to  you,  that  like- 
wise joy  shall  be  in  heaven  over  one  sinner  that  repents,  more  than  over  ninety 
and  nine  just  persons  who  have  no  need  of  repentance. 

"  Or  what  woman,  having  ten  drachmae  [140  cents],  if  she  lose  one  drachma' 
[14  cents],  does  not  light  a  lamp,  and  sweep  the  house,  and  seek  diligently  till 
she    find    it  ? 
And  wlien  she 
has    found  it 

she  calls  her  friends  and  her 
neighbors  together,  saying.  Re- 
joice with  me,  for  I  have  found 
the  drachma  which  I  lost.  Like- 
wise I  say  to  you,  there  is  joy  in 
the  presence  of  the  angels  of  God  drachma. 

over  one  sinner  who  repents." 

"  A  certain  man  had  two  sons.  And  the  younger  of  them  said  to  his  father, 
'  Give  me  the  portion  of  goods  that  falls  to  me.'  And  he  divided  between 
them  the  means  of  living.  And  not  many  days  after,  the 
younger  son,  having  gathered  all  together,  took  his  journey 
into  a  far  country,  and  there  wasted  his  substance  living 
profligately.     And  when  he  had  spent  all,  there  arose  a  mighty  famine  in  that 


The  Parable  of  the 
Lost  Sheep. 


The  Parable  of  the 
Lost  Coin. 


The  Parable  of  th« 
Pi-odigal  Son. 


488        FROM   FEAPT   OF   TABERNACLES   TSTTL   THE   LAST   AVEEK. 

country ;  and  he  began  to  be  in  want.  And  he  went  and  joined  himself  to  one 
of  the  citizens  of  that  country;  and  he  sent  liim  into  his  fields  to  feed  s^\^ne. 
And  he  would  fain  have  been  filled  with  tlie  pods  that  tlie  swine  did  eat : 
and  no  one  gave  to  him.  And  coming  to  himself,  he  said,  '  How  many  hired 
servants  of  my  fatlier  liave  liread  enough  and  to  spare,  and  I  am  perisliing 
here  mth  hunger !  I  will  arise  and  go  to  my  father,  and  will  say  to  him, 
Father,  I  have  sinned  against  heaven  and  before  you ;  I  am  no  more  worthy 
to  be  called  your  son  :  make  me  as  one  of  your  hired  servants.'  And  he  arose 
and  came  to  his  father.  But  when  he  was  yet  a  great  way  off  liis  father  saw 
liim,  and  was  moved  with  compassion,  and  ran,  and  fell  on  his  nork,  and 
kissed  him.  And  the  son  said  to  him,  '  Father,  I  have  sinned  against  lieaven 
and  in  your  sight.  I  am  no  more  worthy  to  be  called  your  son  ;  make  me  as 
one  of  your  hired  servants.'  But  the  father  said  to  his  slaves,  '  Bring  forth 
quickly  the  best  robe,  and  put  it  on  him ;  and  put  a  ring  on  his  hand,  and  san- 
dals on  his  feet.  And  bring  hitlier  the  fatted  calf,  and  kill  it;  and  let  us  eat 
and  be  merry.  For  this  my  son  was  dead  and  is  alive  again  ;  he  was  lost  and 
is  found.'  They  began  to  be  merrj'.  Now  his  elder  son  wius  in  a  field :  and 
as  he  came  and  drew  nigh  to  the  liouse,  he  heard  music  and  dancing.  And 
ha\nng  called  one  of  the  servants,  he  asked  what  these  things  meant.  And  he 
said  to  him,  '  Your  brother  is  come :  and  your  father  has  killed  the  fatted  calf, 
because  he  has  received  liim  safe  and  sound.'  And  he  was  angry,  and  would 
not  go  in ;  but  his  father  coming  out  entreated  liim.  And  he,  answering,  said 
to  his  father,  '  Lo,  these  many  years  do  I  serve  you,  and  never  did  I  transgress 
your  command ;  and  you  never  gave  me  a  kid  that  I  might  make  merry  with 
my  friends.  But  when  this  your  son  has  come,  who  has  devoured  your  means 
of  living  with  harlots,  you  have  killed  for  him  the  fatted  calf.'  And  lie  said 
to  him,  '  Child,  you  are  always  with  me,  and  all  that  I  have  is  yours.  But  it 
was  needful  to  make  merry  and  l)e  glad,  for  this  your  brother  was  dead,  and 
is  alive  ;  he  was  lost,  and  is  found.'  " 

Tlie  connection  and  the  climax  in  this  series  of  parables  must 
be  noticed.  They  indicate  a  regular  discf)urse  rather  than  a  col- 
lection of  sayings.  Ownership,  in  some  sense,  is  the  connecting 
thought.  A  lifeless  coin,  a  living  domestic  animal,  a  son  ;  this  is 
the  climax.  If  the  order  which  Luke  gives  was  observed  in  the 
address,  then  it  would  logically  seem  thus:  The  recovery  of  a  lost 
animal  is  a  cause  of  rejoicing, — nay,  even  the  recovery  of  a  coin, 
— how  mu(!h  more  the  recovery  of  a  son.  Men  are  represented  as 
the  sons  of  Ood,  and  all  sinful.  Sinnei-s  are  of  two  classes, — jirod- 
igal  sinnei-s  and  puritan  sinnei-s, — those  who  gravitate  toward  the 
condition  of  outlaws  and  those  who  gravitate  towards  the  condi- 
tion of  sneaks.  In  some  particnlai's  the  prodigal  is  worse  tlian 
the  elder  brother,  in  many  othere  the  elder  brother  is  worse  than 
the  prodigal.     The  yearning  love  of  the  father  draws  the  w;iii- 


m  PEREA. 


489 


derer  home  ;  tlie  goodness  of  the  father  bears  with  the  son  who  is 
a  hypocrite.     In  any  case,  when  a  human  being  is  lost,  God  is  the 
loser.     This  puts  the  appeal  to  every  human  heart  on  a  higher 
plane  than  mere  selfish  taking  care  of  one's  self.* 
Then  followed  this  parable : — 

"  There  was  a  certain  rich  man  that  had  a  steward ;  and  he  was  accused  to 
him  of  wasting  his  property.     And  calling  him,  he  said  to  him,  '  What  is 
this  which  I  hear  of  you?     Render  an  account  of  your 
stewardship;  for  you  can  be  no  longer  a  steward.'     And      P^'-^^e ofthe Unjust 

^  Stenam.     Luke  xvi. 

the  steward  said  ^^^thin  himself,  '  What  shall  I  do,  because 
my  lord  takes  the  stewardship  away  from  me  ?  I  am  not  strong  enough  to 
dig;  I  am  ashamed  to  beg.  I  know  what  I  will  do,  that  wlien  I  am  put  out 
of  the  stewardship  they  may  receive  me  into  their  houses.'  And  calling 
each  one  of  his  lord's  debtors,  he  said  to  the  fii*st,  '  How  much  do  you  owe 
mjlord?'  And  he  said,  'A  hundred  baths  (866  gallons)  of  oil.'  And  he 
said  to  him,  '  Take  your  bill,  and  sit  down  quickly,  and  write  fifty.'  Then  he 
Bald  to  another,  '  And  how  much  do  you  owe  ? '  And  he  said,  '  A  hundred 
cors  (1109  bushels)  of  wheat.'  And  he  said  to  him,  'Take  your  bill  and 
write  eighty.'  And  the  lord  praised  the  unjust  steward,  liecause  he  did  pru- 
dently ;t  for  the  children  of  this  life  are  more  prudent  for  their  generation 
than  the  children  of  light. 

"  And  I  tell  you.  Make  for  yourselves  friends  of  the  riches  of  injustice, 
that  when  it  fails  they  may  receive  you  into  the  enduring  tabernacles.  He 
that  is  faithful  in  the  least  is  faithful  also  in  much.  If,  therefore,  you  have 
not  been  faitliful  in  the  unjust  riches,  who  vnW  commit  to  you  the  true  ?  And 
if  you  have  not  been  faithful  in  another's,  who  will  give  you  yours?  No 
domestic  can  serve  two  masters ;  for  he  wall  either  hate  the  first  and  love  the 
other,  or  he  will  adhere  to  the  first  and  despise  the  other.  You  cannot  serve 
God  and  Mammon." 


Perhaps  we  shall  simplify  the  difficulties  which  many  have 
found  in  this  parable  by  learning  to  whom  it  was  addressed  and 
what  it  was  intended  to  teach.  It  was  not  ad- 
dressed to  the  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  but,  as  Luke  leaning  of  the 
expressly  says,  "to  his  disciples."  It  was  in-  ^^'^^^'^■ 
tended  to  teach  prudence  in  the  management  of  a  man's  spiritual 
affairs.  The  ordinary  lack  of  this  prudence  he  makes  tlie  more 
conspicuous  by  contrasting  it  with  the  prudence  of  men  wlio  are 


*  See  these  ideas  enlarged  in  my  pub- 
lished sermons,  entitled  llie  Puntan 
Sinner  and  Lost. 

f  This  seems  the  very  best  translation 
of  the  original  word.    It  was  u-ed   in 


Wiclif' s  translation,  but  unfortunately 
was  changed  in  the  common  version. 
There  may  be  prudence  without  wis- 
dom, for  i)iudenc<3  is  often  a  rascally 
virtue. 


490      FRo■^r  feast  of  tabekxacler  fnttl  the  last  "week. 

absorbed  in  worldly  matters.  Here  was  a  steward  to  whom  waf 
committed  the  affairs  of  his  rich  employer.  The  bonds  made  bv 
that  steward,  who  seems  to  have  had  a  power  of  attorney,  would 
bind  the  master.  Tie,  moreover,  lent  the  money  of  the  master, 
and  took  obligations  therefor.  lie  became  wasteful.  Upon 
learning  this  the  employer  expostulated  with  him  indignantly, 
and  ordered  him  to  settle  up  his  affairs.  This  gave  him  time  to 
think.  But  he  did  not  delay.  lie  went  from  bad  to  worse.  lie 
now  resolved  to  rob  his  master.  Calling  the  debtors  together,  he 
made  a  swift  arrangement  with  them.  They  were  not  poor  ten- 
ants, but  rich  neighbors  in  large  business  themselves,  or  else  they 
could  not  have  been  trusted  with  such  amounts  of  such  costly  ar- 
ticles as  oil  and  wheat.  He  handed  back  their  bonds,  and  received 
in  return  bonds  for  a  much  less  sum.  They  were  thus  laid  under 
great  pecuniary  obligation  to  this  steward.  The}'  did  not  know 
that  he  was  about  to  lose  his  place ;  but  he  did.  So  when  he  was 
discharged  he  had  ground  of  an  appeal  to  them.  "When  his  em- 
ployer discovered  what  had  been  done,  he  complimented  the 
shrewdness  of  a  man  who  had  been  most  dishonest  towards  him. 
It  was  only  the  forecast,  not  the  dishonesty,  that  was  praised. 

Jesus  used  the  parable  to  teach  his  disciples  prudence  in  regard 
to  the  future  C)f  their  souls.  A  great  difficulty  exists  in  the  say- 
ing of  Jesus:  "Make  for  yourselves  friends  of 

Friends  of  the    ^|,g  ,„ammon  of  injustice,  that  when  it  fails  they 

Mammon   of    un-  .  ,  ,  ,      ,  ,  i       ., 

righteousness  ^^^^y  ^'^^eive  you  into  the  enduring  tabernacles. 

]\[oney  is  represented  mider  the  name  Mammon, 
and  it  has  been  said  that  this  was  the  name  of  the  Syrian  god  of 
wealth,  as  Plutus  was  in  the  (rreek  mythology.  But  no  proof  has 
been  discovered  of  snch  a  fact.  It  is  called  "  Unjiist  ]\Iammon," 
or  "the  Mammon  of  Injustice,"  as  riches  are  ordinarily,  not 
always,  acquired  in  a  sinfid  way,  or  used  for  purposes  of  injus- 
tice, or  are  in  themselves  delusive.  The  dealing  with  large  wealth 
usually  leads  to  some  ^VTong-doing ;  and,  as  ]\reyer  says,  "  the 
ethical  character  of  its  use  is  rojiropcntcd  as  cleaving  to  itself  " 
in  this  phrase  in  the  parable.  But  riches  can  l)e  used  so  as  to 
secure  permanent  spiritual  blessings.  The  disciph^  of  Jesus  who 
does  not  so  use  it  is  not  as  prudent  as  the  unjust  steward.  Gen- 
erally his  disciples  do  not ;  and  therefore  Jesus  says  that  "  the 
children  of  this  life  aio  more  prudent  for  their  generation  than 
the  children  of  light  "  aie  for  the  world  beyond. 


m  PEREA.  491 

The  Pharisees,  who  were  covetous,  heard  all  these  things  and 
derided  him.     To  them  he  addressed  the  following  parable : 

"  There  -was  a  certain  rich  man,  and  he  was  clothed  in  purple  and  fine  linen, 
and  feasted  sumptuously  every  day.     And  a  certain  poor  man  by  the  name  oi 
Lazarus  was  laid  at  his  gate,  afflicted  with  ulcers,  and  de- 
siring to  be  fed  with  the  crumbs  which  fell  from  the  rich      ^"^®  ^^^-     ParaWa 

,'",,,  .  ,,  TTiii-i  of   the  Kich  Man  and 

man  s  table ;  yet  even  the  dogs  came  and  licked  his  ulcers,    ^g^rua 

And  the  poor  man  died,  and  was  carried  away  by  the 

angels  to  Abraham's  bosom.     And  the  rich  man  also  died,  and  was  buried ; 

and  in  the  under-world  he  lifted  uj)  his  eyes,  licing  in  torments,  and  saw 

Abraham  from  afar,  and  Lazarus  in  his  bosom.     And  he  called  and  said, 

'Father  Abraham,  have  mercy  on  me,  and  send  Lazarus  to  dip  the  tip  of  hig 

finger  in  water  and  cool  my  tongue ;  for  I  am  In  pain  in  this  flame.' 

"But  Abraham  said,  '  Son,  remember  that  you  received  your  good  things  in 
your  life,  and  Lazarus  in  like  manner  evil  things;  but  now  he  is  comforted 
here,  and  you  are  in  pain.  And  besides  all  this,  there  is  a  great  chasm  fixed 
between  us  and  you,  so  that  those  wishing  to  i)ass  hence  to  you  cannot,  neither 
can  they  pass  thence  to  us.'  And  he  said,  '  I  beseech  you,  then,  father,  send 
him  to  my  father's  house,  for  I  have  five  brothers,  to  testify  fully  to  thera, 
that  they  may  not  also  come  to  this  place  of  torment.'  But  Abraham  said, 
'They  have  Moses  and  the  prophets;  let  them  hear  them.'  But  he  said, 
'  No,  father  Abraham,  but  if  one  went  to  them  from  the  dead  they  would 
change  their  minds.'  But  he  said  to  him,  '  If  they  hear  not  Closes  and  the 
prophets,  they  would  not  be  i^ersuaded  if  one  rose  from  the  dead.'  " 

This  parable  is  not  intended  to  be  a  revelation  of  the  outward 

condition  of  individual  souls  iu  the  spiritual  world.      Jesus  takes 

the  imagery  of  Jewish  and  Gentile  mythology  as 

the  mere  drapery  for  the  teachinic  of  most  impor-        n  en  ion  o  t  e 

11  ,,   i  ^      ^         11  11     •  parable, 

tant  moral  lessons.     "Abrahams   bosom      is  a 

metaphor  for  a  place  of  permanent  rest  in  communion  with  the 
good.  The  whole  parable  is  a  short  and  striking  drama,  convey- 
ing most  solemn  and  impressive  lessons.  The  main  lesson  is 
the  ruinousness  of  unbelief  in  a  spiritual  world,  an  unbelief 
which  renders  men  selfish  in  this  world,  and  engrossed  with  this 
world,  so  that  they  may  be  covetous  as  the  Pharisees  were,  or  self- 
indulgent  as  the  rich  man  in  the  parable  was.  The  Pharisees,  so 
far  from  being  clothed  in  purple  and  fine  linen,  were  remarkably 
abstemious  in  diet  and  modest  in  dress.  But  penurionsness  and 
prodigality  are  opposite  sins,  growing  from  the  trunk  of  worldli- 
ness,  that  is,  overestimate  of  the  value  of  what  addresses  tlie 
senses,  the  one  finding  its  pleasure  in  hoarding  and  the  other  in 


4r92        FROM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   TIIE    LAST   WEEK. 

Bqiiandering, — and  thus  worldliness  grows  from  tlie  root  of  unbe- 
lief in  a  spiritual  world. 

In  the  story  two  persons  are  represented  as  being  in  extremely 
opposite  conditions.  One  was  rich,  the  other  a  beggar.  One  was 
clothed  in  bj'ssus,  a  linen  which  was  sold  in  the 
wo  men  in  la  ^j^^^  ^£  Jesus  for  its  weight  in  gold,  and  in  gar- 
ments colored  with  the  most  costly  dyes.  The 
other  did  not  have  clothes  enough  to  cover  his  sores.  The  one  had 
a  mansion  with  a  gate ;  the  other  was  homeless,  and  laid  about 
at  people's  doors,  probably  by  those  who  desired  to  be  rid  of  him. 
In  comparison  with  the  splendid  condition  of  the  one  who  fared 
sumptuously  "  every  day,"  was  the  fact  that  the  other  waited  to 
catch  tlie  crumbs  which  the  servants  of  the  former  would  throw 
to  the  beggars  and  the  dogs.  These  lattei",  such  \yretched  dogs  as 
prowl  in  Oriental  cities,  added  to  the  humiliation  of  the  beggar 
by  being  his  only  attendants,  licking  liis  sores,  and  thus  making  a 
contrast  with  the  unfeeling  human  brother.  The  begrear  was 
named  Lazarus  in  the  story.  Perhaj^s  it  Mas  suggested  bv  the 
name  of  the  friend  of  Jesus,  whom  he  was  soon  to  raise  from  the 
dead. 

That  men  may  know  that  condition  is  nothing  and  cliaracter 

everything,  Jesus  transfers  the  scene  to  the  under-world.     Lazarus 

dies.     He  has  no  funeral.     But  after  death  he  is  happy.    Angels 

escort  him  to  the  society  of  the  good  and  blessed.     The  rich  man 

dies.    Ilis  funeral  is  a  pomp.    But  he  is  wretched 

The  same  men    jn  the  under-world.  He  sees  Abraham  and  Lazarus. 

jj^j^g^  He  cries  to  them  for  help.     lie  had  found  his 

pleasure  in  physical  delights.  His  misery  is  the 
want  of  them.  He  does  not  deplore  his  unbelief,  but  wants  his 
toiiijue  cool.  He  is  a  churchman  even  in  the  under-world.  He 
claims  Abraham  as  his  father.  Abraham  acknowledges  the  rela- 
tionship, calling  him  "  S(m,"  but  showing  him  that  that  is  of  no 
avail  to  a  Jew  whose  character  is  ruined  by  unbelief.  The  rich 
man's  ideas  of  caste  do  not  desert  him  in  the  under-world.  He 
does  not  presume  to  ask  "Father  Abraham"  to  bring  him  a 
drink,  but  he  requests  him  to  send  that  beggar  Lazarus  to  wait 
on  him.  The  whole  story  teaches  that  in  this  world,  or  any 
other,  a  man  is  himself;  that  death  does  not  destroy  his  identity. 
The  same  prejudices  and  passions  a  man  has  here  he  has  here- 
after. 


IN   PEKEA.  493 

Prayers  to  departed  saints  do  not  seem  helpful.  Abraham 
could  not  help  the  rich  man.  There  is  as  great  a  gulf  in  the  spir- 
itual world  as  in  this.  Men  cannot  cross  and  re- 
cross  the  line  at  pleasure.  Lazarus  could  not  help  ^'^^^'^  *°  '^^*'- 
the  rich  man  if  he  would.  The  rich  man  had  not  been  specially 
vicious,  may  have  done  many  things  which  he  ought  to  have 
done,  and  for  that  he  had  received  his  "good  things  "  in  this  life. 
Lazarus  was  not  perfect,  and  had  done  many  things  which  he 
ought  not  to  have  done,  and  he  had  received  his  "evil  things"  in 
this  life.  But  the  great  distinction  between  them  was  that  Laza- 
rus had  built  his  character  on  a  sure  faith  in  the  surpassing  im- 
portance of  the  spiritual  world,  and  the  rich  man  had  erected  his 
on  faith  in  the  surpassing  importance  of  the  material  world. 
And  this  difference  is  immense. 

The  forlorn  wretch  would  seem  to  have  been  anxious  to  prolong 
the  conversation.  He  remembered  his  brothers ;  but  the  way  he 
speaks  of  them  leaves  us  at  a  loss  whether  he  was  more  concerned 
for  them  or  more  disposed  to  arraign  God's  providence.  He  desires 
the  dead  Lazarus  to  be  sent  on  an  errand  for  him,  and  to  warn 
his  brothers  by  telling  them  that  there  was  a  spiritual  world. 
This  means  that  if  God  had  given  him  sufficient  warning  he  would 
not  have  gone  into  that  torment.  The  reply  of  Abraham  is  stern, 
and  by  it  Jesus  gives  a  powei-ful  lesson  for  all  time.  God  knows 
what  kind  and  amount  of  evidence  is  necessary  to  convince  those 
who  will  be  convinced,  and  he  has  given  it.  He  knows  that  no 
amount  of  any  kind  of  evidence  will  convince  those  who  do  not 
choose  to  know  the  truth.  The  appearance  of  one  from  tlie  dead 
would  not  be  more  convincing  than  the  Holy  Scriptures.  And  it 
must  be  noticed  that  almost  innnediately  after  this  he  raised  Laz- 
arus from  the  grave.  A  man  who  liad  been  four  days  dead  came 
back,  and  had  no  more  influence  upon  the  unbelieving  Jews  than 
Jesus  had,  or  the  writings  of  Moses. 

There  may  have  been,  many  suppose  there  was,  in  this  parable 
a  lesson  for  nations— the  rich  man  representing  the  Jews  and  Laz- 
arus the  Gentiles.  The  spiritual  contrast,  as  to  privileges,  is  as 
great  in  one  case  as  in  another.  The  Gentiles  shall  become  the 
children  of  Abraham  by  faith,  while  the  Jews  shall  be  cast  out. 
Perhaps  he  did  mean  that  also,  but  it  is  not  quite  apparent,  and 
M-e  have  given  above  Avhat  we  think  the  clear-sighted  hearers  oi 
Jesus  must  have  felt  to  he  the  meaning  of  the  speaker. 


4-94        FROM    FKAST   OF    TABERNACLEH    UNTIL   THE    LAST    WEEK. 

It  was  probably  in  this  couuectioii  that  he  made  the  following 
address  to  his  disciples  : — 

"  It  is  impossible  for  causes  of  offence  not  to  come  ;  but  woe  to  him  througb 
wlumi  they  come!      It  were  better  for  him  that  a  millstone  were  hunj^  round 
Luke  xviL    On  of-    ^^^  neck,  and  he  cast  into  the  sta,  than  tliat  he shoiikl  cause 
tenets,  forgiveness,  and   oue  of  thesc  little  Ones  to  offend.     Take  heed  to  your- 
f"'-"*-     •  selves:     If  your  brother  trespass,  admonish  him;  and  if 

he  change  his  mind,  forgive  him.  And  if  he  trespiiss  against  thee  seven 
times  in  a  day,  and  seven  times  turn  again  to  thee,  saying,  I  change  my  mind ; 
thou  shalt  forgive  him." 

Then  the  apostles  said  to  the  Lord,  "Increase  our  faith."  And 
the  Lord  said — 

"  If  ye  have  faith  as  a  grain  of  mustard,  ye  might  say  to  this  sycamine- 
tree,  Be  rooted  up,  and  be  planted  in  the  sea ;  and  it  would  have  ol)eyed 
you.  But  wlio  of  you,  having  a  slave  ploughing  or  tending  flocks,  will 
say  to  him,  when  he  is  come  from  the  field,  '  Go  immediately  and  recline  to 
eat  ? '  And  will  not  rather  say  to  him,  '  Make  ready  wherewith  I  may  sup, 
and  gird  thyself,  and  serve  me,  until  I  eat  and  drink  ;  and  afterwards  thou 
shalt  eat  and  drink  ? '  Doth  he  thank  the  slave  because  he  did  the  things  com- 
manded liim  ?  So  likewise  ye,  when  ye  shall  have  done  the  things  which  are 
commanded  you,  say,  "We  are  unprofitable  slaves;  we  have  done  what  wa.s  our 
duty  to  do." 

This  address  teaches  the  behavior  proper  among  brothers. 
Throuirh  the  fniiltv  of  human  character  men  will  offend,  and, 
what  is  worse,  will  cause  others  to  offend.  It  is  a  thing  to  be 
dreaded.  But  if  one's  brother  connnits  an  offence  he  must  go  to 
him  kindly  and  admonish,  and  u])on  repentance  must  forgive  him, 
and  must  do  so  just  as  often  as  the  brother  offends  and  repents. 

As  this  requires  faith,  the  twelve  who  were  near  him  united  in 

a  prayer  for  increase  of  faith,  and  it  has  been  noticed  that  this  is 

the  only  petition  in  which  the  whole  twelve  ever 
Aprayerforfaith.     ^^.^  ^^^^.^^       ^j^^   ^,^^^^^,  ^^^  j^^^^^  ^j^^,^^.^  something 

more  than  the  gross  marvel  which  a  literal  rendering  of  words 
would  indicate.  It  shows  that  Jesus  believed  there  was  a  loftier 
circle  of  existence,  in  which  faith  represents  what  muscular 
etrenjrth  stands  for  in  this  lower  i)hv8ical  w..rl(l,  and,  moreover, 
that  in  that  sjOiere  things  are  possible  which  are  impossible  m  this. 
The  disciples  were  always  ready  to  go  into  pride,  and  such  a 
picture  of  spiritual  ]>ower  Jesus  tempered  by  calling  their  atten- 
tion to  the  fact  that  they  were  servants,  and  that  as  they  expected 


IN   PEREA.  495 

tlieir  slaves  to  do  their  duty  without  feeling  that  they  had  laid 
any  one  under  obligation,  so  when  the  disciples  of  Jesus  had  ]ier- 
formed  their  greatest  and  best  works  they  were  to  consider  in 
humility  that  they  had  merely  done  their  duty. 

The  Bethany  in  Perea  is  about  thirty  miles  from  the  Olivet 
Bethany,  which  is  less  than  two  miles  from  Jerusalem ;  fifteen 
stadia  says  Luke.     While  Jesus  was  carrying  for- 
ward his  work  on  the  east  of  the  Jordan,  Lazarus        Sickness   and 
.,  TT-  ,,         ^       ■  1      ^    p  •       -,      r    death  of  Lazarus, 

siclcened.     Lazarus  was  the  clierished  friend  or    j^j^  ^^ 

Jesus.  Indeed,  nowhere  else  in  his  history  do  we 
find  Jesus  enjoying  the  amenities  of  society  in  repose,  and  away 
from  the  glare  of  publicity  which  notable  men  of  affairs  must 
always  endure,  except  in  this  household,  which  consisted  of  a 
busy,  bustling  elder  sister,  a  gentle,  thoughtful  younger  sister,  and 
a  quiet  brother,  probal)ly  the  youngest  of  the  three.  Bethany 
was  so  near  to  Jerusalem  that  it  presented  Jesus  a  place  of  easy 
retreat,  and  it  was  so  small  and  unimportant  a  village,  lying  nes- 
tled quietly  on  the  mountain  side,  containing  no  residence  of  offi- 
cial pei'sonage,  whether  civil  or  ecclesiastical,  that  it  affcjrded  a 
safe  and  happy  escape  from  the  bickerings  and  contentions  of  the 
excitable  metropolis.  Jesus  had  put  himself  upon  the  footing  of 
most  respectful  familiarity  with  this  family,  insomuch  that  Martha 
came  to  him  with  her  petty  household  cares  and  the  gentle  Mary 
became  his  companion.  These  people  were  not  desperately  poor, 
but  rather  in  moderately  comfortable  circumstances,  seeing  that 
they  entertained  company  and  were  owners  of  a  family  burial- 
place. 

When  Lazarus  sickened  the  sisters  despatched  a  messenger  to 
Jesus,  saying  simply,  "  Lord,  behold  he  whom  you  love  is  sick." 
It  was  a  request  delic^atelv  embedded  in  an  expression  of  trustful- 
ness. When  Jesus  heard  it  he  said,  '*  This  sickness  is  not  unto 
death,  but  for  the  glory  of  God,  that  the  Son  of  God  may  be 
glorified  therel^v."  This  was  a  declaration  which  showed  that 
Jesus  believed  he  could  see  the  conclusion  of  this  wliole  matter, 
and  the  results  proved  how  correct  it  was.  It  was  not  merely  an 
opinion  of  a  case  of  sickness,  expressed  after  hearing  the  symp- 
toms from  the  messenger,  but  it  was  of  the  nature  of  a  prediction. 
It  gave  the  messenger  comfort  to  carry  to  the  sistei-s. 

After  receiving  the  message  Jesus  remained  in  Perea  two  days 
before  he  again  alluded  to  the  subject  or  made  any  change  in  hie 


496        FliOM   FEAST   OF   TABEKNACLE8   UNTIL   THE   LAST    WEEK. 

movements.  He  tlien  said  to  his  disciples,  "  Let  us  go  into 
Judaea."    ^liey  recalled  the  painful  scenes  through  which  they 

had  so  lately  passed  with  him  in  Jerusalem,  scenes 
Jesus  stui  re-  ^^.j^j^.i^  impj-essed  them  deeply  with  the  feeling 
mains  in  Perea.  ,  ,      .  .  pit 

tluit  the  intentions  or  the  ruling  party  were  most 

malignant.  They  replied,  "Hahbi,  the  Jews  of  late  sought  to 
stone  you,  and  do  you  go  there  again?"  His  answer  was,  "Are 
there  not  twelve  hoiii-s  in  the  day?  If  any  one  walk  in  the  day 
he  does  not  stumble,  because  he  sees  the  light  of  this  world.  But 
if  any  one  walk  in  the  night  he  stumbles,  because  there  is  no  light 
in  him." 

There  is  in  these  words  not  only  a  lofty  truth  as  to  the  si»ecial 
mission  of  the  extraordinary  man  who  uttered  them,  but  an  im- 
portant principle  touching  all  human  life.  The  disciples  desired 
to  prolong  his  life  by  keeping  him  from  his  enemies.  lie  did  not 
desire  to  lose  his  life  in  any  sense,  either  by  having  his  career  cut 
short  by  his  foes,  or  by  his  own  departure  from  the  line  of  his 
rightful  work.  lie  held  that  if  he  should  protract  the  years  of 
his  natural  life  by  keeping  out  of  the  line  of  his  work,  because 
the  peril  of  death  lay  therein,  his  life  would  be  lost  in  a  worse 
maimer  than  if  he  were  killed  in  doing  his  work  at  the  riglit  time 
and  place.  He  should  have  outlived  himself,  and  thus  have  lost 
his  life.  The  only  safety  and  happiness  lie  in  doing  the  assigned 
work,  discharging  tlie  obvious  duty.  That  is  walking  in  the  light. 
There  is  just  so  much  of  light  and  life,  say  "twelve  houi-s."  If 
a  man  lill  those  hours  with  the  right  work,  he  has  gained  life.  If 
he  omit,  and  then  endeavor  to  go  out  in  the  night  to  work,  he  stum- 
bles. To  apply  it  to  himself:  if  his  duty  call  him  to  I>cthany, 
thither  he  must  go,  even  if  the  Jews  kill  him ;  for  staying  away 
is  stepping  out  of  the  light  of  duty  into  the  night  of  selfishness. 
If  Jesus  do  so,  he  can  no  longer  accomplish  any  good  in  Pt-rca,  or 
Galilee,  or  elsewhere.     He  must  walk  in  tlie  day. 

He  then  said  to  them,  " Lazarus,  our  friend,  is  sleeping;  but  I 
go  that  I  may  awake  him."     He  knew  that  Lazarus  was  dead. 

Whether  by  the  pro])lietic  spirit  that  was  in  him, 

Ho  annoimcca    ^^^  ^     j^jg  ijjdjrjnent  Upon  whatever  de6crii>tion  of 

the  death  of  Laz-     ,,      "^         ,,  ,  •  -^  •  ^ 

tlie  case  the  messenjjer  mav  nave  iriven,  it  is  not 
aruB.  ,       ^  •  -IT 

important  to  decide ;  but  the  fact  is  that  Jesus  in 

perea  knew  that  Lazarus  was  dead  in  the  Bethany  near  Jerusa- 
lem.    He  desired  to  prepare  the  minds  of  his  disciples  for  the 


EN   PEREA.  497 

dangerous  journey,  and  so  began  to  let  them  know  the  exact  state 
of  the  ease.  They  took  his  statement  literally,  and  said,  "  Lord, 
if  he  sleep  he  shall  recover."  But  Jesus  spoke  of  his  death.  In 
all  languages  sleep  is  represented  as  the  image  of  death ;  but  it 
comes  with  extraordinary  beauty  and  force  from  the  lips  of  him 
who  is  going  to  arouse  the  sleeper.  Tlien  Jesus  said  to  them, 
plainly,  "  Lazarus  is  dead,  and  I  am  glad  on  your  account  that  I 
was  not  there,  that  ye  may  believe ;  but  let  us  go  to  him." 

The  history  here  inserts  a  little  incident  which  is  very  beauti- 
ful, and  which  sheds  light  on  a  certain  cast  of  character.    Thomas, 
called  Didymus,  turned  to  his  fellow-disciples  and 
said  very  pathetically,  "  Let  us  also  go,  that  we       I^evotion    of 
may  die  with  him."     Thomas  was  a  natural  skep-  ™ 

tic,  a  constitutional  doubter,  a  desponding  soul.  He  required  the 
most  grossly  palpable  proofs  to  win  his  belief.  But  he  was  true- 
hearted  and  l)rave  when  he  did  believe.  And  of  just  such  stuff 
do  we  find  a  certain  class  of  doubters  and  melancholy  men  in 
all  ages.  Lazarus  was  dead.  Jesus  was  going  to  die.  The  circle 
was  breaking.  "Let  us  all  go  together,"  said  this  sad,  brave 
man.  His  faith  could  not  reach  to  the  heights  of  his  Master^s 
predictions,  but  his  fidelity  made  him  ready  to  follow  that  Master 
unto  the  death. 

Wliy  Jesus  should  have  delayed  two  days  in  Perea  after  receiv- 
ing the  message  of  Martha  and  Mary  we  can  only  conjecture,  and 
scarcely  any  theory  yet  presented  seems  entirely 
satisfactory.  He  did  not  idle.  He  was  not  en-  ^^^  "^^^^^  *^®' 
deavoring  to  M-hile  away  time.  In  Perea  he  ^^^  ' 
found  plenty  of  work  to  do,  and  he  chose  to  finish  what  had  been 
so  auspiciously  begun.  It  is  true  that  he  might  have  left  some 
disciples  behind  him  and  have  returned.  But  he  did  not  intend 
to  return.  His  career  was  coming  to  its  close.  He  read  his  cir- 
cumstances correctly.  Moreover,  he  ^\'as  never  hurried.  He  had 
that  self-possession  which,  when  conjoined  with  high  intellectual 
and  moral  qualities,  is  the  measure  of  true  greatness.  He  knew 
what  he  could  do,  and  what  he  would  do.  And  then  he  had  re- 
spect to  those,  his  dearest  friends,  whose  spiritual  improvement 
was  a  ruling  consideration  in  tliis  matter.  He  was  working  for 
the  good  of  men  and  for  the  glory  of  God.  He  neither  loitered 
nor  hurried. 

32 


CHAPTEE    IV. 


JESUS  ON  niS  LAST  cmcuiT. 


"When  Jesus  reached  Bethany  he  found  tliat  Lazanis  had  been 

ah'eadv  "four  days  in  the  tomb."     It  would  seem  that  wlien  the 

messenger  was  despatched  by  the  sistei-s,  Lazarus 

In  Bethany  near   ^^as  Still  livincr.    Such  their  message  implied.    It 

Jerusalem.  „  „  ^""^^ 

was  therefore  satisfactory  and  consolatory  to  the 
messenger  to  hear  Jesus  say  that  that  sickness  was  not  unto  death. 
He  must  have  been  greatly  surprised  when  he  returned  and  found 
Lazarus  buried,  and  if  he  delivered  the  message  to  the  sisters  they 
must  have  been  sorely  puzzled,  for  Lazarus  had  died  in  the  mean 
time.  This  message  must  have  seemed  to  them  to  show  that  Jesus 
had  lost  liis  way.  He  had  said  that  this  sickness  was  not  unto 
death  at  the  very  moment  when  Lazarus  was  in  his  grave,  for  the 
Jews  made  haste  to  bury  their  dead  out  of  their  sight,  and  a 
prompt  interment  was  intended  to  be  an  honor  to  the  deceased.* 
AVlien  this  message  came  to  Martha  and  Mary  it  must  have  been 
a  double  blow.  They  had  had  such  love  for  Lazarus  and  such 
confidence  in  the  power  of  Jesus ;  and  now  Lazarus  was  dead  and 
Jesus  was  mistaken,  or,  if  not  mistaken,  he  did  not  regard  them 
enough  to  come  and  explain  his  dark  sayings.  So  it  seemed  to 
them.  Lazarus  must  have  died  the  day  the  messenger  left  for 
Perea,  and  been  buried  before  sundown.  That  journey  occujucd 
a  day.  Jesus  spent  two  other  days  in  Perea,  and  the  fourth  was 
given  to  the  journey  to  Bethany,  so  that  when  he  arrived  it  was 
the  fourth  day  that  the  corpse  of  Lazarus  had  been  in  the  grave. 


*  For  proof  that  it  was  customary  to 
bury  the  dead  on  the  day  of  their  death, 
see  Acts  v.  G,  10,  and  Jalin's  Arrhnvhcjy, 
i.  2.  In  hot  countries  it  is  necessary  to 
bury  promptly  because  of  the  rapid  de- 
composition ;  and  tlie  Jews  had  the  ad- 
ditional reason  of  being  fearful  of  defile- 
ment by  reason  of  contact  with  a  corpse. 


Even  now,  in  Jerusalem,  the  burial,  as  a 
general  rule,  is  not  deferred  more  than 
three  or  four  hours  ;  and  if  the  death 
occur  so  late  in  the  evening  that  the 
burial  cannot  take  place  that  night,  it 
is  performed  at  the  earliest  break  of 
day. 


JESUS    ON   HIS   LAST   CIRCUIT.  499 

The  sorrow  of  this  stricken  family  had  called  to  them  their 
neighboring  friends,  and  also  many  Jews  from  Jerusalem,  some 
undoubtedly  sincerely  sympathizing  with  these  afflicted  young 
women,  others  simply  going  through  the  ceremonies  of  condolence 
in  a  perfunctory  manner,  and  others  perhaps  desirous  of  bringing 
back  into  the  fold  of  orthodoxy  these  excellent  women,  who  had 
been  turned  aside  by  the  fascination  and  friendship  of  the  young 
heresiarch  of  Nazareth.  There  was  a  crowd  in  the  house.  Martha, 
always  busy  and  bustling,  was  in  a  position  to  hear  of  the  approach 
of  Jesus,  and  she  hastened  to  meet  him.  Mary  was  sitting  quiet  in 
the  house.  The  traits  of  character  in  each  came  out  under  the 
new  and  exciting  circumstance  of  the  arrival  of  Jesus.  Martha  met 
him  first,  and  the  words  that  burst  from  her  lips  indicate  what  had 
been  the  thoughts,  and  probably  the  sayings,  of  the  sisters  in  his 
absence.     "  Lord,  if  you  had  been  here  my  brother  had  not  died  !  " 

This  speech  is  a  study.     Martha  had  had  ample  opportunity  to 

investigate  the  character   of    Jesus.      She   had   seen   him  both 

fatigued  and  rested ;  had  noticed  him  gazing  in 

f.        .    .       . ,  .  ,  ,-,  ,    .      Martha's  speech, 

revery  far  into  the  air,   or  down  the  mountain 

slope,  as  he  sat  before  the  door  of  her  house  ;  had  heard  him  when 
he  was  engaged  in  conversation  with  Lazarus  or  some  of  the  dis- 
ciples ;  had  watched  his  intercourse  with  Mary ;  noticed,  as  only 
woman's  quick  eye  can  notice,  all  his  movements  about  the  house, 
his  dress  and  address,  his  dispositions  of  himself,  his  off-guard 
moods,  his  temper  under  provocation,  and  all  those  things  which 
have  been  said  to  make  a  man  cease  to  be  a  hero  to  his  valet. 
The  whole  impression  made  upon  her  mind  was  that  he  was  so 
holy  as  to  have  most  intimate  communion  with  God,  such  intimacy 
as  gave  him  most  extraordinary  power,  such  power  as  would  have 
enabled  him  even  to  push  back  death  and  keep  her  brother  alive. 
But  she  did  not  know,  it  would  seem,  of  the  miracles  he  had 
wrought  in  restoring  other  persons  to  life,  and  did  not  imagine 
such  a  possibility  as  the  resurreistion  of  her  brother.  To  Martha 
Jesus  was  a  divine  personage,  but  not  Deity.  To  the  saying,  ''  If 
you  had  been  here  my  brother  had  not  died,"  she  added,  proba- 
bly after  a  pause  and  a  sob,  "  Even  now  I  laiow  that  whatever  you 
will  ask  of  God,  God  will  give  to  you."  What  she  expected  him 
to  ask  of  God  is  not  apparent.  She  was  in  the  tumult  of  a  f  i-esh 
and  great  bereavement,  swayed  by  hopes  and  fears  and  griefs. 
The  spiritual  elevation  of  every  person  who  came  witliin  the 


500    FROM  FKA8T  OF  TABERNACLES  FNTTL  THE  LAST  'SN'EEh^ 

circle  of  liis  influence  was  manifestly  the  design  of  all  that  Jesna 

'lid  and  said.     To  give  back  her  brother  sim])ly,  was  merely  to 

indulge  Martha's  natural  desires  for  a  season,  leav- 

ig     aims   o     ^      YiQY  still  ill  great  distress  because  her  brother 
Jesus.  ?  ^ 

might  be  snatched  from  her  again  at  any  mo- 
ment. Iler  suffering,  in  that  case,  would  have  been  such  as 
Wordsworth,  in  his  fine  poem  of  Laodamia,  has  described  U)  have 
been  that  of  his  heroine  when  the  shade  of  Protesilaus  was  re- 
stored to  her  for  a  brief  time  and  then  withdrawn.  As  Olshausen 
has  well  said,  it  was  needful  that  Martha  should  so  recover  her 
brother  that  it  would  be  impossible  ever  to  lose  him  again,  and  thus 
become  rooted  with  him  in  the  element  of  the  imperishable. 
Jesus  proceeded  not  simply  to  restore  her  brother,  but  to  fm-nish 
her  with  a  remedy  against  all  forms  in  which  death  could  possibly 
assault  humanity,  bodily  or  spiritually. 

Jesus  said  to  her,  "  Your  brother  shall  rise  again  !  " 
Martha  replied,  "I  know  that  he  shall  rise  again  at  the  resur- 
rection— at  the  last  day."  It  is  to  be  noticed  that  she  speaks  of 
the  resurrection  as  a  doctrine  currently  received,  and  as  including 
the  restoration  to  life  of  all  dead  men,  simply  in  virtue  of  their 
being  men  and  being  dead ;  and  also  that  this  was  to  be  accom- 
[)lished  for  all  the  race  at  the  last  day.  As  if  she  had  said :  "  Of 
course,  as  he  has  shared  the  fate  of  all  ihen  in  dying,  he  shall 
share  the  fate  of  all  men  in  rising:." 

But  Jesus  taught  her  another  doctrine  and  advanced  a  most 
prodigious  claim  for  himself.    He  said :  "  I  am  the  Tiesurrection 

and  the  Life.     lie  who  believes  on  me,  even  if  he 
Jesus  claims  to     ^.^^.^   ^^^^^^     ^^^^^^   jj^.^      ^^^^    ^^.^^.^.  ^,,,^  ^^.j^^   U^.^g 

DC     t/I16    ItG8U.rTGC~  '  i. 

tjQjj  and  believes  in  me  shall  not  ultimately  die."    lie 

removes  from  the  plane  of  natural  causes  both 
life  and  the  resurrection,  and  declares  that  the  jxtwcr  of  both  re- 
sides in  him  ;  that  he  is  the  dynamical  force  of  life  ;  that  without 
him  no  one  who  is  dead  could  possibly  be  restored  ;  and  that  those 
who  ai'e  alive  and  have  connection  with  him  cannot  finally  per- 
ish. He  represents  himself  as  the  fountain  of  soul-life  and  of 
the  animal  life  that  is  in  man.  lie  is  the  life.  He  is  Lifeness 
itself.  If  he  bring  himself  to  bear  u]>on  the  dead  they  live.  If 
he  bring  himself  to  bear  upon  the  living,  so  long,  through  the 
ages,  as  this  remains,  they  arc  not  able  to  die.  He  is  the  Resur- 
rection for  Lazarus,  and  he  is  the  Life  for  Martha. 


JESUS    ON   HIS   LAST   CIRCUIT.  501 

"Upon  this  he  appealed  to  her  :  "  Do  you  believe  this  ? " 
Martha  did  not  imequivocally  express  her  faith  in  this  startling 
and  immense  claim,  but  she  did  reply,  "  I  have  reached  the  be- 
lief that  you  are  the  Christ — the  Anointed  One — 

*^  .  1  111,    Martha's  caution, 

the  bon  or  Cxod  that  was  to  come  into  the  world. 

It  was  a  noble  thing  in  her  not  to  give  hasty  assent  to  what  she 
could  neither  understand  nor  believe.  Jesus  had  uttered  some- 
thing too  deep  for  her,  and  then  startled  her  by  the  sudden  ques- 
tion, "  Do  you  believe  all  this  ? "  She  could  not  say  whether  she 
did  or  not,  because  she  was  not  sure  that  she  quite  apprehended 
the  meaning ;  but  she  did  believe  that  he  was  the  Messiah,  and 
was  quite  ready  to  say  that  much.  If  that  meant  what  Jesus 
meant,  then  "  Yes,  Lord;  "  if  not,  then  "  Nay,  Lord ;  not  yet  that 
much ;  but  I  have  believed  and  do  believe  that  you  are  the  Mes- 
siah." 

Having  said  this  she  went  her  way  and  privately  sought  Mary, 
not  choosing  to  let  the  Jews  from  Jerusalem  know  that  Jesus  was 
so  near,  for  she  must  have  known  the  intensity  of 
the  malignant  hatred  of  the  Jews  towards  Jesus.  ^^ 

She  said  to  Mary :  "  The  Master  is  here,  and  calls  for  you."  When 
Mary  heard  this  she  arose  quickly  and  came  to  him.  Jesus  had 
not  come  to  the  house,  nor  indeed  into  the  village,  but  was  near, 
perhaps  between  the  house  and  the  burial-place.  When  the  Jews 
who  were  in  the  house,  and  had  been  endeavoring  to  comfort  her, 
saw  Mary  rise  up  hastily  and  go  out,  they  followed  her,  thinking 
that  she  was  going  to  the  tomb  to  weep  there.  When  Mary 
reached  Jesus  she  fell  at  his  feet — an  act  of  homage  which  Martha 
had  not  paid,  an  expression  of  adoring  love,  perhaps  brought  sud- 
denly from  her  by  the  recollection  that  she  had  been  sitting  in 
the  house  while  her  dear  fi-iend  was  so  near.  She  exclaimed, 
"  Lord,  if  you  had  been  here  my  brother  had  not  died."  In  the 
identity  of  this  speech  with  that  of  Martha,  both  coming  out  in 
the  great  emotion  of  the  first  meeting,  we  see  what  had  been  the 
tenor  of  their  conversation  in  the  absence  of  the  dear  fi-iend. 
It  was  the  unfortunate  absence  which  occasioned  all  their  trouble. 
The  confidence  in  Jesus  of  these  two  women,  who  were  so  dif- 
ferent in  temperament,  is  really  aifectingly  beautiful. 

The  outburst  of  Mary  stirred  the  hearts  of  the  Jews  who  had 
come  to  mourn  with  her,  and  they  wept.  "Wlien  Jesus  saw  this 
deep  emotion  he  was  vehemently  agitated.     The  language  of  the 


502    FKOM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  "WEEK. 

original  history  (John  xi.  33)  intimates  a  complex  mental  condi 
tion,  a  combination  of  grief  and  anger,  "  he  grew  wrotli  in  hia 
spirit  and  disturbed  himself!"  Tlis  sympathies 
j^^^^^^^""^^^^  were  intense.  He  loved  Mary.  He  could  not  en- 
dure to  see  her  suffer  so  keenly.  These  were  rea- 
sons fur  tears  ;  but  why  should  he  be  angry  ?  That  is  n(jt  so  easy 
to  answer.  Neither  Mary  nor  the  Jews  had  done  anything  on  this 
occasion  to  arouse  his  indignation.  It  is  absurd  to  suppose  that 
the  mere  death  of  Lazarus  had  produced  this  state  of  feeling,  or 
that  he  had  any  regrets  for  his  own  absence  when  Lazarus  died  ; 
because  he  believed  that  he  was  about  to  raise  him  from  the  dead, 
and  he  had  said  to  his  disciples  that  he  was  glad  he  was  not  present 
at  the  death,  because  he  knew  that  it  was  for  the  gloi-y  of  God. 
We  cannot  very  clearly  discern  good  reason  for  his  anger,  but  he 
teas  angry.  It  may  be  that  an  intense  perception  of  all  the  "vn-ong 
that  sin  was  working  in  the  race  came  upon  him,  and  the  discords 
and  jangles  of  the  world  broke  on  his  sensitive  soul  with  a  force 
that  excited  him  violently.  If  this  be  not  the  explanation,  we  do 
not  know  what  is;  but  it  is  quite  clear  that  the  historian  de- 
scribes him  as  angered. 

lie  said,  "  Where  have  you  laid  him  ?  "     They  replied,  "  Lord, 
come  and  see." 
Jesus  wept. 

On  the  way  to  the  sepulchre  the  company  noticed  that  manly 

tears  were  silently  flowing  down  the  cheeks  of  Jesus,  like  a  shower 

of    soft   rain   after  a  thunder-clai).      Something 

TVi  ■    f  f  I  O 

Jesus^  ^^^  ^  ^''^^^  angered  him.  Now  he  was  -weeping.  Some 
of  the  Jews  said  to  othere,  "  See  how  he  loved 
him."  And  then,  recollecting  the  case  of  the  blind  man  in  Jeru- 
salem, whom  Jesus  had  restored  to  sight,  they  said,  "  Could  not 
this  man,  who  opened  the  eyes  of  the  blind,  have  caused  even 
that  this  man  should  not  have  died  ?  "  It  must  be  noticed  that 
this  remark  shows  that  the  restoration  of  the  blind  man  had  been 
settled  as  a  fact  in  the  popular  opinion  of  Jerusalem.  The  spec- 
tators, saw  in  Jesus  unmistakable  signs  of  affection  for  Lazarus. 
Ill'  liad  shown  great  power  in  the  case  of  the  blind  man  ;  did  hia 
ability  to  save  stop  at  that  limit  ?  In  that  case  he  had  been  criti- 
cised for  doing  too  much  ;  here,  for  doing  too  little.  The  anger 
i)f  Jesus  rose  again,  and  exploded  in  a  groan  rather  tliau  in  a  ver- 
bal rej^ly  to  their  foolish  gaintjaying. 


JESI/S    ON    HIS   LAST   CmCUIT.  503 

They  came  to  the  tomb.  It  was  a  cave.  A  stone  lay  against 
it.  Jesus  said  to  them,  "  Take  the  stone  away."  Martha  shrank 
from  the  exposure  and  expostulated :  "  Lord,  al- 
ready he  "—she  said  with  instinctive  shuddering  ^^  *^®  ^^^®' 
and  painful  reluctance — "  stinkoth ;  for  he  has  been  buried  f oui 
days."  Here  was  a  conflict  between  her  faith  in  the  friendly 
power  of  Jesus  and  her  natural  desponding  disposition.  She  did 
not  know  that  putrefaction  had  begun ;  the  word  "  for  "  shows 
that  she  had  merely  inferred  it  from  the  length  of  time  her 
brother  had  been  in  the  tomb.  Jesus  reassured  her.  "Did 
I  not  say  to  you  that  if  you  would  believe  you  should  see  the 
glory  of  God." 

Then  they  removed  the  stone.  Jesus  lifted  up  his  eyes  and 
said,  "Father,  I  thank  Thee  that  Thou  hast  heard  me.  And 
I  know  tliat  Thou  hearest  me  always ;  but  because  of  the  mul- 
titude which  stand  around  I  said  this  that  they  may  believe  that 
Thou  hast  sent  me."  This  remarkable  speech  seems  to  be  the 
utterance  of  a  sentiment  of  internal  spiritual  communion,  and  not 
a  prayer  in  the  form  of  petition,  although  Jesus  did  make  such 
prayers.  This  was  no  "show-prayer."  It  was  a  Eucharist,  a 
thanksgiving,  such  as  was  in  his  heart,  and  he  chose  to  utter 
it  that  the  people  hearing  it  might  believe  that  he  was  the  Sent 
of  God,  the  Christ,  the  Messiah,  or  at  least  perceive  that  he 
believed  himself  to  be  such.  The  raising  of  the  dead  was  the 
experimentiwi  crucis,  the  final  and  indisputable  test  and  proof 
of  Messiahship.  He  accepted  it  as  such.  He  had  raised  the 
dead  at  least  twice  before,  in  the  cases  of  the  daughter  of  the 
nobleman  and  the  son  of  the  ISTain  widow,  but  never  under  cir- 
cumstances like  these,  in  which  the  deceased  was  an  adult,  had 
been  dead  and  buried  now  the  fourth  day,  and  spectators  from 
Jerusalem,  tlie  seat  of  ecclesiastical  authority  and  of  enmity  to 
Jesus,  were  present  in  a  crowd  sufiicieut  to  examine  all  the 
phenomena  of  the  miracle,  and  to  detect  collusions  and  tricks. 
They  were  certain  that  Lazarus  was  dead.  It  could  not  have 
been  an  arrangement  upon  the  part  of  these  young  women  and 
Jesus.  His  whole  character  was  such  that  not  only  would  he  not 
have  entered  into  any  such  arrangement,  but  if  they  had  desired 
to  glorify  the  great  Teacher  by  getting  up  a  pseudo-miracle,  he 
would  never  for  the  sake  of  friendship  have  yielded"  himself 
unwillingly  to  be  part  of  such  a  scheme.     Moreover,  tlie  grief  of 


50-4        FKOM   FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

Martha  and  Mary,  as  well  as  that  of  Jesus,  was  not  feigned.  If  it 
had  been,  the  Jews,  who  had  three  days  for  observation,  would 
have  detected  it.  They  were  so  thoroughly  convinced  of  the 
death  of  Lazarus  that  they  themselves  wept  \vith  Mary  and  ad- 
mired the  tenderness  of  the  friendsliip  of  Jesus. 

It  was  the  crisis  of  Jesus.     He  stood  before  the  opened  tomb, 
and,  with  a  loud  voice,  cried,  "  Lazarus,  come  forth."     Then  he 

who  had  been  dead   came  forth,  in  just  such 
e  raises    aza-    pjjgj^^  ^  corpses  were  customarily  laid  away  in 

the  grave,  namely,  with  narrow  strips  of  linen 
wrapped  about  each  limb,  so  that  while  motion  was  obstructed 
it  was  not  impracticable,  and  with  a  handkerchief  tied  about 
his  head.  So  thorough  was  the  restoration  that  he  needed  no  aid 
to  obey  the  command  of  Jesus,  but  walked  forth  into  the  pre- 
sence of  the  assembly.  Jesus  simply  said,  "  Loose  him,  and  let 
him  go."  That  is,  take  away  whatever  encumbei-s  him  and  let 
him  go  home. 

One  cannot  fail  to  notice  the  absence  of  all  parade  and  mum- 
l)ling  and  incantation,  as  if  this  M-ere  the  Avork  of  a  magician. 
The  history  is  beautiful  on  the  side  of  the  human  passions,  and 
sublime  on  the  side  of  the  simple  exercise  of  power  in  doing 
what  only  God  has  always  been  supposed  to  be  capable  of  per- 
forming. There  is  no  indulgence  of  curiosity,  no  telling  of  tales 
brought  back  irom  the  prison-house  of  the  sepulchre,  no  marvels, 
no  self-gratulation  upon  tlie  part  of  Jesus,  ho  sense  of  exhaustion, 
as  if  he  had  poured  Antal  force  from  himself  into  his  dead 
friend.  The  veil  is  dropped  over  any  convei"sation  Jesus  might 
have  had  with  his  dear  friend,  and  the  most  delicate  silence 
preserved  as  to  the  display  of  feeling  upon  the  part  of  Lazarus 
and  his  sistei-s  at  his  restoration,  and  any  loving  thanks  they  may 
have  heaped  upon  their  benefactor.  Even  tradition  does  not 
venture  upon  repeating  to  us  anything  Lazarus  may  have  been 
represented  as  saying  of  his  sensations  in  dying,  his  experience  of 
being  dead,  aiid  his  emotion  upon  the  return  of  the  soul  to  its 
seat  in  the  bcxly,  and  the  reattaclunent  of  the  cords  of  life  which 
had  been  snapped.  Ti-adition  only  tells  us  that  Lazarus  asked 
Jesus  if  he  should  die  again,  and  when  informed  that  there  still 
lay  before  him  the  inevital)lc  fate  of  humanity,  he  never  smik'd 
acrain.  But  there  is  no  foundation  for  that.  It  is  the  imnatura] 
fancy  of  some  gloomy  mind. 


JESUS   ON   mS   LAST   CIRCUIT.  505 

History  tells  us  nothing  more  of  Lazarus.  In  the  beginning  of 
the  second  century  many  of  those  whom  Jesus  had  both  healed 
and  raised  from  the  dead  were  still  alive,, according  to  Quadratus 
in  Eusebius  {TI.  E.,  iv.  3).  From  this  great  miracle  the  village 
of  Bethany  took  the  name  of  Lazarus,  and  to  this  day  is  called 
El-Azariyeh  or  Lazariyeh. 

Of  the  Jews  who  witnessed  the  miracle  there  were  two  classes, 
those  whom  this  proof  of  Messiahship  won  to  Jesus,  and  those  who, 
overwhelmed  for  a  season  by  this  display  of  power, 
which  seemed  to  be  omnipotence,  nevertheless 
had  no  intellectual  or  spiritual  good  from  the  spectacle,  but  went 
home  chatting  about  it,  or  went  to  the  priestly  party  repeating 
it,  and  asking  them  what  they  thought  about  it.  'Whether  in  mere 
gossip  or  through  hostility,  these  people  told  the  Pharisees  what 
Jesus  had  done. 

The  Sanhedrim  was  forthwith  assembled  to  consider  the  state 
of  affairs.  Early  in  his  public  career  the  Jews  of  Jerusalem 
had  sought  to  kill  Jesus  as  a  Sabbath-breaker 
(John  V.  16,  18).  Subsequently,  in  Galilee,  the  ^g^^^^bSd^"^"^ 
Pharisees  had  conspired  with  the  Herodians  to 
destroy  him  (Mark  iii.  6).  The  Sanhedrim  had  gone  so  far  as  to 
decree  excommunication  of  any  one  who  should  confess  Jesus 
as  the  Messiah  (John  ix.  22).  Othcers  had  once  been  sent  to 
arrest  him  (John  vii.  25),  and  the  people  generally  believed  that 
the  party  in  power  would  never  rest  until  Jesus  should  be  put  out 
of  the  way.  Nevertheless  the  Sanhedrim  had  never  formally 
decreed  his  death.  But  this  raising;  of  Lazarus  brouo-ht  matters 
to  a  head. 

^Vlien  the  council  assembled,  the  first  thing  apparent  to  them 

all  was  their  utter  helplessness,  so  feeble  is  political  power  when 

opposed   to   moral   force.     The   unarmed  Jesus, 

having  no  authority— civil,  militarv,  or  ecclesias-      ^^^^    acknow- 
..     -,  ••111T  "^1  1  ledge  his  miracles, 

ticai — was  gaming  such  hold  upon  the  populace 

that  they  could  put  no  arguments,  no  authority,  no  influence 

before  the  people  to  counteract  him.      They  achwidedged  his 

miracles.    The  greatest  learning  and  the  greatest  authority  in  the 

law,  quite  as  capable  of  detecting  a  trick,  and  quite  as  willing  to 

expose  a  fraud  as  modern  minds,  admitted  that  Jesus  did  "many 

miracles."   They  did  not  deny  what  such  multitudes  declared  they 

had  witnessed,  namely,  his   raising  of   the  dead.      Their  uttei 


506        FROM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    TNTIL   THE   LAST    'NVEEB 

spiritual  stupidity  is  seen  in  that  they  felt  themselves  bound  to 
kill  Jesus  rather  than  believe  on  him.  The  latter  should  have 
been  the  rational  conclusion,  but  "state  reasons"  prevailed. 
They  should  have  said:  He  has  done  these  great  things  as  re- 
[)Orted,  or  he  has  not;  it  is  so  imjiortant  a  matter  that  we  may 
well  afford  to  put  out  our  utmost  resources  to  settle  that  ques- 
tion. If  he  has  done  these  things,  then  he  is  the  Messiah,  and 
we  must  hail  him  as  such :  if  he  has  not,  we  must  take  all  possi- 
l)le  pains  to  demonstrate  to  the  poj)ular  mind  that  all  this  is  noth- 
ing, and  then  truth  will  prevail.  Instead  of  which  they  admitted 
that  Jesus  did  perform  many  miracles,  and  therefore  resolved  to 
kill  him  I  As  if  that  were  the  way  to  meet  an  acknowledged 
miracle ! 

They  said  among  themselves,  "If  we  let  him  thus  alone  all  will 
believe  on  him:  and  the  Romans  will  come  and  take  away  both  our 

place  and  our  nation."     This  was  the  utter  rejec- 
They  reject  him   ^j^^^  ^^  j^^^^^  ^  ^j^^j^.  j^gggj.^ij     j,,  their  opinion  he 
as  Messiah.  ir         ■     ^  ^^ 

did  not  have  the  force  to  pusli  himself  against  the 

lioman  power  and  overthrow  it.  lie  was  not  to  be  a  conqueror; 
and  if  not  a  conqueror  he  must  not  be  allowed  to  go  so  far  forward 
as  to  make  himself  a  party,  and  excite  the  Roman  power  to  take 
such  measures  as  should  lead  to  a  popular  uprising,  which  might 
be  a  sufficient  excuse  for  the  total  extinction  of  the  Hebrew 
nationality.  That  was  their  great  state  reason.  They  did  not  see 
that  if  Jesus  had  the  power  to  work  these  great  miracles  their 
simple  acknowledgment  of  the  fact  could  do  no  harm ;  and 
then,  in  any  event,  he  that  could  raise  the  dead  could  repel^ 
the  Romans;  and  that  if  the  whole  affair  were  a  delusion  it 
would  shortly  die  out,  and  need  not  be  kept  alive  by  the  notice  of 
the  Sanhedrim. 

One  of  the  inembei-s  of  this  Council  was  Josephiis  Caiaphas.  In 
John  xi.  40,  he  is  called  "  high-priest  of  that  year."  The  (office 
of  high-priest  had  fallen  so  low  that  it  had  lost 
amp  as.  i,(^>.^i.]y  ^11  that  respect  and  almost  awe  which  it 
had  fonnci-ly  inspired.  Josephus  tells  us  {Anfiq.,  win.  2,  2)  that 
Valerius  Gratus,  the  fifth  governor  of  Judaea,  took  the  high-priest- 
hood from  Ananus,  also  called  Annas,  and  transferred  it  to 
Ishmael,  whom  he  soon  removed,  sul)stitiitiiig  Eliezar,  a  son  of 
Ananus  ;  that  the  next  year  he  made  another  change,  conferring 
the  office  on  Simon,  who  held  it  only  a  year,  when  it  was  given 


JESUS   ON   HIS   LAST   CIRCUIT. 


507 


to  Josephns,  snrnamed  Caiaphas  (not  Joseplius  the  historian),  who 
held  it  throiigli  the  public  ministry  of  Jesus.  It  Avill  be  readily 
perceived  how  the  Pontificate  fell  into  disrepute,  and  that  the 
description,  "  of  that  year,"  was  the  mode  of  expressing-  the  popu- 
lar contempt  for  the  incumbents  of  that  office.  At  the  time  of 
this  history  the  more  con- 
servative and  ortlu^dox  still 
held  to  Ananus  as  the  law- 
ful high-priest,  although  Ca- 
iaphas enjoyed  the  office  by 
political  favor. 

In   this   meeting   of   the 
Sanhedrim,    this    Caiaphas 

said.  "  You     „• 

His  prophecy. 

know  noth- 
ing, nor  consider  that  it  is  ex- 
pedient that  one  man  should 
die  for  the  people,  and  that 
the  whole  nation  perish  not." 
John  says  that  he  did  not 
speak  that  of  himself  ;  but 
that    holding,  however  un- 


^i^^^^f-: 


HiaU-PRIEST. 


righteously,  this  high  and  holy  office,  the  spirit  of  prophecy  still 
lingeinng  about  the  breastplate  which  contained  the  Urim  and 
Thummhn — the  Lights  and  Eights  of  God — spoke  through  Caia- 
phas, pi( )phesying  that  "  Jesus  was  about  to  die  for  the  nation, 
and  not  for  that  nation  only,  but  also  that  he  should  gather  to 
gether  in  one  the  children  of  God  who  were  scattered  abroad." 
The  voice  of  Caiaphas,  according  to  John,  spoke  what  the  mind  of 
Caiaphas  did  not  comprehend.  His  saying  settled  the  question. 
The  death  of  Jesus  was  decreed.  It  was  only  needful  to  deter- 
mine how  to  compass  his  destruction. 

Jesus  was  aware  of  the  deadly  intent  of  the  ruling  party,  and 
so  retired  to  a  place  called  Ephraim  in  the  common  version,  but 
spelt  Ephrem  in  the  Codex  Sinaiticus^  and,  I 
think,  there  can  now  be  little  doubt,  identical  with 
Ephron.  It  lay  in  the  wild  uncultivated  region, 
hill-country  N,  E.  of  Jerusalem,  lying  between  the  central  towns 
and  the  Jordan  valley.  We  are  indebted  to  the  late  Dr.  Robin- 
son for  the  recovery  of  this  place,  and  its  identification  with  the 


Ephron.     John 


508        FKOM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   Till':    LAST    WEEK. 

modern  village  of  Taiyilicli.  It  is  nearly  twenty  miles  north  of 
Jerusalem,  and  stands  on  a  conical  hill,  upon  the  top  of  which  is 
an  ancient  tower,  affording  a  wide  prospect  of  the  wilderness  along 
the  valley  of  the  Jordan,  of  the  Dead  Sea,  and  of  the  mountains 
beyond.  To  this  place  Jesus  retired  for  a  few  weeks.  It  gave 
liim  a  retreat  from  the  multitudes,  a  respite  from  his  angry  perse- 
cutoi-s,  and  an  ojjportunity  to  instruct  his  disciples  more  thorough- 
ly in  the  principles  of  his  religion.  There  may  have  been  another 
reason.  All  his  words  and  actions  show  that  he  know  that  his 
end  was  approaching,  and  that  his  death  would  be  violent.  Be- 
tween this  moment  of  retreat  and  that  last  fatal  conflict  he  might 
adopt  some  method  to  indulge  the  Messianic  wishes  of  the  friendly 
portion  of  the  people,  yielding  himself  in  some  way  publicly  to 


^W'lWjiV^ 


their  natural  desire  to  honor  him.  For  all  this  he  must  have  a 
season  of  cpiiet,  in  which  he  could  undergird  his  soul  for  its  last 
struggle,  and  in  which  he  could  so  train  his  disciples  that  when 
he  should  be  seized  and  executed  they  shoidd  not  sidly  his  dignity 
and  embitter  his  last  moments  by  any  fanatical  and  useless  out- 
break.    Just  such  a  retreat  did  Ephrem  afford. 

Here  he  could  not  have  remained  longer  than  a  few  weeks,  as 
he  nmst  have  entered  Ephrem  late  in  February  or  early  in  March, 
and  the  Passover  occurred  on  the  7th  of  April.  It  is  not  probablo 
that  he  went  into  neighboring  villages,  as  he  knew  that  the  au- 
thorities were  takiug  measures  to  arrest  him.  His  disciples  were 
with  him,  and  this  last  (.pportunity  to  be  together  apart  from  the 
people  would  be  lillcd  with  profitable  intercourse.     IK-  was  quite 


JESUS   ON    niS    LAST   CIRCUIT. 


509 


soon  enough  to  emerge  into  a  splendid  publicity  which  should 
precede  a  terrible  death. 

It  was  now  the  intention  of  Jesus  to  enter  Jerusalem  in  the 
most  conspicuous  manner.  Being  near  the  line  of  Samaria  lie 
seems  to  have  crossed  and  gone  through  Galilee  .       ^^^ 

to  the  valley  of  Jordan.  GalUee.  Luke  xvii. 

As  he  was   passing  along  the  border-line  of 
these  two  countries,  and  was  entering  a  certain  village,  there  met 
him  ten  men  who  were  lepers.     This  common  misery  had  made  a 
bond  of  union.     It  must  have  been  an  affecting       _     ^ 
sight  to  see  ten  men  driven  from  good  society,    -^^^^^ 
excluded  from  their  own  houses,  standing  in  a 
body,  forlorn  and  stricken,  as  if  banned  by  man  and  branded  by 
God.     They  lifted  up  their  feeble  and  hoarse  voices  and  cried  to 
him,  because  the  law  would  not  allow  them  to  approach  the  mi- 
tainted  nearer  than  four  ells.     (Levit.  xiii.  46,  and  Numb.  v.  2.) 
'I'heir  cry  was,  "  Jesus,  Huler,  compassionate  us."     It  was  not  the 
word    translated    in   the    common  version    as  Master,  meaning 
Teacher,  nor  that  other  word  translated  Lord.     The  views  of  these 
men  were  not  clear,  nor,  so  far  as  they  went,  '•  orthodox."     One 
was  a  Samaritan.     They  simply  knew  that  this  was  the  man  who 
had  exercised  great  power  beneficently,  and  that  they  were  the 
men  who  greatly  needed  his  help.     They  called  him  "  commander" 
or  "  chief."     He  lo(^ked  at  them  across  the  distance,  and  simply 
said  "  Go,  show  yourselves  to  the  priests." 

According  to  the  law  (Levit.  xiii.  2)  the  priest  was  to  declare 
when  a  man  had  recovered  from  the  leprosy,  but  the  priest  could 
not  heal  the  leper.  So,  when  Jesus  gave  this  direction  to  the 
lepers  it  implied  that  in  their  going  the  healing  would  come  to 
them.  They  seemed  to  feel  the  authority  of  that  tone.  Like  a 
platoon  of  soldiers,  at  the  word  of  their  commander,  they  wheeled 
and  marched.  As  they  went  they  were  cleansed.  One  of  them, 
on  perceiving  that  he  was  healed,  ran  back  rejoicing  and  glorif}"- 
ing  God,  and  fell  at  the  feet  of  Jesus  and  thanked  him.  "  And 
he  was  a  Samaritan,"  adds  the  honest  historian.  He  was  a  heretic 
in  his  religious  views,  but  full  of  thankfulness  for  the  great  favor 
bestowed  on  him.  His  "  orthodox  "  fellow-sufferers,  who  had  re- 
ceived the  same  gift  of  health,  coolly  went  away,  and  never  came 
back  with  thanks.  It  moved  Jesus  deeply.  He  said,  evidently 
with  strong  emotion,  "  Were  not  the  ten  cleansed  ?     Cut  where 


510        FRriM    FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 

are  the  nine?  AVere  there  none  found  returning  to  give  glory  tc 
God  except  this  stranger  ? "  He  said  to  him,  "Arise,  go  yonr 
way  :  yonr  faith  has  saved  you." 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  faith  of  these  ten  men  was  the 
psychical  basis  of  the  operation  of  Jesus,  and  that  Jesus  always 
looked  for  a  spiritual  improvement  to  follow  a  bodily  healing ; 
but  it  seems  to  have  done  so  in  the  case  of  one  of  the  men.  "W^ien 
that  man  openly  acknowledged  the  benefit,  it  was  confirmed  to 
him  with  an  enlarfjCTnent  of  the  advantage.  It  is  also  to  be 
noticed  how  greatly  the  popularity  of  Jesus  had  decayed.  Kot 
long  ago  the  cleansing  of  one  leper  would  raise  the  whole  country 
side  into  a  fervid  excitement,  now  the  sudden  healing  of  ten  men 
in  a  body  creates  no  enthusiasm.  It  was  a  dark  day  in  the  public 
life  of  Jesus. 

Somewhere  on  this  journey,  we  know  not  exactly  where,  some 

Pharisees  asked  Jesus  when  the  kingdom  of  God  should  come.' 

This  seems  to  have  been  a  taunt.     His  fortunes 
Luke  xvii.  i         -i  •         i.i  •  •  -r 

seemed    rather    waning   than    improvmg.       ror 

months,  indeed  for  years,  Jt»hn  the  Baptist  and  Jesus  had  l)cen 
j)redicting  the  coming  of  the  kingdom  of  God,  and,  so  far  as  these 
observere  could  see,  there  was  no  change  in  the  aspect  of  affaii-s, 
ecclesiastically  or  civilly.  Ilis  reply  was,  "  The  kingdom  of  God 
does  not  come  with  observation  :  neither  shall  they  say  '  Lo  here! 
or,  There  ! '  for  behold  tlie  kingdom  of  God  is  (already)  among 
you."  This  question  and  rci)ly  show  how  entirely  miable  to  the 
very  last  the  countrymen  of  Jesus  were  to  comprehend  his  char- 
acter and  mission,  and  to  divest  themselves  of  sensuous  ideas  of 
the  Messianic  apj^earance  and  rule.  Jesus  taught  them  tliat  that 
kingdom  was  not  a  matter  of  external  display  and  brilliancy  ; 
nevertheless,  as  he  said  to  his  disciples  immediately  after,  when 
it  came  men  should  not  inquire  whether  it  had  come  and  where, 
Ijecause  it  should  be  as  apparent  as  the  lightning ;  but  it  slunild 
be  in  the  souls  of  men. 

Turning  then  to  his  disciples  he  said: 

"  Dnys  will  come  when  yo  shall  desire  to  see  one  of  the  days  of  (ho  Son  of 

^Inn,  and  yet  shall  not  see  it.     And  they  .«lmll  say  to  you,  '  Sec  here,'  or,  '  See 

there :  '  do  not  go  away  nor  follow  them.     For  as  the 
A  terrible  prodlction.    ,.,,.,.,,  .,  _.  ii  i- 

bghtning  lij,d>tens  out  of  one  part  under   heaven,  slimes 

to  the  other  under  heaven,  so  shall  the  Son  of  Man  be  in  his  day  :  liut  lirst. 

he  must  suffer  many  things,  and  be  rejected  by  this  generation.     And  as  it  was 


JESUS    ON   HIS    LAST   CIECUIT.  511 

in  the  days  of  Noe,  so  sliall  it  l)e  also  in  the  days  of  the  Son  of  iMan  ;  they 
were  eating,  tliey  were  drinking,  they  were  marrying,  they  were  given  in  mar- 
riage, until  the  day  that  Noe  entered  into  the  ark,  and  the  flood  came  and  re- 
moved all.  Like\vise  as  it  was  in  the  days  of  Lot ;  they  were  eating,  they  were 
drinking,  they  were  buying,  they  were  selling,  they  were  planting,  they  were 
building :  but  the  day  that  Lot  went  out  of  Sodom  it  rained  fire  and  brim- 
stone from  heaven  and  destroyed  them  all.  Even  thus  shall  it  be  in  the  day 
when  the  Son  of  Man  is  revealed.  In  that  day  he  who  is  upon  the  house,  and 
his  goods  in  the  house,  let  him  not  come  down  to  take  them  away :  and  he 
who  is  in  the  field,  let  him  likewise  not  return  to  the  things  behind.  Remem- 
ber Lot's  wife.  Whosoever  shall  have  sought  to  save  his  life  shall  lose  it ; 
and  whosoever  shall  have  lost  his  life  shall  restore  it.  I  tell  you,  there  shall 
be  two  in  one  bed  ;  the  one  shall  be  taken,  and  the  other  left.  Two  shall  be 
grinding  at  the  same  mill ;  the  one  shall  be  taken,  and  the  other  left.  Two 
shall  be  in  the  field  ;  one  shall  be  taken,  and  the  other  left." 

These  revelations  of  troubles  seem  to  have  shocked  the  disci- 
ples.    They  ask  in  surprise,  "  AYliere,  Lord  ? " 

His  answer  is  a  proverb.  "  Wherever  the  body,  there  also  will 
the  eagles  be  gathered  together." 

It  is  difficult  to  lay  aside  preconceptions  and  read  sincerely  any 
book  which  has  been  read  over  and  over  by  us,  and  to  us,  fi-oni 
earliest  childhood,  with  certain  comments  or  presumptions.  This 
passage  of  the  teaching  of  Jesus  has  been  an  excruciation  to  com- 
mentators, who,  in  their  turn,  have  submitted  it  to  all  kinds  of 
violent  wrenchings  and  twistings.  It  is  a  curiosity  in  mental  his- 
tory how  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  can  be  supposed  to  have 
been  taught  to  the  hearers  of  Jesus.  Any  terrible  catastrophe  in 
human  history  can  just  as  well  be  supposed  to  have  been  in  the 
mind  of  Jesus. 

Let  US  put  ourselves  in  their  places,  knowing  nothing  of  Catho- 
lic and  Protestant,  and  medieBval-scholastic,  and  modern-critical 
comments  and  theories,  and  listen  to  Jesus.     The 
disciples    had    heard    the  Pharisees    when  they    ^^^  g^^  ^^  ^^^^ 
taunted  him  with  the  question  of  the  establish- 
ment of  that  kingdom  which  he  and  John  had  been  predicting. 
He  told  them  that  it  was  already  among  them,  but  they  had  not 
the  sagacity  to  discern  it.     The  same  question  would  naturally  be 
in  the  minds  of  the  disciples — "  Yes  ;  when  rvill  it  appear  ?"     He 
instructs  them  not  to  be  carried  away  by  outward  appearances, 
attractive  manifestations,  and  cries  of  false  Messiahs.     None  of 
these  things  belong  to  the  real  kingdom  of  God,  but  are  the  mere 
outbm-sts  of  human  passion.     When  we  recall  that  the  Goetje, 


512   FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  ^VEEK. 

shortly  before  the  destruction  of  Jenisalem,  by  means  of  false 
promises  of  miracles,  led  many  away  into  the  wilderness  to  perish. 
we  can  see  reason  for  this  warnin<^,*  He  told  them  of  his  o-wn 
suffering  and  rejection,  and  then  predicted  a  Revelation  of  himself 
at  some  time,  a  Parousia  of  the  Son  of  Man,  whatever  that  might 
mean.  But  there  is  a  mystic  air  to  this  whole  speech.  In  general 
it  seems  to  teach  that  coming'  events  do  vot  cast  their  shadows 
before,  that  when  any  stupendous  crisis  in  the  world's  affairs  oc- 
curs there  is  little,  if  any,  outward  previous  manifestation.  It  is 
like  a  dry  rot  in  a  house,  which  reveals  itself  only  when  it  has  so 
eaten  away  the  substantial  supports  that  the  whole  edifice  comes 
to  its  fall.  The  flood  was  such  a  crisis.  The  destruction  of 
Sodom  was  such.  Up  to  the  moment  of  the  first  plash  of  rain,  up 
to  the  moment  of  the  first  hurtling  of  sparks  in  the  hot  atmosphere, 
in  the  one  case  and  in  the  other,  men  and  women  went  about  their 
usual  pleasures  and  businesses  as  if  nothing  extraordinary  were  on 
the  eve  of  occurring.  So  shall  it  be  at  the  Parousia  of  the  Son 
of  Man,  whatever  and  whenever  and  wherever  that  may  be. 
And  men  need  not  speculate  on  that.  They  can  never  know  it. 
It  has  no  harbingers.  It  is  not  in  the  field  of  such  events  which 
can  be  prognosticated.  Men  should  simply  be  always  at  their 
posts,  always  doing  their  duty,  and  always  right  at  heart.  Tlic 
Pevelation  of  the  Son  of  Man  is  a  crisis,  in  the  sense  of  a 
judgment  and  discrimination.  It  shall  separate  death  from  life, 
the  dead  from  the  living.  Life  is  preservative.  The  birds  of 
prey  do  not  attack  the  living  but  the  dead.     Therefore  keep  alive. 

It  seems  that  Jesus  had  in  his  7iiind  the  idea  of  some  display 
of  himself  which  should  be  of  universal  interest.  But  who  can 
tell  all  he  meant  ? 

Because  of  the  troubles  that  were  coming  upon  the  world  he 
spake  this  parable  to  his  disciples,  to  teach  them  not  so  much  the 
duty  as  the  necessity  of  prayer,  and  that  men  should  not  be  faint- 
hearted.    He  said : 

"Tliere  "was  a  certain  judge  in  a  certain  city,  who  feared  not  God  neither 

regarded  man.     And  there  was  a  widow  in  tliat  city,  and  she  came  to  him 

saving,  '  Avenge  me  of  u\y  advei-sar}'.'     And  he  would  not 

Parable  of  the  Unjurt  ^^^  ^  ^.^^^  .  ,^^j^  afterward  lie  said  within  himself,  '  Though 

I  fear  not  God  nor  regard  man,  yet,  because  this  ^vidow 

troubles  me  I  will  avenge  her,  lest  by  her  continual  coming  she  torment  me.' 

*  See  Josephufl,  Ant.  xx.  8,  0.  Cora-  I  and  Acte  v.  36,  37. 
pare  Jonepbus,  Be  BclL  Jud.,  ii.  13,  14,  I 


JESUS   ON   niS   LAST   CIKCUIT.  513 

Hear  whnt  the  rmjust  judge  says.  And  shall  not  God  avenge  His  chosen,  who 
cry  day  and  night  to  Him,  even  though  He  delay  long  with  them  ?  I  tell  you 
that  He  will  avenge  them  speedily." 

To  interpret  a  parable  it  is  necessary  to  know  what  is  the 
pivot  of  instruction  on  which  it  revolves.  And  then  it  is  not 
necessary  to  find  a  doctrine  in  all  the  lights  and 
shades  of  the  picture,  in  all  the  folds  of  the  drapery 
of  the  statue,  of  a  parable.  It  has  exercised  sorely  the  ingenuity 
of  some  commentators  that  the  good  God  should  be  likened  to 
an  unjust  judge.  No  such  thing  is  done.  The  parable  is  intended 
to  teach  not  the  duty,  not  the  beauty,  not  the  profit,  but  the  ab- 
solute necessity  of  prayer ;  and  not  the  prayer  which  consists 
merely  of  expressions  of  formal  petitions,  but  the  prayer  which  is 
the  real  and  constant  desire  of  the  soul.  That  only  is  true  prayer. 
It  may  be  "  always."  It  may  sometimes  break  forth  into  words 
of  devotion  and  even  agonies  of  spiritual  wrestling ;  but  men 
must  ahoays  pray,  and  that  constant  spiritual  pressure  brings 
help.  The  illustration  is  from  an  unjust  judge,  whose  injustice 
the  commentators  desire  to  modify,  thus  destroying  the  whole 
force  of  the  parable.  The  stnniger  the  judge  and  the  more  un- 
just, the  poorer  and  the  weaker  the  suppliant,  the  more  impressive 
is  the  lesson  of  Jesus ;  for  God  is  not  compared  to  this  judge,  but 
set  in  contrast  with  him.  The  badness  of  the  judge  is  shown  in 
that  he  was  impious  and  inhuman — he  feared  not  God,  he  had  no 
regard  for  man.  Not  that  he  even  said  this  to  himself,  much  less 
admitted  it  to  other  men,  but  the  soliloquy  represents  his  prevail- 
ing strain  of  feeling.  His  petitioner  is  represented  in  the  utmost 
helplessness.  We  have  all  learned  the  destitution  of  Oriental 
widowhood.  This  suppliant  was  a  woman,  a  widow,  poor  and 
persecuted.  The  judge  had  no  disposition  to  help  her,  and  no 
reason  in  the  world  to  do  so,  except  that  by  the  continuance  of 
her  prayer  she  should  be  a  torment  to  him.  In  the  exaggeration 
of  selfishness  he  uses  a  word  which  signifies  to  make  one  black 
and  blue  about  the  eyes.  She  will  overcome  him  by  her  impor- 
tunity. He  grants  her  request,  not  because  it  is  just,  not  because 
he  pities  her,  but  because  of  his  selfishness,  to  save  himself  from 
annoyance.  The  argument  of  Jesus  is  this :  If  constant  prayer 
can  prevail  against  the  selfishness  of  an  unjust  human  being,  how 
certainly  it  will  find  ansAver  in  the  heart  of  the  good  God  and 
Father. 

33 


514        FEOSr   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   TNTIL   THE   LAST   AVEEK. 

Immediately  upon  delivering  this  parable  Jesus  added,  "  lint 

when  the  Son  of  Man  comes,  will  he  find  the  faith  upon  earth?" 

It  is  an  expression  of  despondency.     It  secins  to 

egression  o     jj^^jjj^rj^^Q  ^j^r^j-  when  the  Parousia  of  which  he  was 
aeBponuency.  i 

speaking  shall  take  place,  when  xhe  Son  of  Man 
shall  reveal  himself,  he  may  find  faith  in  his  coming  so  rare  that 
the  world  shall  not  be  prepared  for  it.  The  history  of  the  race 
shows  that  humanity  is  never  expectant  the  moment  before  the 
fall  of  some  great  influence  upon  its  history. 

lie  spoke  another  parable,  that  of  the  Pharisee  and  Publican, 
which  Luke  reports  in  this  immediate  connection,  and  which  the 
Harmonists  generally  assign  to  this  time  in  the  career  of  Jesus. 
Wlienever  spoken,  I  can  see  a  reason  why  Luke  should  rep<»rt  the 
two  pai-ables  together,  as  they  are  didactically  connected,  their 
teachings  being  of  the  same  subject.  This  particular  parable 
must  be  assigned  to  this  general  period  of  the  life  of  Jesus,  as  it 
would  luiturally  be  suggested  by  the  thousands  of  pilgrims  now 
going  up  to  the  temple  for  worship.  But  it  does  seem  that  it 
would  1)0  more  appropriate  whci-e  there  were  Pharisees  to  hear  it, 
than  to  be  told  to  his  disciples  alone;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  it 
is  true  that  he  had  seen  in  his  own  family  of  disciples  certain  dis- 
plays of  dispositions  of  which  this  parable  is  a  corrective.  Because 
I  cannot  satisfy  myself  of  any  better  place  for  the  insertion  of 
the  parable,  I  give  it  here. 

It  was  intended  to  teach  humility  in  prayer,  as  the  parable  of 
the  Unjust  Judge  was  to  iamh  j^crsistence.   The  parable  is  this: — 

"Two  men  went  up  into  the  Temple  to  pray,  the  one  a  Pharisee  and  the 

other  a  tax-gatherer.     The  Pharisee,  standing,  prayed  these  [words] :  '  God,  I 

thank  Thee  that  I  am  not  as  tlic  rest  of  men,  extortioners. 

PornMoof  thorharl-  t  /■     ^         • 

•eeand  the  Publican,  u^just,  adulterers,  or  even  as  this  tax-gatherer.  1  ijust  twice 
in  the  week.  I  give  tithes  of  all  that  I  get." — And  the 
tax-gatherer,  standing  afar  off,  would  not  even  lift  up  eyes  to  heaven,  but 
emote  on  his  breast,  saying,  'Be  merciful  to  me,  the  sinful  one.'  I  tell  you 
tliis  man  went  down  to  his  house  justified  beyond  that  one :  for  every  one 
who  exalteth  himself  shall  be  humbled;  and  he  who  humbleth  himself  shall 
be  exalted." 

Luke  says  that  this  parable  was  levelled  against  those  who 
trusted  in  themselves  that  they  were  righteous,  anil  despised 
others.  It  is  a  graphic  lesson.  The  Pharisee  went  into  the  Tem- 
ple,     lie  stood  to  pray.     That  was  no  evidence  of  pride.      Tiic 


JESUS   ON   HIS   LAST   CIRCmT.  515 

Jews  generally  stood  when  they  prayed,  and  the  exceptions  were 
when  they  became  excitedly  devout,  so  that  to  kneel  would  have 
been  ratlier  a  display  of  ostentation.  The  tax-gatherer  also  stood. 
In  several  Greek  editions  occur  words  which  in  the  common 
English  version  are  translated  "  with  himself,"  which  some  have 
connected  with  the  standing  as  indicative  of  the  "  Separatists,"  "  ho 
stood  ly  himself P  St.  Bernard  alludes  to  this  apparently  proud 
isolation  in  prayer.  But  the  words  do  not  occur  in  the  oldest 
texts,  and  are  doubtless  an  interpolation.  There  was  no  intention 
to  ridicule  the  man  nor  to  exaggerate  Pharisaism,  but  to  contrast 
it  with  the  simplicity  of  faith,  and  teach  what  Jesus  from  the 
beginning  until  this  the  closing  period  of  his  ministry  constantly 
insisted  upon,  the  superiority  of  simple  faithfulness  to  one's  con- 
victions over  all  devotion  to  mere  forms  of  worship, — so  that  men 
might  feel  how  much  better  it  is  to  be  the  Penitent  than  the 
Puritan. 

This  self-complacent  worshipper  addressed  God  in  terms  of  thank- 
fulness which  soon  show  themselves  to  be  the  thin  veil  covering 
his  pride.  He  separated  himself  from  all  man- 
kind. He  was  one  class,  all  other  people  another;  '^^^  Pharisee's 
and  he  was  better  than  all  others,  whom  he  pro-  ^'^*^®^' 
ceeds  to  classify  as  extortioners,  unjust,  and  unclean,— and  then  as 
his  eye  fell  upon  the  tax-gatherer,  whose  business  he  regarded  as  the 
"sum  of  all  villanies,"  he  added— "or  even  as  this  tax-gatherer  ? " 
And  having  purged  himself  of  all  charges  that  might  be  brought 
against  his  moral  character,  he  proceeds  to  glorify  himself  to  God 
in  vaunting  his  discharge  of  religious  duties,  and  even  the  per- 
formance of  works  of  supererogation.  "  I  fast  twice  in  the  week." 
Moses  had  appointed  only  an  annual  fast,  the  great  day  of  atone- 
ment (Levit.  xvi.  20-31 ;  Numb.  xxix.  7).  But  this  man  superadded 
two  private  weekly  fasts.  "  I  give  tithes  of  my  whole  income." 
The  law  tithed  only  the  products  of  the  earth  and  the  offspring 
of  the  cattle  (N'umb.  xviii.  21 ;  Deut.  xiv.  22 ;  Levit.  xxvii.  30° 
But  he  was  determined  to  exceed  even  the  requirements  of  the 
law,  so  he  tithed  all  that  came  to  him  in  his  business.  He  dwells 
fondly  on  these  things,  showing  that  he  was  doing  them  not  for 
the  glory  of  God,  but  for  his  own  pleasure.  He  had  no  sins  to 
confess.  He  had  no  Avorship  to  offer  God.  He  had  contempt  for 
his  fellow-men,  even  for  his  fellow-worshippers. 

But  the  tax-gatherer  stood  afar  off.     He  had  as  much  right  to 


516        FKOM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE    LAST    WEEK. 

the  Temple  as  the  Pharisee,  for  he  was  neitlier  heathen  nor  prose 
lyte.     His  reverence  for  God's  holiness  and  holy  places  was  such 

that  it  was  enough  for  him  to  stand  even  in  the 
^The  pubUcan'8    pj.g^.ij^(.tg  ^f  th^  holy  Temple.     Perhaps  he  saw 

the  Pharisee  standing  in  a  reserved  but  conspicu- 
ous place,  and  almost  envied  his  fellow-worshipper  the  holiness 
which  made  him  worthy  of  such  a  position,  and  felt  that  he  him- 
self was  not  fit  to  breathe  the  same  air  with  that  man  of  God.  All 
sights  about  him  and  all  thoughts  of  himself  conspired  to  humili- 
ate him.  He  would  not  so  much  as  lift  up  his  eyes  to  heaven. 
He  called  himself  "  the  sinner,"  by  a  word  whijuh  means  liardened 
in  sin.  Jesus  did  not  depreciate  the  Pharisee.  He  gave  him  his 
full  dues.  But  God  is  represented  to  have  sent  such  a  comfort 
into  the  breast  of  the  publican,  that,  being  forgiven,  he  left  the 
Temple  a  happier  man  than  the  Pharisee,  whose  only  comfort  was 
in  his  self-complacency. 

It  is  supposed  that  now  Jesus  left  Galilee,  crossing  the  Jordan 
into  Perea.     His  plan  seems  to  have  been  to  join  himself  to  the 

great  caravans  of  pilgrims  thronging  the  Jordan 

Final  departure    valley  in  their  progress  to  the  Holy  City  from  all 

from  GaiUee  Mat-    ^j^^  ^^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^  ^j^^  g^^  ^f  Galilee.     If  we  may 

thew  XIX  •    Mark  t  ■       ^        ^     .     ^^       ^    j 

J  rely  upon  Josephus,  the  multitudes  that  attended 

this  feast  were  enormous.     He  tells  that  at  one 

Passover,  by  actual  count,  250,500  paschal  lambs  were  slain.    The 

smallest  number  of  worshippers  which  the  law  allowed  to  each 

lamb  was  ten,  which  would  make  the  number  of  participants  in 

this  feast  to  have  been  at  least  2,505,000.     It  seems  incredible ; 

but  if  allowance  be  made  for  exaggeration,  still  the  number  must 

have  been  immense ;  and  the  roads  that  led  to  Jerusalem  must 

have  been  thronged  for  several  days  before  the  feast  and  after. 

It  was  on  this  tour  that  the  subject  of  divorce  was  brought  to 

the  attention  of  Jesus.     He  found  the  Pharisees  everywhere  his 

^.  enemies,  and  evervwhere  ready  to   entrap   him. 

Divorce.  '  "  .  ,        ,       .  . 

This    makes   this   interview   deeply   mterestnig, 

since  the  case  of  Herod  Antipas,  who  had  put  away  his  wife  and 

taken  a  married  woman  to  his  bed  during  the  life  of  her  husband, 

made  it  politically  dangerous  for  any  teacher  to  discuss  the  law 

of  marriage  in  the  days  and  under  the  government  of  Horod.    If 

Jesus  should  utter  stringent  sentiments  and  lay  down  strict  rules 

of  morality  on  the  subject  of  marriage  and  divorce,  lie  should 


JESUS   ON   HIS   LAST  CIRCUIT.  517 

probably  meet  a  fate  similar  to  that  of  John  Baptist ;  but  if  his 
utterances  should  indicate  laxity  of  sentiment  he  should  lose  the 
confidence  of  the  more  moral  and  pious  class  of  the  commu- 
nity. 

In  the  reply  of  Jesus  the  attention  of  the  reader  is  called  to 
the  fact  that  he  does  not  answer  as  a  judge  or  a  legislator.  He 
mil  not  take  up  personal  cases  for  decision.  He  will  not  lay 
down  a  canon  for  ecclesiastical  discipline.  He  speaks  as  a  moral 
teacher,  and  only  as  such. 

The  importance  of  the  utterances  on  this  occasion,  and  the 
moral  power  of  J6sus  over  mankind,  is  seen  in  the  fact  that  we 
have  a  bare  statement  of  his  views  spoken  authori- 
tatively as  a  moral  teacher  should  speak,  who  has  ^^  j^g^g 
the  right  to  speak,  and  yet  those  few  words  have 
exerted  a  greater  power  over  the  whole  course  of  human  liistory 
and  destiny,  over  literature,  over  political  and  social  and  domestic 
progress,  tJian  all  the  words  of  any  other  one  man  since  the  world 
hegan  !  Is  not  that  a  sober  historical  statement  ?  Let  any  man 
reflect  upon  monogamy,  the  sacredness  of  marriage,  the  purity 
of  the  domestic  circle,  and  this  lifting  of  the  family  to  a  position 
which  it  never  held  in  Greek  or  Latin  or  Hebrew  civilization,' 
from  which  it  has  had  such  power  over  the  destinies  of  the  State 
and  the  progress  of  religion, — and  then  let  there  be  allowed  to 
Jesus  only  such  influence  as  he  is  plainly  entitled  to  have  acknowl- 
edged,— and  who  has,  by  so  few  words,  sent  his  influence  so  widel}' 
and  so  deeply  down  into  the  heart  of  man,  and  down  into  the 
centuries  ? 

Certain  Pharisees  of  the  school  of  Hillel  came  to  Jesus  with 
the  question,  "  Is  it  lawful  for  a  man  to  put  away  his  wife  for 
every  cause  ? " 

Let  us  look  at  what  the  Mosaic  law  of  divorce  really  was.  It 
is  recorded  in  Deuteronomy  xxiv.  1-4. 

"  Wlicn  a  man  hath  taken  a  ■wife,  and  married  her,  and  it  come  to  pass  that 
she  find  no  favor  in  his  eyes,  because  lie  has  found  some  uncleanness  in  her, 
then  let  him  write  her  a  bill  of  divorcement,  and  give  it  in 
her  hand,  and    send  her  out  of   his  house.      And  when   J^^  ^""^"^  ^^  °' 

divorce. 

she  is  departed  out  of  his  house,  she  may  go  and  be  another 
man's  wife.     And  if  the  latter  husband  hate  her,  and  write  her  a  bill  of  di 
vorcement,  and  give  it  in  her  hand,  and  send  her  out  of  his  house ;  or  if  the 
latter  husband  die,  which  took  her  to  be  his  wife ;  her  former  husljand,  wliich 
•sent  her  away,  may  not  take  her  again  to  be  his  wife,  after  that  she  is  defiled.'" 


518 


FROM   FEAST    OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK. 


It  is  to  be  noticed  that  provision  is  made  for  the  husband  to 
put  away  the  wife,  but  not  for  the  wife  to  put  away  the  husband. 
She  had  no  relief,  unless  her  husband  committed  adultery  with 
another  married  woman,  and  then  elsewhere  the  law  of  Moses 
}>rovided  that  he  should  be  put  to  death.  Again,  there  is  great 
uncertainty  as  to  the  meaning  of  the  phrase  "  some  uncleanness." 
This  was  a  notorious  subject  of  controvei-sy  between  the  schools 
of  Shanmiai  and  Ilillel  in  the  days  of  Jesus.  The  former,  it  is 
generally  thought,  taught  that  it  meant  an  act  of  lewdness  on  the 
part  of  the  wife ;  but  this  could  hardly  be,  as  that  was  punishable 
with  death.  Winer,*  however,  asserts  that  the  Gemara  represents 
the  view  of  Shammai  as  less  strict :  "  Even  public  violations  of 
decorum  might  furnish  ground  for  divorce  according  to  his  doc- 
trine." Josephus  represents  the  views  of  Ilillel.  He  says  {Antiq.^ 
iv.  8,  23),  "  lie  who  wishes  to  be  separated  from  his  wife  for  any 
reason  whatever — and  many  such  are  occurring  among  men — 
must  affirm  in  writiuf;  his  intention  of  no  lonijer  cohabitini;  with 
her."  Knobel,  in  his  Commentain/  on  Deiiteronomy,  says,  '"'•ErvatK 
dabdr  [in  the  common  version  translated  'some  uncleanness']  is 
used  of  human  excrement  in  Deut.  xxiii.  13,  and  is  properly  a 
shame  or  disgrace  (Is.  xx,  4)  from  anything ;  that  is,  anything 
which  awakens  the  feeling  of  shame  and  repulsion,  inspires  aver- 
sion and  disgust,  and  nauseates  in  contact — for  instance,  a  bad 
breath,  a  running  sore,"  etc.  lie  adds,  "In  the  time  of  Christ 
[Jesus]  the  expression  Mas  in  controversy.  The  school  of  Sham- 
mai  took  it  as  being  the  same  with  Dalmr  ei"vath  [a  thing  of  un- 
cleanness or  disgust],  and  undei-stood  it  of  unchaste  demeanor  and 
shameless  lewd  behavior.  The  school  of  Ilillel,  which  the  Rab- 
bins follow,  explained  it  as  something  disgnsting^  or  any  otJier 
caiise.''^     This  was,  of  course,  giving  the  largest  license.f 

To  the  question  from  the  Pharisees,  whether  a  man  might  put 
away  his  wife  for  any  cause  whatever  that  seemed  to  him  sufficient, 
Jesus  makes  the  following  reply:  "Have  you  not  read  that  he 


*  Quoted  in  President  Woolsey's  very 
valuable  Ensdy  on  Divmxe. 

f  In  the  Tract.  Gittin,  fol.  90,  it  is  ex- 
pressly said,  "  Even  if  she  had  only  over- 
salted  his  soup;  "  nay,  with  shameless 
license,  "  even  if  he  should  find  a  fairer 
one,  in  whom  he  has  more  i)le;i«ure."  The 
repeated  rule  in  the  Talmud  runs :  Ilillel 


loosens  what  Shammai  binds.  Josephus 
shows  the  laxity  of  the  times  by  coolly 
telling  us  that  his  first  wife  left  him  ; 
and  that  he  put  awny  the  second,  al- 
though the  mother  of  three  children 
by  him,  that  ho  might  take  the  third. 
—Stier. 


JESFS   ON   HIS   LAST   CIRCUIT.  519 

who  made  them  from  the  beginning  made  them  male  and  female,. 

and  said, '  On  this  account  shall  a  man  leave  father  and  mother,  and 

sliall   (cleave  to  his  wife,  and  they  two  shall  be 

one  flesh? '     So  that  they  are  no  more  two,  but  one      ^  °^s^^   aw-. 

flesh.    AVhat,  therefore,  God  hath  joined  together,  let  no  man  put 

asunder." 

The  Pharisees  retorted  with  this  question :  "Why  therefore  did 
Moses  coimnand  to  give  a  bill  of  divorcement  and  to  put  hei 
away  ? " 

Jesus  replied,  "  Moses,  because  of  your  hard-heartedness,  suf- 
fered you  to  put  away  your  wi\-es :  but  from  the  beginning  it  was 
not  so.  But  I  say  to  you,  Wliosoever  shall  put  away  his  wife,  ex- 
cept for  fornication,  and  shall  marry  another,  connnitteth  adultery." 

It  is  noticed  that  frequently  after  a  public  discourse,  Jesus  was 
questioned  by  his  disciples  as  to  his  meaning.  For  obvious  pru- 
dential reasons  they  refrained  from  asking,  in  the  presence  of  the 
captious  enemies  of  their  Master,  questions  the  answers  to  which 
would  relieve  their  perplexities.  On  this  occasion  when  they 
were  in  private,  the  disciples  reviewing  his  reply  to  the  Pharisees 
said  to  him :  "  If  thus  it  is  the  defect  of  the  man  with  the  wife,  it 
does  not  profit  to  marry!  "  He  said,  "All  receive  not  this  saying, 
but  those  to  whom  it  has  been  given.  There  are  eunuchs  that  are 
born  so  from  the  womb  of  their  mother,  and  there  are  eunuchs 
who  were  made  eunuchs  by  men,  and  there  are  eunuchs  who  made 
themselves  for  the  sake  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  He  who 
is  able  to  receive  it,  let  Mm  receive  it." 

Now  if  we  recall  what  Jesus  said  on  this  subject  in  the  Ser- 
mon on  the  Mount,  we  shall  have  before  us  all  his  teaching  on 
this  important  subject.  "  I  say  unto  you,  That  whosoever  shall  put 
away  his  wife,  except  for  the  cause  of  fornication,  causeth  her  to 
commit  adultery ;  and  whosoever  shall  marzy  the  divorced  com- 
mitteth  adultery." 

The  first  thing  to  notice  is  that  Jesus  criticises  the  Mosaic  law 
as  not  being  perfect,  as  not  absolute,  as  not  perpetual.     It  was  an 
expedient.     It  was  the  strictest  schoolmaster  the 
people  could  endure.      There  are  certain  fixed       '^^'"'  criticises 

■    1  .•I'l-ii.-ii^  ,.  the  Mosaic  law. 

prmciples,  certam  high  ideals  in  Monotheism,  to 
which  Moses  did  not  reach.     But  he  did  the  best  that  could  be 
done  for  them  with  that  people.    Jesus  ascends  above  Moses.    He 
goes  up  to  the  origin  of  the  race.     He  announces  M'hat  God  did 


620 


FROM   FEA.6T   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK- 


and  wliat  God  intended.  The  Father  of  all  made  man  to  be 
wedded.  The  oldest  history  of  creation  says :  "  God  created  man 
in  his  own  image,  in  the  image  of  God  created  lie  him,  male 
and  female  created  He  them."  (Gen.  i.  27.)  It  is  observable 
that  it  does  not  say  that  God  created  them  a  man  and  a  woman, 
bnt  "  masculine  and  feminine,"  after  the  image  of  the  God,  who 
is  at  once  both  masculine  and  feminine.  It  requires  the  union  of 
the  masculine  and  feminine  to  make  oneness  in  humanity  as  it 
does  in  divinity.  God  would  be  only  a  half-God,  therefore  no 
God,  if  He  were  either  masculine  only  or  feminine  only.  There 
is  no  completeness  in  any  man  or  woman.  The  two  are  required 
to  make  one.  The  tie  between  husband  and  wife  is  closer  than 
that  between  parent  and  child.  In  the  beginning  there  was  a 
single  pair.  The  devotion  of  the  one  to  the  other,  the  absolute 
necessity  of  each  to  the  other  for  pei*sonal  relief  and  comfort, 
and  for  the  propagation  of  the  race,  and  the  indissolubleness  of 
the  union  thus  contracted,  was  demonstrated  by  their  very  posi- 
tion in  the  universe.  They  could  never  part.  "Whichever  did  any- 
thing that  made  any  sei)aration  between  them  committed  a  wrong. 
That  represents  the  normal  condition  of  the  estate  of  wedlock. 

"WHien  men  and  women  multiplied,  and  there  arose  a  multipli- 
cation of  possibilities  of  violating  the  original  law,  the  most  that 
]\Ioses  seemed  to  do  was  to  put  in  form  certain  ar- 

The  true  law  of  ,      ~  ,     .  »  m  i      ^i 

,.  rangements  for  regulating,  as  tar  as  possible,  the 

irregularities  which  had   sprung   up   in   society. 

Hard-hearted  men  would  put  their  wives  away.   Moses  interposed 

in  behalf  of  the  woman.     Jesus  goes  back  to  first  principles,  and 

thence  deduces  the  law  of  divorce.     1.  The  married  pair  are  one 

in  flesh  and  heart  and  life ;  and  neither  should  do  anything  Avliich 

shall  weaken  or  soil  this  blessed  union.     2.  No  man  shall  divorce 

his  wife  unless  he  know  her  to  have  fii-st  violated  the  law  of 

chastity,  otherwise  he  wrongs  her  and  drives  her  to  do  wrong. 

3.  If  to  that  unlawful  putting  away  he  superadd  the  marrying  of 

another  woman,  he  commits  adulterv  with  that  second  woman.* 


*  The  statement  in  Mark,  who  is  as 
remarkable  for  his  attention  to  details 
as  he  is  for  his  lack  of  attention  to 
chronological  order,  is  :  "  Whosoever 
shall  put  away  his  wife,  and  marry  an- 
other, committcth  adultery  agairut 
Iter."     The  original  Greek  is  in'  aiTz/v, 


and  this,  I  believe,  refers  to  the  second 
wife  ;  and  the  classical  use  of  this  pre- 
position with  the  accusative,  I  think, 
justifies  my  interpretation.  Of  oourse, 
at  the  same  time,  he  is  an  adulterei 
quoad  his  former  wife. 


JESUS    ON    HIS   LAST   CIECmT.  521 

4.  The  woman  M^ho  is  separated  from  her  husband  for  her  own 
fault  is  an  adultereSs  afresh,  if  she  marry  again.  A  form  of  mar- 
riage cannot  annul  the  wrong  of  the  transaction.  5.  If  the  hus- 
band be  innocent  and  the  wife  gnilty,  a  divorce  may  ensue,  the 
husband  may  marry,  but  tlie  wife  may  not.  A  second  nuirriage 
would  be  but  a  continuance  of  her  sin.  These  five  particulars 
seem  to  reside  in  the  original  law  of  marriage,  as  stated  by 
Jesus. 

Dr.  Woolsey  {Essaij  on  Divorce,  p.  59)  sums  up  this  teaching 
very  clearly  in  the  following  sentence  :  "  The  general  principle, 
serving  as  the  groundwork  of  all  these  declarations,  is,  that  legal 
divorce  does  not,  in  the  view  of  God,  and  according  to  the  correct 
rule  of  nioi-als,  authorize  either  husband  or  wife  thus  se])arated  to 
marry  again,  with  the  single  exception  that  when  the  divorce  oc- 
curs on  account  of  a  sexual  crime,  the  innocent  party  may,  without 
guilt,  contract  a  second  marriage." 

Whether  these  views  of  Jesus  were  fundamentally  right,  we  are 
not  now  to  discuss.  This  is  what  he  tauo-ht.  This  teaching  has 
through  ages  controlled  the  opinions  of  the  best  minds,  and  thor- 
ouglily  changed  domestic  life  from  what  we  know  it  to  have  been 
in  Greece,  and  Rome,  and  Palestine,  in  the  times  of  Jesus,  to  what 
we  know  it  is  in  the  best  parts  of  America  and  Europe  to-day.  It 
is  noticeable  that  wherever  these  views  have  prevailed  there  has 
been  a  better  state  of  society  in  every  other'  particular,  and  that 
departure  from  these  pi-inciples  has  marked  social  decay,  all  legis- 
lation not  conformed  to  these  principles  having  the  effect  of  rap- 
idly damaging  the  moral  tone  of  society.  No  society  is  so  good 
as  that  in  which  a  divorced  man,  unless  he  be  parted  from  his 
wife  for  reasons  not  implying  immorality  on  his  part,  is  held  as 
an  acknowledged  adulterer;  and  in  which  a  divorced  woman, 
unless  she  be  parted  from  her  husband  by  reason  of  his  inconti- 
nence, is  treated  as  an  unfortunate  woman. 

What  Jesus  said  to  his  disciples  on  the  objection  which  they 

started  and  the  inference  which  they  made  that  marriage  was  un- 

in-ofital)le,  it  must  be  admitted  is  a  passage   of 

difficulty.     Marriage  is  the  normal  condition  of        Objections  by 

mi     ,  1  T     .        1  .  the  disciples. 

man.     Ihat  we  know.     It  is  always  honorable. 

No  celibacy  is  equal  to  chastity  in  mai-riage.     But  there  may  be 

celil)ates.     Jesus  speaks  of  three  kinds,  those  who  are  such  by 

nature,  by  compulsion,  and  by  choice.     1.  Some  have  congenital 


522        FROM    FEAST    OF   TABERNACLK8   UNTIL   TUE   LAST    WEEK. 

disqualifications  ;  they  are  born  with  physical  defects  which  make 
it  impracticable  for  them  to  marry.  2.  There  are  those  who  have 
been  mutilated  by  men  ;  and  this  was  a  large  class  in  the  days'of 
Jesus.  In  our  day  the  servants  who  guard  the  harems  in  the  East 
are  eunuchs,  and  the  Roman  Church,  it  is  said,  makes  eunuche 
for  the-  benefit  of  sacred  art,  those  who  sing  the  3riserere  at  the 
Sistine  Chapel  at  Rome  retaining  the  peculiar  characteristics  of 
their  voices  at  the  expense  of  their  manhood.  In  the  class  of 
forced  celibates  also  may  be  reckoned  those  whom  "  society,"  the 
artificial  rules  of  conventional  life,  exclude  from  such  a  union  as 
nature  demands  and  God  sanctions.  3.  Those  who  decline  mar- 
riage for  the  sake  of  tlie  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  a  phrase  by 
which  Jesus  always  seems  to  set  forth  his  work  in  the  world,  be- 
cause he  believed  that  his  work  was  founded  on  the  principles 
which  maintain  the  harmonies  of  the  universe,  and  that  his  work 
pronnilgated  and  expanded  tliose  principles.  For  the  sake  of 
promoting  this  great  work,  if  he  can  remain  chaste,  in  some  ex- 
ceptional circumstances,  a  man  may  remain  in  celibacy.  Other- 
wise marriage  is  better.  No  man  dare  be  a  celibate  for  his  own 
ease  and  convenience.  The  rule  is  that  it  is  better  to  marry.  It 
must  be  a  mournful  exception  which  justifies  a  man  to  abstain. 
Such  an  exception  occurred,  perhaps,  in  the  case  of  Paul,  Such 
a  celibate  was  Jesus. 

But,  of  course,  in  this  case  Jesus  spoke  figuratively.  History 
gives  us  a  horrible  instance  of  these  words  having  been  taken  lit- 
erally. Origen,  in  the  mistaken  excess  of  his  ardent  youthful 
zeal  for  the  cause  of  Jesus,  so  mutilated  himself  that  he  was  dis- 
qualified for  marriage.  This  act  was  properly  condemned  by  the 
ancient  church,  and  for  it  he  was  excommunicated  from  the 
church  of  Alexandria.* 

The  liberal  rule  of  Jesus  comes  out  at  the  close  of  the  inter- 
view. You  are  not  to  adopt  celibacy  as  a  rule.  You  are  not  to 
teach  it  as  a  doctrine.  You  are  not  to  enforce  it  on  others. 
"  Let  him  receive  it  who  is  able  to  receive  it."  But  lot  him  be 
sure  he  is  able.  You  cannot  be  sure  in  respect  of  anotlicr,  there- 
fore you  nmst  not  lay  so  grievous  and  unnatural  a  l)ur(len  on 
another. 


*  On  the  whole  subject  of   marriage  i  compare  Schaff's   lli<itf>rxi  of  the  Apot- 
and  celibacy  in  the    New  Testament,  |  UAic  C/turc/i,  %  112,  pp.  448-454. 


CHAPTER  V. 


GOING   TO   JERUSALEM. 


It  w&a  about  tliis  time  that  the  blessing  of  little  children  ransl 
have  taken  place.  As  the  Passover  approached  the  people  knew 
that  the  time  of  his  departure  for  Jerusalem  was  jesus  blesses  Ut- 
drawing  near.    It  reveals  to  us  much  of  the  char-    tie    children. 


XX. 


acter  and  behavior  of  Jesus  during  this  trying    Matt,  xix., 
and  depressing  period  of  his  life,  to  learn  that    '^^^   ^- '    ^"^^ 


XVIU. 


the  mothers  of  the  country  w^ere  so  impressed 
with  his  sanctity  and  benignity  that  they  brought  their  young  chil- 
dren, even  their  babes,  to  him,  that  he  might  merely  put  his  hands 
upon  them  and  pray  over  them.  But  the  disciples  were  becoming 
rigorists.  It  is  painful  to  see  how  rapidly  men — who  at  first  take 
advanced  ground,  become  pioneers  in  moral  progress,  and  make 
themselves  the  differentia  of  their  age— do  begin  to  lapse  into 
blindest  conservatism  so  soon  as  they  consolidate  their  organiza- 
tion ;  do  begin  to  have  certain  ideas  of  dignity  ;  do  suppose  that 
they  are  improving  their  state  and  position  by  as  great  a  remove 
as  possible  from  naturalness.  In  this  case  the  disciples  probably 
felt  a  fresh  accession  of  dignity,  as  their  Master  was  manifestly 
about  to  make  a  public  display  of  himself,  and  their  hopes  of  a 
Messianic  inauguration  probably  began  to  be  augmented. 

The  disciples  offered  to  forbid  these  mothers  as  obtrusive.  It 
was  below  the  dignity  of  their  Master.  They  had  nothing  to  say 
when  the  Pharisees  were  holding  him  to  the  discussion  of  such 
profound  and  important  questions  as  the  divorce  law.  They  felt 
that  that  was  employment  worthy  his  noble  character  and  mission ; 
but  that  he  should  be  asked  to  waste  his  time  on  babes  seemed  to 
them  past  endurance.     So  they  rebuked  these  revering  mothei-s. 

But  Jesus,  in  turn,  rebuked  the  disciples.  He  had  other  views 
and  another  temper.  He  was  much  displeased  at  the  conduct  of 
his  friends.  It  was  cutting  him  off  from  that  portion  of  the  com- 
munity least  offensive  to  his  simple  and  pure  nature.     It  showed 


524        FKOM   FEAST   OF   T.\BERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   'WEEK. 

upon  their  part  sucli  stubborn  adlierence  to  their  prejudices  ir 
favor  of  a  sensuous,  civil,  political  Messialiship,  such  wrong  views 
of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  as  though  its  insignia  should  be 
the  trappings  of  worldly  pomp,  that  Jesus  was  much  displeased, 
and  said  to  them,  "  Suffer  the  little  children  to  come  to  me,  and 
forbid  them  not,  for  of  such  is  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  I 
most  assuredly  say  to  you,  AMiosoever  shall  not  receive  the  kingdom 
of  God  as  a  little  child,  he  shall  not  enter  into  it."  And,  having 
taken  them  in  his  arms,  he  blessed  them,  placing  his  hands  upon 
them. 

The  whole  picture  is  simple,  natural,  beautiful,  and  sublime. 
The  discourse  on  marriage  crimes  stands  as  a  dark  background 

to  this  brilliant  tableau  of  a  great  Teacher  lifting 
A  beautiful  scene.  ./-,•,!•  •  ,i^ 

up  mrants  into  his  arms,  coming  near  tlie  foun- 
tains of  humanity,  airing  his  soul  in  the  free  atmosphere  of  unso- 
phisticated childhood.  It  was  an  occasion  seized  to  make  a  lesson 
for  his  disciples.  They  were  thinking  of  a  throne,  a  court,  them- 
selves as  Hebrew  princes  in  the  regenerated  theocracy,  and  that 
princes  and  their  king  should  not  be  interrupted  in  their  converse 
by  the  prattle  of  babes.  Jesus  taught  them  that  he  knew  noth- 
ing of  any  such  kingdom  ;  that  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens,  which 
he  preached,  and  which  was  also  the  kingdom  of  God,  was  made 
up  of  such  people,  not  of  children  merely,  not  that  the  kingdom 
was  theirs  exclusively,  but  that  no  one  could  enter  and  enjoy  that 
kingdom,  which  is  as  wide  as  all  the  heavens,  covering  the  uni- 
verse, who  did  not  have  childlikeness  of  disposition ;  that  so  far 
from  children  having  to  grow  into  manhood  in  order  to  enter  the 
fruition  of  God's  kingdom  it  was  absolutely  essential  that  men 
should  shed  the  hard-shell  of  their  rigid  manhood  and  come  back 
to  the  unsuspicious,  open-eyed,  natural  sensitiveness  of  childhood ; 
and  thus  have  the  utinost  enjoyment  of  all  that  God  has  made. 

About  this  time,  as  he  was  on  his  jinirney  out  of  the  country, 
a  certain  ruler  came  running  and  kneeled  to  him,  and  said, "  Good 

Teacher,  what  good  thing  shall  I  do  that  I  may 

The  rich  ruler,    ^^^i^^^i^  perpetual  life  ?  "     lie  seems  suddenly  to 

^     T  i„  J.,.;;        have  felt  the  necessity  of  receiving  the  instruction 

X.  ;  Luke  xvui,  >'  o 

of  Jesus  beft)re  he  left  the  neighborhood.  Jesu3 
replied,  ""Why  do  you  call  me  good  ?  No  one  is  good  but  one, 
that  is  God.  You  know  the  commandments :  Do  not  kill ;  do  not 
commit  adultery ;  do  not  steal;  do  not  bear  false  witness ;  defraud 


GOING    TO   JEETTSALEM.  525 

not;  honor  your  father  and  your  mother,  and  you  sliall  love  your 
neighbor  as  yourself."  He  answered,  "  Teacher,  all  these  things 
have  I  observed  from  my  youth  up."  Jesus  looked  on  him  and 
loved  him,  and  then  spoke  the  words  that  tested  him,  "  One  thing 
is  yet  wanting  to  you :  if  you  will  be  perfect,  go  sell  whatever 
you  have  and  give  to  the  poor,  and  you  shall  have  treasure  in 
heaven  ;  and  come,  follow  me."  He  was  very  rich,  and  the  saying 
sent  him  away  very  sorrowful. 

This  is  a  peculiarly  interesting  case,  as  exhibiting  a  phase  of 
human  nature  worth  studying,  and  as  gi'ving  fresh  insight  into  the 
character  of  Jesus.  This  person,  who  seems  to  have  been  a  ruler 
of  the  synagogue,  had  led  a  life  of  scrupulous  external  morality, 
but  failed  to  have  quiet  of  spirit  and  satisfaction  of  soul.  He 
had  probably  watched  the  course  and  studied  the  character  of 
Jesus.  He  had  occasional  deep  longings  and  high  aspirations,  but 
he  did  not  have  most  thorough  earnestness  in  the  pursuit  of  the 
highest  good, — nay,  had  a  kind  of  self-conceit  and  flippantness  in 
talking  of  the  most  sacred  things,  both  which  came  out  in  his  ad- 
dress to  Jesus,  "  Good  Teacher,  what  must  I  do  to  inherit  perpet- 
ual life  ? "  To  which  Jesus's  reply  seems  to  be  a  check  ;  as  if  he 
had  said :  You  seem  to  talk  of  goodness  very  lightly.  Goodness 
is  the  loftiest  thing.  Ko  one  is  absolutely  good  but  God.  Do  you 
recognize  God's  goodness  in  me,  or  do  you  address  me  with  an 
empty  compliment  ?  "  As  he  would  not  have  himself  called  Mes- 
siah in  the  wrong,  or  at  least  easily  misinterpreted,  sense  in  which 
the  word  was  then  often  used,  so  neither  [would  he  have  himself 
in  a  mistaken  way  called]  Good  Master."  (Lange.)  He  gives  the 
young  man,  however,  no  space  for  reply,  but  proceeds  to  answer 
the  question  by  directing  him  to  the  commandments  of  the  Moral 
Law.  The  young  man  avowed  that  he  had  strictly  kept  all  the 
commandments  all  his  life.  This  he  may  have  said  with  an  accent 
of  pride,  but  there  was  a  painful  tone  in  the  question,  "  What  yet 
do  I  lack?"  which  moved  the  compassion  of  Jesus.  The  young 
man  may  have  unduly  plumed  himself  upon  his  legal  righteous- 
ness, but  he  was  certainly  candid. 

It  was  in  kindness,  then,  not  in  severity,  that  Jesus,  whose  spir- 
itual insiirht  into  men  even  his  enemies  must  acknowledi«:e,  showed 
the  young  man  the  depth  of  his  own  heart  and  his  lack  of  total 
earnestness.  He  was  rich.  Jesus  submitted  him  to  a  violent  test, 
namely,  the  selling  of  all  his  property,  its  distribution  to  the  poor 


52G        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL    THE    LAST   WEEK. 


and  his  following  a  Teacher  who  had  no  worldly  gain  or  glory  to 
offer.  Jesus  did  not  here  enact  a  law  for  all  his  followers.  He 
never  enacted  laws.  lie  simply  tanglit  the  great  fundamental 
principles  of  morality,  from  which  each  man  must  make  a  rule 
for  himself.  He  saw  that  the  temperament  of  the  young  man 
made  it  quite  easy  for  him  to  render  his  life  exemplary  of  all  out- 
ward morality,  while  a  latent  spirit  of  self-indulgence  weakened 
his  whole  character.  The  sorrow  the  young  man  felt  demon- 
strated the  correctness  of  the  estimate  Jesus  had  formed  of  him. 
Wlien  he  found  just  what  he  lacked  he  was  not  willing  to  pay 
the  price  of  perfection.  Being  troubled  at  that  saying  he  went 
away  grieved,  for  he  had  great  possessions. 

Jesus  made  a  lesson  for  his  disciples.     lie  turned  to  them  and 
said,  "With  what  difficulty  shall  they  that  have  riches  enter  into 
the  kingdom  of  God."     This  saying  astonished 
Difficulty  of  the   j^jg  disciples,  and  Jesus  saw  the  impression  which 
"^  his  words  had  made.     They  recollected  that  riches 

were  a  part  of  the  blessings  pronounced  under  the  old  dispensa- 
tion, and  their  Jewish  ideas  exaggerated  the  tempoi-al  prosperity 
which  ought  to  visit  the  children  of  the  kingdom  under  the  new, 
the  Messianic,  dispensation,  which  they  were  fondly  hojMng  was 
about  to  be  inaugurated.  Jesus  said,  "  Children,  how  difficult  it 
is  to  enter  the  kingdom  of  God.*  It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  enter 
through  the  eye  of  a  needle  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  the 
kinc'dom  of  God."  Here  he  speaks  of  the  natural  difficulty  all 
men  encounter  in  coming  out  of  a  gross  worldly  life  into  a  spir- 
itual and  lofty  mode  of  existence,  a  difficulty  intensified  in  the 
case  of  the  rich,  because  tlieir  hearts  grow  large  and  their  bur 
dens  are  packed  bulkily  upon  them,  so  that,  to  use  a  proverbial 
expression,  it  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of  a 
needle  than  for  such  a  person  to  divest  himself  of  his  love  for 
these  material  possessions,  to  cease  to  be  gross  and  sensuous  so  as 
to  become  fine  and  spiritual,  to  enjoy  a  kingdom  whose  greatnesses 
and  glories  and  happinesses  are  wholly  spiritual. 

At  this  saying  the  disciples  were  astonished  out  of  measure 
and  said,  "Who  then  can  be  saved  'i  "     If  it  be  this  temper  which 


*  In  the  common  version  (Mnrk  x.  24) 
the  reading  is,  "  Children,  how  hard  it 
is  [for  them  that  trust  in  riches]  to  enter 
into  the  kingdom  of  God."     The  words 


included  in  brackets  do  not  occur  in  the 
original  in  the  oldest  I^ISS.  Tlie  trans- 
lation I  have  made  in  the  text  is  of  th« 
Sinait.  Cod.  in  loeo. 


GOING    TO   JERUSALEM.  527 

destroys  a  man  the  rich  will  be  lost ;  and  all  men,  poor  as  well  aa 
rich,  will  be  found  to  be  engrossed  with  the  world  and  filled  with 
worldliness.  Matthew  and  Mark  say  that  Jesus, "  looking  on  them," 
made  his  reply.     How  often  the  looking  of  Jesus 
is  mentioned  by  these  historians !      It  seems  that  , , 

they  would  supplement  the  words  they  repeat  by 
intimating  that  there  was  something  in  the  eyes  and  looks  of  Jesus 
which  was  illustrative  and  explanatory  of  the  sentences  he  uttered. 
And  most  probably  there  was.  If  that  could  be  reproduced  with 
his  words  what  light  it  would  probably  shed  upon  all  his  most 
profound  sayings.  The  rej^ly  was, "  With  men  it  is  impossible,  but 
not  with  God ;  for  with  God  all  things  are  possible ; "  which 
seems  to  teach  that  no  man  has  power  of  himself  to  spiritualize 
his  nature,  but  that  God  is  able  to  do  that  for  any  man. 

The  impulsive  Peter  was  hereby  excited  to  propound  this  ques- 
tion :  "  Lo  !  we  have  left  all  and  followed  you  :  what  therefore 
shall  be  to  us  ? "  It  is  a  little  difficult  to  understand  the  temper 
in  which  this  question  was  asked.  Peter  compared,  and  perhaps 
contrasted  himself — for  the  personal  "  I  "  is  concealed  under  the 
modest  "  we  " — w^ith  the  rich  young  man  who  had  been  con- 
founded by  the  test  which  Jesus  applied  to  his  character.  How 
far  Peter's  renunciation  of  the  comforts  of  home  was  proof  of  his 
devotion  to  the  spiritual  life  he  may  have  been  at  a  loss  to  de- 
termine. Or,  if  giving  up  worldly  wealth  was  all,  then,  in  view 
of  their  sacrifices,  what  might  they  not  expect  ?  For  the  apostles 
were  not  totally  imj)ecunious.  Peter  had  his  house,  John  and 
James  had  servants,  Matthew  had  a  lucrative  ofiice  and  was  able 
to  give  a  feast  to  his  friends.  And  even  if  they  had  been  mere 
fishers,  with  a  hut  by  the  lake  and  a  net  on  the  shore,  a  poor  man's 
heart  often  clings  more  tenaciously  to  his  little  than  a  rich  man's 
heart  to  his  much. 

Jesus  answered, "  I  most  assuredly  say  to  you,  that  yon  who  have 
followed  me  in  the  Palingenesia,  when  the  Son  of  Man  shall  sit 
on  his  glorious  throne,  you  shall  also  sit  upon  twelve  thrones 
judging  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel:  and  every  one  who  has  for- 
saken brethren,  or  sisters,  or  father,  or  mother,  or  wife,  or  children, 
or  lands,  on  account  of  my  name  and  the  gospel's,  shall  receive  a 
hundredfold  now  in  this  time,  and  in  the  age  to  come  life  per- 
petual," 

The  "  Palingenesia "  is  translated  "  the  regeneration  "  in  the 


528        FROM    FEAST   OF   T^UJERNACLES    UNTIL    THE    LAST   -WEEK. 

common  version.  It  moans  "  the  renovation,"  "  the  renewed  ex- 
istence." It  shows  what  Jesus  believed  would  be  his  influence 
upon  the  world,  that  his  life  would  infuse  such 
l)()werful  transforming:  elements  into  humanity 
that  the  world  should  be  renewed,  as  since  his  time 
it  manifestly  has  been.  lie  began  a  new  eeon,  a  fresh  age.  It  is 
also  to  be  noticed  that  incidentally  Jesus  gives  his  authority  to 
monogamy  as  he  had  on  the  divorce  question  very  clearly  rendered 
it.  He  does  not  say  "  wives,^  as  he  says  "  childi-en,"  but  "  wife," 
as  he  says  "  mother."  He  promises  them  a  manifold  return  for 
all  their  sacrifices.  His  saying  about  the  twelve  apostles  on  the 
twelve  thrones  judging  the  twelve  tribes  is  enigmatical.  Unless 
he  furnished  a  private  explanation  it  must  have  puzzled  them  to 
the  close  of  their  lives.  If  he  did  give  such  private  interpreta,- 
tion  they  have  failed  to  record  it,  and  nothing  has  occurred  in  the 
history  of  the  world,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  to  fulfil  the  prediction 
of  these  words.  It  is  quite  easy  to  give  a  mystical  inter])retation, 
but  the  plain  apostles  would  not  have  understood  that.  The  only 
reasonable  ground  that  I  see  is  to  say  that  this  is  an  imfulfilled 
prophecy.  There  is  a  general  truth,  well-known  to  the  students 
of  human  society,  that  he  wlio  makes  the  most  sacrifices  for  his 
race  has  the  greatest  moral  influence  over  them,  and  this  abstract 
truth  is  embedded  in  the  concrete  forms  of  speech  which  Jesus 
here  employs.  There  is  also  this  truth,  that  they  who  have,  in  all 
ages  since  his  death,  devoted  themselves  to  Jesus,  and  received  all 
his  words  into  loving  breasts,  have  gained  in  spiritual  influence 
and  enjoyment  much  more  than  they  have  lost  of  power  and 
pleasure  in  surrendering  their  visible  material  properties  for 
their  religious  principles. 

Immediately  Jesus  added,  as  if  to  check  Peter's  presumption, 
the  saying,  "  But  many  first  shall  be  last,  and  last  first."  There  is 
nothing  mercenary  in  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  No  man  need 
fancy  that  he  can  do  what  will  entitle  him  to  promotion.  It  was 
a  bad  f(»oting  on  which  Peter  set  his  question,  "AVliat  shall  we 
have  f  what  shall  be  to  us  f  "  It  was  the  question  of  the  hireling's 
heart. 

In  illustration  of  his  saying  Jesus  furnished  the  following 
parable : 

"Tlie  kinrrdom  of  the  honvens  is  like  unto  .a  man,  a  householder  [a  human 
householdcrj,  who  went  out  with  the  dawn  to  hire  laborers  into  his  vineyard: 


GOES'G    TO   JEKrSALEM.  529 

and  having  agreed  with  the  laborers  for  a  denarius  [15  cents*]  the  day,  he 
sent  them  into  his  vineyard.  And  going  out  about  the  third  hour  [nine 
o'clock  A.M.]  he  saw  others  standing  idle  in  tlie  market-place,  and  said  to  them, 
*Go  you  also  into  my  vineyard,  and  whatsoever  may  be  just 
I  will  give  to  you.'  And  they  went.  And  again  going  out  ^o  ^"^  ^ 
about  the  sixth  and  ninth  hour  [noon  and  three  o'clock 
P.  M.]  he  did  in  like  manner.  And  about  the  eleventh  hour  [near  the  close  of 
day]  he  found  others  standing,  and  saith  to  them,  '  Why  stand  you  here  all 
the  day  idle  ? '  They  say  to  him,  '  Because  no  man  has  hired  us.'  He  says  to 
them,  '  Go  you  also  into  the  vineyard.'  Now  when  the  evening  w^as  come  the 
lord  of  the  vineyard  says  to  his  ovei-seer,  *  Call  the  laborers  and  pay  the  hire, 
beginning  from  the  last  unto  the  first.'  And  they  who  came  about  the  eleventh 
hour  received  each  a  denarius.  And  the  first  having  come,  supposed  that  they 
should  receive  more ;  but  they  received  each  a  denarius.  But  having  received 
it,  they  murmured  against  the  householder,  saying,  '  Tliese  last  have  made  but 
one  hour,  and  thou  makest  them  equal  to  us,  who  have  borne  the  Inirden  of 
the  day  and  the  scorching  heat.'  But  he  answering,  said  to  one  of  them, 
•  Friend,  I  do  you  no  WTong.  Did  you  not  engage  with  me  for  a  penny  ? 
Take  what  is  yours  and  begone.  But  I  will  give  to  this  last  even  as  to  you. 
Is  it  not  lawful  for  me  to  do  what  I  will  with  mine  own  ?  Is  your  eye  evil 
because  I  am  good? '     Thus  the  last  shall  be  first,  and  the  first  last." 

Ilere  is  the  picture  of  a  scene  which  to  this  day  can  be  witnessed 
in  Oriental  lands.  Laborers  take  their  spades  and  assemble  in  the 
market-place.  Employers  go  and  bargain  with 
as  many  and  such  as  they  need.  There  ma}'  be 
both  laborers  and  hirers  who  come  late.  These 
will  meet.  In  this  parable  the  owner  of  the  vineyard  went  several 
times  in  one  day.  Each  time  he  hired  as  many  as  were  present. 
Those  whom  he  found  at  noon  were  not  present  at  sunrise,  and 
those  whom  he  found  an  hour  before  sunset  had  not  arrived  at 
noon.  When  there  was  a  whole  day's  work  the  householder  made 
a  bargain  with  the  laborers ;  when  there  was  but  one  hour  of  work 
he  promised  what  was  fair,  and  they  trusted  him.  The  trouble 
was  in  the  settlement.  He  gave  what  he  chose  out  of  his  own 
means  to  the  last  coraere.  lie  chose  to  give  for  an  hour's  labor 
what  was  usually  considered  at  that  time  fair  pay  for  a  whole 
day's  work.  This  did  not  in  any  M-ay  interfere  with  the  rights 
of  the  others.  When  their  time  for  settlement  came  they  seemed 
to  think  that  if  a  denarius  was  right  pay  for  one  hour,  at  least 
several  denarii  would  come  to  those  who  had  been  workiug  twelve 
hours.     But  the  i-easoning  was  unsound.     The  laborers  of  an  hour 

*  See  the  representation  of  a  denarius  on  p.  464. 
34 


530   FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  'WEEK. 

received  their  denarius  in  part  as  pay  and  in  part  as  gratuity.     In 

fact  tliere  was  no  bargain  with  them  /  there  was  with  those  fii-sl 

who  had  hibored  longest. 

The  lessons  seem  quite  plain,  if  we  have  no  system  of  theology 

to  bolster.  1.  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  one  of  moral  govern- 
ment, in  which  there  is  proprietorship  upon  one 
side  and  work  on  the  other.      2.  All  who  are 

willing  may  find  work  to  do  in  this  kingdom.     xVll  are  called. 

3.  There  will  certainly  be  pay  and  rewards  to  all  who  work. 

4.  Both  the  rewards  and  the  pay  will  be  distriljuted  on  grounds 
of  perfect  justice  and  discriminating  mercy.  No  one  will  be 
injured  by  what  is  given  to  another.  Whatever  imperfections  of 
work  or  frailty  of  temper  may  be  in  any  laborer,  he  will  receive 
the  full  amount  of  any  payment  stipulated  in  the  covenant.  There 
will  be  j  ustice  to  all,  and  grace  to  such  as  can  appreciate  it.  The 
first  laborer  were  manifestly  mercenaiy,  and  worked  for  the 
money,  and  evidently  with  such  a  temper  as  they  exhibited  they 
could  not  have  done  their  work  well.  There  must  have  been 
something  in  the  last  laborers  which  so  won  the  approval  of  their 
employer  that  he  was  willing  to  pay  them  as  though  they  had 
done  a  whole  day's  work.  He  called  up  firet  those  who  had  come 
in  last.  He  ipaid  them  liberally  as  liberal  workers.  He  then 
called  up  those  whom  he  had  engaged  first.  He  paid  them  justly 
according  to  covenant.  He  showed  them  his  approval  of  the  others, 
and  perhaps  for  that  purpose  had  paid  them  first.  And  thus  the 
first,  because  of  their  technical  spirit,  became  last;  and  the  last, 
who  trusted  their  employer,  and  wrought  heartily  without  a  bar- 
gain, became  first.  The  kingdom  of  God  is  such  that  they  gain 
most  who  trust  God  most ;  but  every  man  is  fully  paid  for  all 
service  ;  and  they  Vho  trust  God  most  boast  themselves  least,  and 
make  no  merit  of  their  works. 

Pui-suinjr  their  wav  to  Jerusalem,  Jesus  took  occasion  for  the 

third  time  to  forewarn  his  disciples  of  his  approaching   death. 

Nothing  seemed  to  take  him  at  unawares.     He 

A  third  warning,    ^^itlidrew  his   twelve   chosen   friends   from   the 

Matt  XX.  ;    Mark  ,  ,  i        -^.1     i.i  c  i      *•   n 

L  ke  xviii       crowd  and  communed  with  them  connuentuiliy, 

saying  to  them,  according  to  Mark's  record  : 
"Behr-ld,  we  are  g'>iug  up  to  Jerusalem:  and  the  Son  of  Man 
shall  be  betrayed  to  the  chief  priests  and  scribes :  and  they  shall 
condemn  him  to  death  ;  and  shall  deliver  him  to  the  Gentiles  tc 


GOING   TO   JERUSALEM.  531 

mock  and  to  scourge  and  to  crucify ;  and  the  third  day  l^e  shall 
be  raised." 

It  is  a  remarkable  illustration  of  the  force  of  preconceived 
opinions  that  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  being  filled  with  expectations 
of  an  early  display  of  Messianic  glory,  could  not  comprehend 
words  so  explicit  as  these.  They  were  mj'stic  utterances  which 
they  filled  with  the  light  of  their  own  hopes.  It  was  the  third 
announcement,  made  by  him  to  his  disciples,  of  his  impending 
fate.  The  words  contain  no  ambiguity.  The  Jewish  ecclesiastical 
power  was  to  seize  him,  and  to  deliver  him  to  the  Roman  civil 
authorities.  lie  was  to  be  mocked,  and  scourged,  and  crucified. 
Could  more  unambiguous  words  have  been  used  ?  And  yet  they 
could  not  understand  them.  How  much  less  could  they  under- 
stand, "  and  the  third  day  he  shall  be  raised  ?  "  Perhaps  it  was 
this  that  helped  to  make  the  whole  statement  unintelligible. 
There  was  to  be  a  "  raising,"  an  elevation^  and  he  is  the  Messiah. 
"  There  is  something  awful  to  come  between  this  hour  and  that 
elevation,  something  he  calls  scourging  and  crucifying  :  but  how 
can  we  know  what  he  means  ?  "     Perhaps  that  is  what  they  said. 

A  singularly  interesting  illustration  of  their  state  of  mind  is 
furnished  by  an  incident  which  now  took  place.     Jesus  had  left 
Ephrem  to  join  the  crowds  going  to  Jerusalem. 
The  church  had  put  a  price  on^iis  head.     lie      ,^^^^  ^"^  •^^'^' 

,  .  salem. 

was  going  to  deliver  himself  to  the  ecclesiastical 
authorities.  He  evidently  intended  to  do  this  in  a  dignified  man- 
ner. And  before  going  to  Jerusalem  he  prepared  to  yield  him- 
self to  the  Messianic  hopes  and  desires  of  the  people.  He  would 
see  what  they  would  do  with  him  as  Messiah.  He  could  not  have 
taken  this  course  in  the  early  portion  of  his  career,  for  then  there 
would  have  broken  forth  a  prodigious  popular  uprising  which  the 
Roman  power  would  have  suppressed,  and  in  the  collision  Jesus 
would  have  been  crushed.  This  would  have  occurred  before  he 
had  planted  his  principles  in  any  body  of  men  who  should  have 
been  committed  to  their  propagation.  The  circumstances  were 
altered.  If  he  were  sacrificed  his  work  would  live  :  and  he  felt 
sure  that  he  should  even  now  be  sacrificed.  This  he  told  his  twelve 
chief  followers,  among  whom  were  his  cousins  James  and  John. 

Somehow  the  mother  of  the  two  sons  of  Zebedee,  Salome, 
aunt  of  Jesus,  joined  the  cavalcade  going  towards  Jericho.  The 
sons  probably  had  an  interview  with  their  mother,  who  was  a 


532   FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  •S\'EEK. 

woman  of  the  heroic  mould.  They  themselves  were  fiery,  impet 
uous,  ambitious  men.  The  question  of  precedence  had  been 
mooted  among  the  disciples.  The  great  Teacher,  in  whom  as  the 
Messiah  they  all  had  growing  faith,  had  predicted  some  awful 
trouble  which  he  was  to  encounter.  Now  was  the  time  for  James 
and  John  to  s«^cure  a  plqdge  of  the  highest  posts  of  honor  when 
he  should  come  into  his  glory.  Salome  was  his  aunt.  She  had 
been  known  and  loved  by  Jesus  from  his  infancy.  She  had  lately 
contributed  of  her  substance  and  time  to  liis  comfort.  Her  two 
sons  were  hie  cousins.  They  had  been  his  steadfast  adherents, 
and  almost  constant  companions.  They  were  men  of  ability  and 
great  force  of  character.  He  himself  had  called  them  Boanerges, 
Sons  of  Thunder.  Now,  in  his  hour  of  depression,  if  they  and 
their  mother  should  unite  in  a  petition  which  showed  their  willing- 
ness to  encounter  with  him  the  powers  of  darkness,  would  he  not 
be  moved  to  pledge  them  the  highest  places  in  his  kingdom  ? 

Could  anything  more  clearly  than  this  disck)se  the  sensuous, 
Messianic  ideas  of  the  warmest  friends  of  Jesus  ? 

They  came,  Salome  and  James  and  John.     The  mother  paid 
homage  to  Jesus  in  a  manner  which  showed  that  she  had  a  peti- 
tion to  prefer.      "  What  do  you  wish  ?  "  asked 

The   ambitious    j^^^^^^     jj^^        .    ^^^ .  „  g      that  these  mv  two 
disci  olcs.  A   •/  *'  •-' 

sons  may  sit,  one  on  your  right  hand,  and  one  on 

your  left,  in  your  kingdom."     The  request  was  painful  to  Jesus. 

He  foresaw  that  he  was  to  be  crucified.    The  unconscious  request 

of   this  mother  was  that  her  two   sons  might  be  crucified,  one 

on  his  right  and  the  other  on  his  left,  as  it  fell  to  two  thieves 

subsequently.     Jesus  answered  :  "  You  know  not  what  you  ask. 

Are  you  able  to  drink  the  cup  that  I  am  about  to  drink,  or  to  be 

baptized  with  the  baptism  with  which  I  am  baptized  ? "     The 

bold  answer  of  the  confident  brothers  is  :  "  We  are  able."    Jesus 

knew  that  they  must  suffer  for  his  sake,  and  so  he  tenderly  added: 

"  You  shall  indeed  drink  of  my  cup,  and  be  baptized  with  the 

baptism  that  1  am  baptized  with ;  but  to  sit  on  my  right  hand 

and  on  my  left  is  not  mine  to  give,  but  for  whom  it  has  been 

prepared  by  my  Father." 

AVhen  the  ten  heard  of  the  effort  which  James  and  John  had 

made  to  secui-o  glorious  posts  in  the  kingdom  they  were  very  an- 

gr}'.     Matthew  truthfully  and  candidly  admits  his  own  fault  in 

the  premises,  while  recording  that  of  his  brethren.     The  fact  ia 


GOmO  TO   JEEUSiiLEM.  533 

that  they  all  desired  the  primacy  in  the  kingdom  which  they 
vainly  fancied  was  about  to  be  set  up  in  the  world.  Jesus  cor- 
rected their  views  and  their  temper  at  the  same  moment,  while 
he  pacified  them  toward  the  two  brothers,  by  calling  the  whole 
company  of  twelve  to  him  and  saying :  "  You  know  that  the 
rulers  of  the  nations  rule  imperiously  over  them,  and  the  great 
men  oppress  them.  It  shall  not  be  so  among  you :  but  whosoever 
may  wish  to  be  great  among  you,  let  liim  be  your  waiting-man 
[servant]  ;  and  whosoever  may  wish  to  be  chief  among  you  shall 
be  slave  of  all.  As  the  Son  of  Man  came  not  to  be  served,  but 
to  serve,  and  to  give  his  life  a  ransom  for  many."  This  extin- 
guishes all  churchly  pride  and  nips  the  bud  t)f  any  hierarchy 
among  tliem.  It  is  the  enunciation  of  a  general  principle,  wide 
as  the  kino^dom  of  the  heavens.  In  the  little  earthlv  kinfjdoms 
and  churches  men  get  their  power  by  tradition  or  prescription, 
and  the  temptation  is  to  be  overbearing  and  oppressive.  But  a 
man  comes  to  be  important  as  he  is  useful.  He  rules  most  men 
who  makes  himself  necessary  to  most  men.  That  is  a  fact  which 
no  delegated  or  usurped  authority  can  suppress  forever,  how 
much  soever  it  may  seem  to  do  so  for  a  season.  Call  him  slave 
or  beggar,  if  the  man  have  rendered  himself  essential  to  the 
happiness  of  the  largest  number  of  the  people,  he  is  their  king. 
Jesus  rests  his  own  claim  to  greatness  in  that  he  makes  the 
heaviest  possible  sacrifice  for  the  greatest  possible  good  of  the 
largest  possible  number. 

The  cavalcade  of  pilgrims  to  the  Holy  City  having  crossed  the 
Jordan  approached  Jericho.  In  this  vicinity  occui-red  the  gi^^ng 
of  sight  to  two  blind  men.     The  narrative  of  this 


cure  is  related  by  Matthew,  Mark,  and  Luke,  Jericho.  Mat- 
thew XX.  ;  M  ' 
X.;  Lukexviii. 


whose  stories  so  curiously  cross  one  another  as  to  • .        r 


create  great  perplexity.  Matthew  says  there  were 
two  blind  men,  Mark  and  Luke  say  one,  the  former  giving  the 
afflicted  man's  name  as  Bartim^eus,  meaning  Son  of  Timseus. 
Luke  represents  the  cure  to  have  been  made  as  Jesus  was  enter- 
ing, and  Matthew  and  Mark  as  he  was  leaving  Jericho. 

That  the  reader  may  see  the  several  solutions  of  these  dis- 
crepancies," I  copy  the  excellent  classification  of 
them   made   by  Andrews,  inserting  in   brackets    golutio^*^  °'''°* 
the  names   of   several    authors   who  have   held 
each  particular  view. 


534   FROM  FEAST  OF  TABERNACLES  UNTIL  THE  LAST  ^VEEK. 

"1.  That  three  blind  men  were  healed;  one  mentioned  by  Luke,  as  h« 
approached  the  city  ;  two  mentioned  by  ^latthew  (IVIark  speaks  only  of  one), 
as  he  was  leaving  the  city.  [Kitto,  Augustine,  Morrison.]  Some  [Osiander] 
make  four  to  have  been  healed. — 2.  That  the  cases  of  healing  were  two,  and 
distinct;  one  being  on  his  entry  into  tlie  city,  the  other  on  his  departure. 
[Lightfoot,  Ebrard,  KjafEt,  Tischendorf,  Wiesler,  Greswell,  Bucher,  Lex, 
Neander.]  According  to  this  solution,  Matthew  combines  the  two  in  one,  and 
deeming  the  exact  time  and  place  unimportant,  represents  them  as  both  occur- 
ring at  the  departure  of  Jesus  from  the  city. — 3.  That  two  were  healed,  and 
both  at  his  entry ;  but  one  being  better  known  than  the  other,  he  only  is  men- 
tioned by  Mark  and  Luke.  [Doddridge,  Newcome,  Lichenstein,  Friedlieb.] 
— 4.  That  one  of  the  blind  men  sought  to  be  healed  as  Jesus  approached  the 
city,  but  was  not ;  that  the  next  morning,  joining  himself  to  another,  they 
waited  for  him  by  the  gate,  as  he  was  leaving  the  city,  and  were  both  healed 
together.  Luke,  in  order  to  preserve  the  unity  of  his  narrative,  relates  the 
healing  of  the  former,  as  if  it  had  taken  place  on  the  afternoon  of  the  entry. 
[Bengel,  Stier,  Trench,  Ellicott.  See  modifications  of  this  view  in  I^^cKnight 
and  Crosby,  and  another  in  Lange  on  Matt.  xx.  30.] — 5.  That  only  one  was 
healed,  and  he  when  Jesus  left  the  city.  Matthew,  according  to  his  custom, 
uses  the  plural  where  the  other  Evangelists  use  the  singular.  [Oosterzee  on 
Luke ;  Da  Costa.] — G.  That  Luke's  variance  A\ath  Matthew  and  Mark,  in  regard 
to  i)lace,  may  be  removed  by  interpreting  (xviii.  35)  '  as  He  was  come  nigh  to 
Jericho,'  fv  TO)  fy-ytff ii'  avTov  fn  'If pt^o),  in  the  general  sense  of  being  near  to 
Jericho,  but  Avithout  defining  whether  he  was  approacliing  to  it  or  departing 
from  it.  Its  meaning  here  is  determined  by  Matthew  and  Mark:  he  was 
leaving  the  city,  but  still  near  to  it.  Luke,  like  IVIark,  mentions  only  the 
more  prominent  person  healed.  [Grotius  on  Matt.  xx.  30;  Clericus,  Diss.,  ii., 
Canon  6 ;  Pilkington,  cited  in  Townsend  v.  33 ;  Robinson,  Jarvis,  Owen.] " 
Newcome  (Har.,  275)  holds  that  Jesus  spent  several  daj-s  in  Jericho,  and  that 
liis  departure,  mentioned  by  Matthew  and  ISIark,  was  for  a  temporary  purpose, 
the  blind  man  being  healed  as  he  was  returning.  ISIcKnighfs  theory  is  (Har., 
ii.  93)  that  there  were  two  Jerichos ;  that  as  he  left  one  he  cured  one  blind 
man,  and  as  he  left  the  other  he  cured  the  second  blind  man.  Paulus  (iii. 
44)  holds  that  the  procession  was  so  great  that  the  front  ranks  were  leaving 
the  city  as  that  portion  in  which  Jesus  was  was  entering  it." 

The  reader  has  before  him  the  original  record  and  the  various 
theories,  and  must  choose  wliat  seems  most  satisfactory  to  him.  I 
believe  that  two  were  healed,  but  that  one,  for  some  reason,  was 
more  conspicuous  than  the  other,  or  afterward  came  to  be  well 
known  to  the  apostles,  and  therefore  the  account  of  his  cure  alone 
is  preserved  by  Mark  and  Luke.     His  story  is  simply  this. 

He  was  sitting  by  the  road-side,  plying  his  business  as  a  beggar, 
when  lie  heard  that  in  the  vast  procession  of  pilgrims,  which  was 
Bweei)ing  past  him  with  its  bustling  noise,  was  the  famous  Teacher 


GOESTG   TO   JERUSALEM.  535 

and  Healer,  Jesus  of  Xazareth.  He  began  at  once  to  cry  out, 
"  Jesus,  Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me !  "  It  will  now  be  per- 
ceived how  at  every  step  the  Messianic  spirit  rises  ^^  „  rtimseus 
among  the  people.  We  should  naturally  expect 
this  when  -we  recollect  that  the  church  had  set  a  price  upon  the 
head  of  Jesus,  and  yet  he  was  publicly,  deliberately,  and  with 
dignity,  going  up  to  the  head-quarters  of  his  enemies  after  he  had 
performed  such  miracles  as  made  his  friends  feel  that  no  enemies 
could  crush  him. 

When  Bartima3us  made  his  cry,  which  was  an  acknowledgment 
of  the  Messianic  dignity  of  Jesus,  those  nearest  bade  him  keep  liis 
peace  and  make  no  disturbance.  This  injunction  was  not  made, 
as  so  many  seem  to  think,  to  repress  his  acknowledgment  of  Jesus 
as  the  Messiah.  The  populace  had  not  yet  turned  against  Jesus. 
They  rather  sided  with  him  as  against  the  ecclesiastical  party  • 
but  as  there  seemed  to  be  in  the  confluence  of  events  a  current  of 
festivity,  they  did  not  choose  to  have  the  lofty  gayeties  of  the 
occasion  depressed  by  the  unmannerly  cries  of  a  beggar.  But 
they  could  not  repress  Bartimseus.  The  more  they  tried  to  silence 
him,  the  more  he  cried,  "  Son  of  David,  have  mercy  on  me."  His 
voice  reached  the  ear  of  Jesus,  who  stood  still  and  said,  "  Call 
him."  There  is  a  touch  of  natm-alness  in  the  narrative.  As  soon 
as  Jesus  spoke  complacently,  those  very  men  became  very  kind  to 
the  beggar  they  had  just  now  rebuked,  and  said,  "  Be  of  good 
courage  ;  rise  ;  he  calls  you."  How  success  begets  success !  This 
little  history  is  constantly  reproduced  in  society.  Men  of  such 
force  of  character  as  disturb  the  public  are  suppressed  if  possible. 
If  they  be  persistent  enough  to  begin  to  succeed,  that  same  public 
takes  great  delight  in  assisting. 

As  soon  as  Bartimgeus  knew  that  Jesus  called  him,  he  arose, 
flung  aside  his  loose  and  probably  ragged  garment,  and  leaping 
up  came  to  Jesus.  Jesus  said  to  him, "  AVhat  will 
you  that  I  should  do  to  you  ?  "  He  answered, 
"  Babboni  [My  Master]  that  I  might  receive  my  sight !  "  The 
contrast  between  the  ambitious  and  foolish  prayer  of  James  and 
John  and  the  humble  and  wise  prayer  of  this  beggar  is  striking. 
He  knew  his  greatest  necessity.  He  was  humble,  he  was  believ- 
ing, he  asked  the  most  needful  thing.  Jesus  neither  questioned 
nor  criticized  him,  but  simply  said,  "  Go  your  way :  your  faith 
has  healed  you."     It  was  a  mere  breath,  a  few  words,  and  with- 


536        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES   UNTIL   TlllC    LAST    "WEEK. 

out  toucli,  the  sight  came  instantly  back  to  Bartimreus.     It  was 

enough.  He  left  all  and  joined  the  procession  going  into  Jericho. 
This  i)erniitting  himself  to  be  publicly  hailed  as  the  ^Icssiah 
,    .,        ^   ,      being  followed  with  a  striking  and  sudden  mii-acle 

xix.  •  Matt  XXV     <^>penly  performed  before  an  innnense  multitude, 
excited  the  people  to  a  great   pitch,  and   they 

shouted  praises  to  God  on  their  way  into  Jericho. 

The  city  of  Jericho,  the  site  of  which  is  now  occupied  by  a 

miserable  village  of  huts,  was  a  place  of  considerable  historical 


and  commercial  imi)ortance.  It  was  immediatel}'  opposite  tlie 
spot  in  the  Jordan  wliich  was  crossed  by  the  Israelites  when  they 
took  possession  of  the  promised  hind.  Here  they  found  much 
spoil.  It  was  situated  in  a  beautiful  plain.  Its  name,  which  sig- 
nifies "  Fragrance,"  indicates  that  it  was  in  the  midst  of  a  growth 
of  finest  ])lants.  In  fact,  there  bloomed  the  palm-tree  and  the 
balsam  "in  the  midst  of  a  luxuriant  and  fra<rrant  vegetable  king- 
dom."  It  afterwards  became  the  favorite  residence  of  priests, 
who  loved  its  shades  for  contemplation,  and  of  Roman  oHicers, 
whose  presence  was  rerpiired  by  the  richness  of  the  neighborhood, 
and  by  its  being  on  the  road  of  travel  and  of  trade  from  the  East. 


GOING    TO   JERUSALEM. 


537 


Zacchoeus. 


Pilgrims  from  the  Perea  side  of  the  Jordan  came  through  Jericho 
on  their  way  to  Jerusalem. 

Among  the  residents  of  Jericho,  at  the  time  of  the  visit  of  Jesus, 
was  Zacchseus.  lie  was  a  Jew.  His  Hebrew  name,  notwith- 
standing its  Greek  termination,  shows  that.*  He 
was  an  officer  of  the  Roman  Empire,  whether  an 
actual  farmer  of  the  revenue,  ^  jpuhlicanus^  or  only  a  comptroller, 
who  received  what  was  collected  by  the  jportitores  and  then  paid 
it  over  to  the  farmer-general,  we  cannot  tell.  The  Eoman  law 
provided  that  such  farmer-general  should  be  a  Poman  knight,  but 
Josephus  says  that  sometimes  Jews  obtained  the  office,  as  was 
therefore  possible  in  the  case  of  Zacchseus.  At  any  rate  he  had 
a  lucrative  place  in  the  customs,  and  Jericho  was  an  important 
post  by  the  general  reason  of  its  situation,  and  the  particular  rea- 
son of  there  being  then  a  heavj'  tax  on  dates  and  balsam. 

This  man  desired  to  see  Jesus.  It  is  remarkable  that  as  Jesug 
had  achieved  what  his  countrymen  regarded  as  the  bad  reputation 
of  being  the  "  Friend  of  Publicans,"  ZaccliEeus,  one  of  the  very 
chief,  had  never  beheld  his  person,  although  he  had  repeatedly 
been  in  the  neighborhood  of  Jericho.  Moved  by  curiosity,  and 
perhaps  by  still  higher  motives,  as  the  subsequent  history  would 
justify  us  in  supposing,  he  determined  to  put  himself  in  a  position 
to  see  the  distinguished  traveller  as  he  passed.  Zacchseus  was  so 
short  that  he  could  not  see  because  of  the  great  crowd.  His  desire 
to  behold  Jesus  conquered  his  sense  of  dignity.  So  he  ran  ahead 
of  the  crowd  and  climbed  up  into  a  sycamore-tree.  It  is  to  be 
remembered  that  this  is  not  like  the  tall,  close,  slender  tree  of  our 
American  river-bottoms.  In  Palestine  it  is  a  great  tree,  with 
large  trunk  and  far-spreading  arms,  and  planted  near  roads  and 
in  the  open  places  where  several  paths  meet..  The  arms  grow 
across  the  road,  giving  excellent  opportunity  for  seeing  any  one 
passing  beneath.  Hammocks  are  sometimes  swung  in  them,  and 
a  score  of  girls  and  boys  may  be  seen  playing  among  the  limbs 
of  this  ample  tree.f 

As  Jesus  passed  and  looked  np  he  saw  Zacchseus,  and  somehow 
knew  his  name,  and  surprised  him  with  the  sudden  address,  "  Zac- 
chseus,  make  haste  and  come  down ;  for  to-day  I  must  stay  at  your 


*  The  name  is  found  in  its  Hebrew 
form  in  Ezra  ii.  9 ;  Nehemiah  vii,  14 ; 
and  2  Mace.  x.  19. 


t  For  a  description  and  a  picture  of 
this  tree,  see  Thomson's  Land  and  Book, 
ii.  23. 


53S        FKOM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   AVEEK. 

house."  The  freedom,  the  kindness,  the  cordiality  of  Jesus  won 
Zacchgeus  instantaneously.  He  almost  fell  from  the  tree,  and 
with  demonstrations  of  joy  received  Jesus  as  his  guest. 

On  the  way  to  the  house  tliere  were  some  disaffected  Jews  who 
criticised  this  conduct.     Uninvited,  lie  had  invited  himself  to  be- 
come the  ffuest  of  a  sinner.     Every  man  connected 
Hia  conversion.         .^i      ,  ,,       .  r     ■,  i         r  ^ 

With  the  collection  oi  the  revenues  was  hateful 

in  the  eyes  of  the  Jews,  and  if  one  of  their  own  nation  accepted 
such  a  post  he  was  regarded  as  specially  despicable.  It  was  said 
by  some  one  in  the  crowd,  "  He  has  gone  to  be  guest  with  a  man 
that  is  a  sinner."  Zacchagus  heard  it,  and  knew  that  he  was  a 
sinner,  and  confessed.  He  stood  in  face  of  the  crowd  and  said 
to  Jesus,  "  See,  Lord,  the  half  of  my  possessions  I  give  to  the 
])Oor  ;  and  if  I  have  taken  anything  from  any  man  by  extortion  I 
will  restore  him  fourfold."  There  was  something  most  honest, 
deliberate,  and  ready  in  this  outspoken  confession.  According 
to  the  law  (Numbers  v.  6)  a  man  wlio  had  wronged  another  and 
confessed  it,  was  to  restore  the  stolen  property  and  add  twenty 
per  cent,  of  its  value.  This  man  knew  that  he  had  wronged 
others,  but  liis  quick  calculation  told  him  that  he  could  give  half 
his  property  to  the  poor,  restore  all  his  ill-gotten  gains,  and  pay 
the  injured  party  three  hundred  \>er  cent.,  and  yet  have  all  he 
now  cared  to  retain,  since  he  had  now  the  transcendent  honor  of 
entertaining  Jesus  as  a  guest  in  liis  house.  Speaking  both  to 
Zacchffius  and  of  him,  Jesus  said,  "  This  day  has  salvation  come 
to  this  house,  inasmuch  as  he  also  is  a  Son  of  Abraham.  For  the 
Son  of  Man  has  come  to  seek  and  to  save  what  was  lost."  It  was 
a  most  noble  and  free  act  on  the  part  of  Jesus.  He  rose  above 
caste  and  prejudice  and  political  partisanship.  His  quick  eye  saw 
the  good  in  Zaccha^us,  a  germ  of  sweet  richness  kept  from  its 
growth  by  the  difficulties  of  his  position  and  the  prejudice  of  his 
people.  Jesus  suddenly  so  warmed  it  that  it  sprung  at  once  into 
vigorous  growth.     "Wide-hciu-tcd  Jesus! 

We  know  nothing  more  of  Zacchaeus  positively.  There  is  a 
tradition  that  he  became  a  disciple  of  Peter,  and  subsequently 
Bishop  of  Cfusarca.  ]<ut  there  is  no  historical  proof  of  this,  so 
far  as  I  am  aware. 

It  may  have  been  in  the  house  of  ZaccIuTjus,  or  just  as  they 
started,  or  soon  after,  that  Jesus  uttered  the  Parable  of  the  P<.>unds, 
in  order  to  correct  the  perversely  wrong  views  of  his  friends  in 


GOING   TO   JERUSALEM.  539 

the  multitude,  who,  seeing  they  were  approaching  the  Iloly  City, 
looked  now  for  the  immediate  inauguration  of  his  Messianic 
reign.  This  expectation  of  worldly  display  may  have  been  kindled 
by  the  phrase,  "  The  Son  of  Man  is  come  to  seek  and  save  that 
which  was  lost."  They  believed  a  conflict  would  come  between 
Jesus  and  the  Church,  and  that  Jesus  would  triumph  and  would 
set  up  "  the  kingdom  of  God  "  at  once.     This  is  the  parable : 

"  A  certain  nobleman  went  into  a  far  country,  to  receive  for  himself  a  king- 
dom, and  return.  And  having  called  ten  of  his  own  slaves,  he  gave  them  ten 
mina?,  and  said,  '  Trade  till  I  come.'  But  his  citizens  hated 
him,  and  sent  a  message  after  him,  saying,  '  We  will  not  Payable  of  the  PoundB. 
have  this  man  to  reign  over  us.'  And  it  was  so  on  his  return,  having  received 
the  kingdom,  that  he  commanded  those  slaves  to  whom  he  had  given  the 
money  to  be  called  to  him,  that  he  might  know  what  they  had  gained  by 
trading.  Then  came  the  first  and  said,  '  Lord,  your  mina  has  gained  ten 
minfe.'  And  he  said  to  him,  '  Well !  good  slave !  because  you  have  been  faith- 
ful in  a  very  little,  have  authority  over  ten  cities.'  And  the  second  came  and 
said,  'Lord,  your  mina  has  gained  five  minae.'  And  he  said  to  this  man,  '  Be 
you  also  over  five  cities.'  And  the  other  came  and  said,  'Lord,  behold  your 
mina,  which  I  have  kept  laid  up  in  a  napkin  ;  for  I  feared  you,  because  you 
are  an  austere  man.  You  take  up  -what  you  did  not  lay  down,  and  reap  what 
you  did  not  sow.'  He  said  to  him,  '  Out  of  your  own  mouth  will  I  condemn 
you,  wicked  slave.  You  knew  that  I  am  an  austere  man,  taking  up  what  I 
laid  not  down,  and  reaping  what  I  did  not  sow.  Wlierefore  then  did  you 
not  give  my  money  into  the  bank,  that  at  my  coming  I  might  have  requh-ed 
it  with  interest  ? '  And  he  said  to  those  who  stood  by,  '  Take  from  liim  tlie 
mina,  and  give  to  him  that  has  ten  minre.'  And  they  said  to  him, '  Lord,  he 
has  ten  minre.'  '  I  say  that  to  every  one  who  hath  shall  be  given,  and  from 
him  wlio  hath  not,  even  what  he  has  shall  be  taken  away.  But  mine  enemies, 
those  who  would  not  that  I  should  reign  over  them,  bring  hither,  and  slay 
them  before  me.' " 

This  parable  is  very  far  from  being  identical  with  that  of  the 
talents,  as  we  shall  see  when  we  come  to  study  the  latter.  That  a 
writer  professing  to  discharge  the  functions  of  criticism  should 
see  in  this  an  awkward  amalgamation  of  two  other  parables, 
namely,  of  the  Talents  and  of  the  Unfaithful  Husbandmen,  is  a 
conspicuous  display  of  the  power  of  a  preconceived  theory  over 
critical  acumen.  {Stvsiuss''&  Life  of  Jesus,  I  351.)  The  parables 
have  a  few  things  in  common,  but  the  points  of  instruction  are 
totally  different.  Here  Jesus  is  surrounded  by  two  classes  of  per- 
sons, one  a  multitude  representing  the  Jewish  people,  and  the 
other  his  little  band  of  disciples.     This  parable  of  the  pounds  is 


540        FROM   FEAST   OF   TABERNACLES    UNTIL   THE   LAST   WEEK, 

intended  to  teach  a  lesson  to  both,  as  both  were  more  or  less  look- 
ing for  the  setting  up  of  a  kingdom  which  should  overthrow 
Rome. 

The  formal  portion  of  the  parable  is  taken  fi-om  the  then  well- 
known  circumstances  in  the  career  of  Archelaus,  the  son  of  Herod 
the  Great.     (See  the  note,  pa^e  59.)    Jesus  dis- 

Taken  from  the     ..         ■  x        ^    \  ^,  f      r   .i       i  •  j 

case  of  Archelaus.    tinguishes  between  the  servants  of  the  king  and 

the  rebellious  subjects  of  the  kingdom,  and  has  a 

lesson  for  each.     The  latter  will  reject  their  king.     The  Jews  wiU 

reject  Jesus  for  their  spiritual  as  they  had  rejected  Archelaus  for 

their  civil  sovereign.     The  result  will  be  their  destruction  and  the 

establishment  of  Jesus  in  his  kingdom.     He  meant  to  tell  them 

that  so  far  from  the  setting  np  of  a  kingdom  of  temporal  })ower, 

he  was  to  be  rejected  by  them ;  but  that  this  rejection  would  not 

harm  him,  but  would  destroy  the  Jewish  nation,  which  very  soon 

subsequently  proved  to  be  true  in  history. 

He  intimated,  also,  that  his  was  to  be  a  reign  of  spiritual  in- 
fluence, and  therefore,  instead  of  putting  arms  into  the  hands  of 
his  servants  he  gave  them  small  proi)eities,  which 

Adapted  to  the    ^^      were  to  use,  calmly  worldnfr,  nefjotiatiny-, 
condition   of   the  ;  ,.  ,,'  -r       ,     ,       ,?  r,     ^ 

disciples  ^"'^  traduig  until  the  Lord  should  come.     Such 

conduct  on  their  part  would  be  the  best  possil)le 
protest  against  the  rebellious  subjects,  because  it  would  show  that 
these  servants  had  such  perfect  faith  in  the  return  of  their  master 
and  king  that  they  quietly  persisted  in  trade,  so  as  to  have  ac- 
complished all  that  was  possible  before  his  return.  He  taught 
his  disciples  that  they  who  had  the  faith,  the  industry,  and  the 
endurance  to  do  this  should  receive  a  reward  proportionate  to 
their  success,  but  out  of  all  proportion  to  the  small  sum  put  in 
their  hands  to  trade  with.  If  we  understand  even  the  Attic 
mina  as  the  money  here  designated,  the  sum  did  not  exceed  $15 
gold,  equal  in  its  purchasing  capabilities  in  that  age  to  many  times 
$15  this  day,  but  still  being  only  one-sixtieth  of  a  talent.  He 
that  made  it  tenf<jld  was  created  ruler  over  ten  cities,  and  he  that 
made  it  fivefold,  over  five  cities.  As  Von  Gerlacli  well  says, 
''  Ten  miiife  would  scarcely  purchase  a  home ;  and  the  superabun- 
dant recompense  of  grace  is  ten  cities." 

This  interpretation  is  consistent  with  the  whole  narrative,  and 
with  the  circumstances  under  which  it  was  uttered,  and  the  state 
of  mind  of  those  to  whom  it  was  addressed.     As  far  as  practi- 


GODTG   TO   JERrSALEM.  541 

cable  it  coiTected  all  their  misapprehensions  before  their  arrival  in 
Jerusalem. 

The  Passover  was  approaching.  Many  had  gone  up  from  the 
country  to  Jerusalem  to  make  ceremonial  purification  for  the  great 
festival.  These  persons  hoped  to  find  the  marvellous  Teacher  in 
the  iroly  City.  They  made  inquiry  among  themselves,  saying : 
"  "Wliat  think  you  ;  that  he  will  not  come  up  to  the  feast  ? "  This 
special  form  of  the  inquiry  is  recorded  by  John,  who  states  as  a 
reason  for  it  that  the  church  authorities  had  given  directions  that 
if  any  shonld  discover  M'here  Jesus  was,  information  should  be 
given  at  once  that  the  church  might  seize  him. 

"  Six  days  before  the  Passover  Jesus  came  to  Bethany."     This 

note  of  time  assists  us  in  adjusting  the  chronologic  connection  of 

events.     It  does  not  fix  with  precision  the  exact       ^  ,,  _  . 

^  Bethany.     Fn- 

day  of  the  arrival  in  Bethany.     That  will  depend  (jay  3lst  March, 

upon  the  mode  of  calculation  of  each  reckoner,  and  Saturday,  1st 

(See  xYndrews,  p.  396-398.)     The  six  days  may  April,    a.d.     30. 

include  both  the  Passover  and  the  day  of  arrival,  .^  -^xn.,    ar 

■^  XIV.  ;  John  xii.  1. 

or  include   the   former  and  exclude  the   latter, 

or  include  the  latter  and  exclude  the  former,  or  exclude  both. 
Robinson,  including  both  days,  makes  his  arrival  on  Saturday ; 
Strong,  by  the  same  computation,  fixes  it  on  Sunday — Robinson 
putting  the  Passover  on  Thursday,  and  Strong  on  Friday.  Gres- 
well  agrees  with  Robinson,  and  Luthardt  with  Strong,  but  reach 
these  several  conclusions  by  other  processes.  The  language  of 
Moses  is,  "  In  the  fourteenth  day  of  the  first  mo^^th  at  even  is  the 
Lord's  Passover."  (Levit.  xxiii.  5.)  The  first  month  is  Nisan, 
and  six  days  before  the  14th  must  have  been  on  the  8th  of  Nisan. 
But  when  did  the  14th  Nisan  fall  ?  on  Thursday  or  Friday  ?  In 
this  case  my  opinion  agrees  with  that  of  the  great  majority  of 
reckoners  in  fixing  the  Passover  on  Thursday  ;  and,  not  including 
the  Passover,  the  date  of  the  arrival  will  be  Friday. 

The  correctness  of  this  conclusion  is  favored  by  the  consider- 
ation that  Jesus  would  not  uimecessarily  travel  fifteen  miles  from 
Jericho  to  Bethany  on  the  Sabbath,  nor  is  it  possible  that  he  jour- 
neyed part  of  the  way  on  Friday  and  then  finished  the  journey 
after  sunset  of  Saturday,  the  Sabl>ath,  as  between  the  two  towns 
was  a  wilderness  witli  no  stopping-place,  and  the  road  is  exceed- 
ingly bad ;  and  moreover,  he  was  with  a  cavalcade  of  pilgrims 
pushing  towards  the  Holy  City.     It  would  seem  that  he  probably 


542        FROM    FEAST   CF   TABERNACLES    I'NTIL   TIIE    LAST   WEEK. 

reached  Jericho  in  the  evening  of  Thui-sday,  7  Nisan  (30th 
March),  remained  all  night  with  Zacchseus,  made  the  whole  jour- 
ney to  Bethany  the  next  day,  reaching  the  place  that  evening 
before  the  beginning  of  the  Sabbath.  He  knew  that  it  was  to  be  a 
week  of  conflict  and  anguish,  and  he  would  naturally  desire  to  be 
with  his  friends  of  Bethany,  refreshing  himself  in  their  quiet 
home. 

It  was  soon  reported  in  Jerusalem  that  Jesus  was  at  the  house 
of  Lazarus.     Great  crowds  began  to  stream  out  to  the  little  vil- 
lage, which  was  less  than  a  Sabbath-day's  jonr- 

Crowds  flock  to    nev  from  the  city.     There  was  a  double  induce- 
see  him.  "  ,  .   /  _.  i     ,  ,i 

ment :  they  might  see  Jesus,  and  at  the  same  tnne 

gaze  upon  Lazarus,  who  had  had  the  strange  experience  of  being 
raised  from  the  dead.  This  combined  attractiveness  of  Jesus  and 
his  friend  Lazarus  incensed  the  church,  and  an  ecclesiastical 
council  was  held  to  compass  the  death  of  both,  because  Lazarus 
was  livinor  proof  that  Jesus  possessed  the  strange  power  of  raising 
the  dead,  and  those  who  saw  them  both  together  believed  on 
Jesus.  It  was  decided  to  destroy  both  men  after  the  Passover. 
They  had  not  then  calculated  upon  the  assistance  of  Judas,  whose 
co-operation  hastened  the  consummation  of  their  plans. 

The  Sabbath — Saturday,  April  1 — was  spent  iu 
Last  Sabbath  of    ^^^  ^^^-^^  ^f  ^j^^  ^^^^^^  ^f  Lazarus.     It  was  the 

last  Sabbath  in  the  career  of  Jesus,  and  it  was 
appropriate  to  spend  it  with  the  beloved  family  of  Bethany. 


PART   VII. 

THE  LAST  WEEK. 

FROM    APRIL   1    TO    APRIL    8,    A.D.    30. 


CHAPTER  I. 


THE  FIRST  DAY — FROM  SATURDAY  EVENING  TO   SUNDAY  EVENING. 

Sunday  morning  came.     The  Sabbath  had  ended.     Jesus  and 

his  followers  took  up  their  journey  to  Jerusalem.     It  was  a  gay 

time  in  the  national  calendar.     The  crowds  of 

pilfrrims  going  up  to  the  ^reat  feast  received  ac-       ^e^^een  Beth- 

.  1  Tin  1  f    T  ^"^y   ^°d    Jerusa- 

cessions  every  hour.     When  the  party  or  Jesus    jg^j      Palm-Sun- 

reached  a  village  called  Bethphage,  which  means    day,  April  2.  Matt. 

House  of  Flgs^  the  site  of  which  it  seems  not    ^^- ;    Mark  xi. ; 

possiljle   now  to  identify,  but  which  lay  some-    ^"^^  ''^''•'  '^"^ 

where  on  the  Mount  of  Olives,  Jesus  sent  forth 

two  of  his  disciples,  saying,  "  Go  into  the  village  over  against  you, 

and  immediately  you  shall  find  an  ass  tied,  and  with  her  a  foal 

whereon  never  man  sat ;  having  loosed  them,  bring  them  unto  me. 

And  if  any  one  say  anything  to  you,  you  shall  say,  '  The  Lord  has 

need  of  them,'  and  immediately  he  will  send  them." 

The  disciples  went  on  their  eri-and  and  found  a  colt  tied  outside 

a  door  at  a  cross-roads.     ^Vlien  they  commenced  to  untie  it  the 

ownei-s  said,  "What  are  you  doing,  loosing  that  colt?"    AVhen  the 

disciples  repeated  the  words  of  Jesus,  the  objectors  said  no  more, 

but  let  them  take  it  away.     It  would  seem  that  the  dam  followed 

the  foal.     It  was  natural  that  they  should  keep  together.     The 

presence  of  the  ass  kept  the  colt  quiet.     On  the  latter  the  disciples 

of  Jesus  spread  their  garments,  and  he  sat  on  them,  and  thus  rode 

forward  down  the  Mount,  in  the  midst  of  the  cavalcade.     The 


544 


THE    LAST    WEEK. 


historian  Matthew  says  that  in  the  doing  of  this  was  fulfilled  what 
was  spoken  through  the  prophet,  "  Tell  the  daughter  of  Zion,  see 
your  King  comes  to  you,  ineek,  and  sitting  upon  an  ass,  even  upon 
a  foal,  an  offspring  of  a  ])east  of  burden."  * 

Why  Jesus  should  have  done  this  is  a  question  which  naturally 
arrests  us  at  this  point.  It  is  manifest,  from  the  whole  tenor  of 
the  history,  that  he  felt  that  his  liour  was  now  about 
to  come.  lie  expected  to  stand  no  more  l)y  the 
Sea  of  Galilee,  or  walk  the  streets  of  Capernaum,  Bethsaida,  and 
the  other  places  which  had  been  his  haunts.  He  addressed  liim- 
self  as  to  a  last  conflict  with  his  foes.  They  had  laid  a  price  upon 
his  head.  He  did  not  intend  to  evade  their  vigilance,  but  he  in- 
tended not  to  throw  himself  recklessly  into  their  hands.  There- 
fore he  always  left  the  city  in  the  evening,  spending  the  night  in 
a  neighboring  village,  and  returning  to  the  Temple-service  in  the 
morning.  But  he  would  avoid  no  responsibility  of  his  i)Osition. 
He  rode  into  Jerusalem.  There  should  be  no  pomp,  and  there- 
fore no  blooded  steed  with  rich  caparisons  and  insignia  of  royalty 
should  carry  him.  An  ass's  colt  should  testify  at  once  his  poverty 
and  his  dignity.  He  went  in  so  lifted  up  that  all  the  people  might 
see  him,  and  "  the  church  "  should  perceive  that  he  was  not  afraid 
of  his  fate. 


*  Strauss  (Life  of  Jesus ^  ii.  291)  holds 
that  the  "Evangelical  narratives"  of 
this  advance  of  Jesus  to  Jerusalem  ' '  are 
formed  not  so  much  upon  a  given  fact 
as  upon  Old  Testament  passages  and 
dogmatic  ideas."  In  proof  of  which 
he  cites  Blatthew's  account  of  the  two 
disciples  bringing  two  animals,  and 
spreading  the  garments  upon  both,  and 
setting  Jesus  upon  both.  He  accounts 
for  this  by  Matthew's  want  of  sense  and 
mLsa]>prehen8ion  of  the  passage  in  Zech- 
ariali  (ix.  9).  Matthew  "paralyzes" 
' '  the  understanding "  of  Dr.  Strauss 
when  he  seems  to  represent  Jesus  as 
riding  both  animals  (it  onr^ !  and  the 
Doctor  recovers  himself  only  when  he 
examines  Zechariah,  where  it  is  written 
m  Hebrew  parallelism — 

"  Lowly — mid  ri<Iin«  upon  an  ana, 
And  upun  a  colt,  the  fool  of  an  ass." 

Matthew  had  read  that,  and  supposed 


that  the  fulfilment  of  the  prophecy  ne- 
cessitated the  riding  of  two  animaU 
(it  once,  and  so  he  made  the  history  con- 
form to  his  dogmatic  ideas !  But  no  one 
would  charge  Dr.  Strauss  with  being  so 
poor  a  Hebrew  scholar  as  not  to  be  quite 
familiar  with  the  Hebrew  poetic  forms. 
As  soon  as  he  turned  to  the  text  in  Zech- 
ariah he  knew  that  the  second  line  was 
a  mere  parallelism,  being  equivalent  to 
and  expounding  the  idea  in  the  first  line, 
the  ass  in  the  one  being  identical  Avith 
the  foal  in  the  other,  the  second  simply 
amplifying  the  first.  Matthew  certain- 
ly was  as  good  a  Hebrew  scholar  as 
Dr.  Strauss,  and  the  writings  of  the  for- 
mer, examined  critically,  show  quite  a.s 
much  common  sense  as  the  latter.  This 
"paralyzing  of  the  understanding  "  is  an 
affectation  unworthy  one  who  sets  up 
for  critic  on  the  most  influential  of  all 
the  productions  of  literature. 


\ 


THE   FIRST   DAT.  545 

As  the  cavalcade  descended  the  sides  of  the  Mount  of  Olives 
they  met  a  crowd  composed  of  the  fi'iends  of  Jesus,  of  those  who 
had  admiration  of  him,  of  those  whom  curiositj 
and  the  excitement  of  the  occasion  had  drawn  to-  ^  ^  ^°^  " 
gether,  coming  out  to  meet  Jesus,  who  was  reported  to  be  approach- 
ing the  city.  "With  the  former  Lazarus  was  undoubtedly  present, 
and  with  the  latter  the  emissaries  of  the  church  party.  The  meet- 
ing of  these  tides  of  people  heighteiied  tlie  excitement.  They  cut 
branches  fi'om  the  trees  and  strewed  them  on  the  road.  They 
took  their  very  garments  from  their  shoulders  and  spread  them 
before  the  colt  that  bore  Jesus.  Their  hopes  of  the  setting  up  of 
the  Messianic  kingdom  waxed  warm.  They  shouted,  "  Ilosanna 
to  the  Son  of  David !  Be  praised  the  King  of  Israel,  coming  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord  !  Peace  in  lieaven !  Hosanna  in  the  high- 
est ! " 

This  Messianic  shout  of  joy  was  taken  from  the  Psalm  cxviii. 
25.  The  series  of  Psalms  fi*om  cxiii.  to  cxviii.,  inclusive,  called 
the  Great  Hallel,  was  iisually  chanted  by  the  priests,  the  whole 
multitude  of  worshippers  waving  branches  of  willow  and  palm, 
and  at  certain  intervals  shouting  the  response,  "  O  Lord,  I  beseech 
thee,  send  now  prosperity."  This  was  the  Hallelujah  or  Hosanna. 
The  children  who  were  old  enough  to  wave  the  branches  and  re- 
peat the  words  joined  in  the  responses.  The  willow  wands  them- 
selves came  to  be  called  Hosannas.  And  so  whene\er  there  were 
occasions  of  happy  excitement  and  joyous  anticipation,  this  pas- 
sage from  the  Psalm  became  its  form  of  utterance. 

There  were  true  hearts  out  of  which  this  cry  of  joy  went  up  in 
utmost  sincerity ;  but  the  mass  of  the  people  were  carried  away 

with  a  wild  kind  of  excitement  which  had  no  sub- 

...11       .       r  £  '.1        mi  i-.-T  Great  excitement., 

stantial  basis  or  laith.  Ihey  were  a  lestival  pop- 
ulation, the  people  of  the  city  and  the  vicinity,  whose  bread  was 
in  the  maintenance  of  the  sacred  metropolitan  character  of  Jeru- 
salem. As  the  mass  of  the  citizens  of  Pome  at  this  day,  artists 
and  artisans,  depend  for  their  livelihood  upon  Pome's  being  kept 
the  centre  of  ecclesiastical  attraction,  and  might  therefore  re<^ret 
any  movement  which  should  take  the  Papal  throne  from  the  city 
or  break  up  a  system  which  by  repeated  festivals  and  processions 
and  spectacular  exhibitions  of  surpassing  ecclesiastical  splendor 
draws  thousands  of  visitoi-s  and  tens  of  thousands  of  dollai-s  an- 
nually to  Pome,  but  might  favor  anv  candidate  for  the  Papacy 
35 


546  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

•who  should  promise  a  vast  increase  of  these  attractions,  so  these 
Jerusalemites  did  this  Sunday  shout  "  Ilosanna "  to  the  voung 
Teaclier,  after  whom  they  cried,  "  Crucify  him,  crucify  him,"  on 
the  followinf^  Friday. 

Jesus  knew  the  liollowniess  of  this  parade  and  of  this  eulogistic 
uproar.  lie  allowed  himself  to  be  addressed  as  Messiah.  If  any 
sinister  political  interpretation  were  given  it,  he 
could  appeal  to  his  whole  coui-se  heretofore.  He 
would  try  his  nation.  lie  meant  to  be  their  spiritual  leader,  and 
set  them  free  by  making  them  fit  to  be  free,  if  they  would  accept 
such  leadership  as  that.  They  meant  to  make  him  king  of  the 
nation  civilly,  the  royal  successor  of  the  royal  David,  the  Messiah 
who  should  break  the  Roman  yoke,  and  bring  the  nations  to  be 
tributaries  of  the  Holy  People,  planting  the  banners  of  the  Hebrew 
faith  and  polity  on  every  higli  place  of  the  earth,  and  making 
Jerusalem  the  "World-Metropolis.  He  could  not  induce  them  to 
accept  him  as  such  a  king  as  he  meant  to  be,  and  he  would  not  be 
such  a  king  as  they  desired.  They  could  not  induce  him  to  fulHl 
their  wishes,  and  they  would  not  comply  with  his  requirements. 
This  Palm-Sunday  they  tried  their  experiment,  hoping  to  betray 
him  in  a  moment  of  excitement  into  the  assumption  of  a  position 
from  which  he  could  not  retreat  until  he  had  carried  out  their  de- 
signs, lie  spent  the  week  in  one  last  long  effort  to  lift  them  to 
his  plane  of  vision.  They  failed.  He  failed.  The  same  multi 
tude,  when  they  found  they  had  failed,  wheeled  into  line  with 
the  forces  of  the  church,  and  increased  the  weifrht  that  was  fluufj 
on  the  lofty  and  lovely  young  Dissenter  and  Heretic  to  crush  him 
out  of  the  world. 

The  emissaries  of  the  church  failed  to  understand  the  temper 

of  this  festive  mol),  and  felt  as  if  their  case  was  about  to  be  lost. 

They  said  to  one  another,  each  blaming  liis  neigh- 

e  c    urch    i^o^  for  inefficiency,  as  men  in  8uch  circumstances 

fnghtouod.  -,      ,,  -X  •        1 

are  wont  to  do,  "  Do  you  not  perceive  how  ye  ]U'e- 
vail  nothinfj?  Behold  the  world  is  jrone  after  him!"  It  ruallv 
seemed  as  if  the  world  had  gone  after  him.  As  they  looked  ujxni 
tlic  mountain  side  it  was  covered  with  an  immense  nniltitude.  and 
when  tliese  waved  tlieir  branches  and  shouted  tlieir  song  the  clear 
air  was  filled  with  the  multitudinous  music  ;  and  the  enemies  of 
Jesus,  clad  in  robes  of  ])riestly  authority,  sitting  in  the  high  jilaces 
of  churchly  power,  plotting  the  murder  of  Jesus,  heard  that  shout, 


THE   FIRST   DAT.  647 

and  shook  in  tlieir  timorous  pride  as  Jesus  neared  the  city,  sitting 
simple  and  quiet  on  tlie  ass's  colt,  a  pure  personage  Avithout  pre- 
tence, a  good  man  to  be  flung  up  against  the  rock  of  the  church 
by  the  billows  of  the  popular  enthusiasm,  and  left  there  to  perish 
■^hen  that  tide  ebbed,  but  who  now  seemed  to  priest  and  Pharisee 
a  bitter  riddle  of  destiny,  whose  presence  shook  them  with  an 
ague  of  fear  and  inflamed  them  with  a  fever  of  hatred. 

Some  of  that  party  being  with  the  multitude,  and  offended  by 
this  open  acknowledgment  of  his  Messiahship,  said  to  Jesus, 
"  Teacher,  rebuke  your  disciples  : "  which  far  from  doing,  Jesug 
answered,  "  I  tell  you  that  if  these  should  be  silent  the  stones  will 
cry  out ; "  signifying  by  this  proverbial  expression,  "  Do  you  ex- 
pect my  disciples  to  be  harder  than  stones  ?  They  have  fcjllowed 
me  through  my  years  of  ministry,  they  have  seen  me  open  the 
eyes  of  the  blind  and  unstop  the  ears  of  the  deaf,  and  cleanse  the 
skin  of  the  leper,  and  raise  the  very  dead,  and  now  they  see  the 
general  people  acknowledge  me  :  are  they  stones  that  they  should 
show  no  emotion?" 

Then  they  came  in  sight  of  the  city.  From  the  summit  of 
Mount  Olives  the  view  of  Jerusalem  on  the  opposite  heights  is  very 
imposing.  Tlie  Crusaders  broke  into  jubilation 
when  they  first  beheld  it.  But  now  Jesus  looked  ,^3°,^^^*  ""^  '^''" 
with  profound  sadness  at  its  walls  and  temples, 
and  dwellings  and  towers,  with  its  thousands  of  historical  associa- 
tions, of  kings  and  prophets  and  holy  men,  of  splendid  Avorship 
and  bitter  bigotry  and  deeds  of  violence,  in  the  days  of  its  glory 
and  the  days  of  its  gloom,  the  city  of  the  Great  King  now  held 
as  an  outpost  of  a  heathen  empire.  It  was  his  Father's  House 
on  earth.  It  was  the  repository  of  the  oracles  of  God.  But  now 
it  was  about  to  reject,  to  betray,  and  to  murder  him.  AVTiat 
a  city  it  might  speedily  become  if  it  would  but  be  the  first  to 
accept  the  form  of  civilization  he  could  give,  and  the  spiritualized 
forms  of  faith  he  could  impart !  Its  doom  rose  up  before  his  mind. 
This  gi-cat  city  was  hastening  to  a  direful  catastrophe  and  knew  it 
not.  The  very  spirit  which  led  the  reigning  party  in  Jerusalem  to 
reject  Jesus  would  precipitate  the  city  into  such  acts  as  should 
bring  down  upon  it  the  crushing  arm  of  the  Koman  Empire.  He 
foresaw  all  that.  He  was  "  a  man  that  could  certainly  divine." 
lie  beheld  the  Eoman  cohorts  encamped  with  their  engines  of  war 
laying  siege  to  the  city  of  David.    He  saw  the  fagot  and  the  sword 


548  THE   LAST   -WEEK. 

carr}'ing  destruction  to  biiildinf]^,  and  death  to  men,  and  woree 
than  death  to  women.  lie  saw  the  Honian  eagle  flaunting  in  the 
holy  place,  and  the  priests  murdered  as  they  attempted  to  flee,  and 
ferocity  and  lust  penetrating  ever}'"where,  and  soiling  and  tram- 
pling and  ruining  everything  sacred  in  man,  or  woman,  or  temple. 
It  swept  over  the  city  of  the  House  of  God.  His  was  a  great,  en- 
during, tender  nature.  This  outburst  was  no  relieving  shower  of 
sentiment  overflowing  his  eyelids  ;  it  was  the  genuine  expression 
of  manliest  noblest  sorrow  for  a  fall  from  an  eminence  so  august 
to  an  abyss  so  base,  that  never  in  the  ages  would  Jerusalem  climb 
back  to  the  splendid  exaltation  from  which  she  was  about  to  be 
toppled. 

Amid  his  sobs  his  disciples  heard  him  apostrophizing  the  city  in 

these  tear-wet  words.     "  If  thou  hadst  known — in  this  day — even 

thou — the  things  for  peace!     But  now — they  are 

, .      T        ,         hid  from  thine  eyes  ! — For  days  shall  come  upon 

phizes  Jerusalem.  j  j  r 

thee  when  thine  enemies  shall  cast  a  trench  about 
thee,  and  compass  thee  round,  and  keep  thee  in  on  every  side, — 
and  shall  level  thee  with  the  ground,  and  thy  children  in  thee  :  and 
they  shall  not  leave  in  thee  stone  upon  stone,  because  thou  know- 
cst  not  the  day  of  thy  visitation  ! " 

Down  the  slopes  of  the  Olive  Mount,  past  the  Gethsemane  Gar- 
den, over  the  Kedron  Creek,  went  the  Palm-Sunday  procession. 

Serene  and  sad  sat  Jesus  on  the  colt  as  the  singing 
aud  Temple  cavalcade,  ascending  to  the  white  walls,  jiassed 

through  the  gates  into  the  streets  of  Jerusalem, 
making  the  city  to  ring  with  the  gladness  of  their  exuberant  song. 
From  the  lowliest,  Jesus  had  ascended  to  the  highest  place  in  the 
nation.  This  festal  procession  was  becoming  something  like  a 
royal  cortege.  All  the  city  was  moved.  Out  of  the  windows 
l)eered  priest  and  Pharisee,  and  said,  "Who  is  this?"  And  the 
people  answered,  "  This  is  the  prophet  Jesus,  from  Nazareth  of 
Galilee."  Perhaps  those  who  answered  were  Galihvans  themselves, 
and,  becoming  ]u-oud  of  the  prophet  that  had  sprung  from  their 
country,  they  made  a  response  which  was  the  very  answer,  whether 
so  intended  or  not,  to  anger  the  hierarchic  party.  But  the  tone  in 
which  the  popular  party  answered  the  priestly  party  sounds  to  me 
like  an  abatement  of  enthusiasm.  They  do  not  cry  out,  "  This  is 
the  KiiiLT  of  Israel  cominfj  in  the  name  of  the  Lord  !  Come  down, 
ye  priests  and  Pharisees,  and  render  him  homage."  Jesus  doubt- 
less felt  all  this  abatement  of  p<»pular  zeah 


THE   FIRST   DAT.  549 

Jesus  went  forthwith  to  the  Temple,  and  made  an  inspection  of 
all  things  in  the  holy  place. 

There  were  certain  Greeks,  probably  Jewish  proselytes,  who  had 
come  up  to  the  feast,  and,  with  all  that  intellectual  inquisitive- 
ness  which  marked  the  Hellenistic  character,  they 
were  eager  to  see  Jesus.  He  was  a  fresh  phe-  ^"^'^  ^^"^  ^^^ 
nomenon  of  humanity.  They  seem  to  have  been  people  of  cul- 
ture. They  were  at  least  polite,  and  did  not  intrude  on  the  Great 
Teacher,  but  communicated  their  desires  to  Philip  of  Bethsaida. 
Perhaps  Philip  had  Greek  blood  in  him,  as  his  name  indicates. 
He  certainly  had  modesty.  Although  these  Greeks  represented 
the  most  polished  forms  of  civilization,  they  were,  by  Hebrew 
narrowness,  regarded  as  the  lowest  class  of  worshippers  in  the 
great  Temple.  He  consulted  his  brother  disciple  Andrew,  and 
upon  agreement  tliey  both  told  Jesus. 

So  far  from  meeting  a  repulse  these  disciples  found  that  the  very 
message  filled  Jesus  with  a  strange  joy.  He  welcomed  the  Greeks, 
and  said  to  them  and  to  his  disciples,  "The  hour  is  come  tliat  the 
Son  of  Man  should  be  glorified.  I  most  assuredly  say  to  you.  That 
except  a  grain  of  wheat  falling  into  the  ground  die,  it  abides  alone ; 
but  if  it  die,  it  bears  much  fruit.  He  who  loves  his  life  loses  it, 
and  he  who  hates  his  life  in  this  world  shall  keep  it  unto  perpet- 
ual life.  If  any  one  serve  me,  let  him  follow  me  ;  and  where  I 
am,  there  also  shall  my  servant  be.  If  any  man  serve  me,  the 
Father  will  honor  him." 

The  shouts  of  the  people  did  not  exhilarate  Jesus,  did  not  for  a 
moment  throw  him  fi-om  his  mental  equipoise.     Indeed  Jesus 
seems  grand  in  his  solitary  sadness  amid  this  po- 
pular gladness.     But  the  coming  of  the   Greeks    ^«i«P^e««ed 

^     ,   ,.   ,  .  .      °    .^  therewith, 

seems  a  great  delight   to   him.     He   is   thereby 

glorified.     To  say  so  was  disloyalty  and  heresy.     It  was  enough 

that  as  proselytes  they  were  barely  admitted  within  holy  precincts. 

Loyalty  to  Hebrew  traditions  demanded  contempt  of  pagans,  and 

loyalty  to  the  church  party  demanded  contempt  for  all  the  world 

that  did  not  live  as  the  Pharisees  directed  and  M'orship  as  the  priests 

taught.     But  the  soul  of  Jesus  was  so  tall  as  to  look  over  the  pale 

of  man's  church;  indeed  to  perceive  that  that  rotten  structure  was 

to  be  by  himself  felled  to  the  ground,  that  the  whole  world  might 

be  let  into  one.    That  was  his  glorification.    It  required  martyrdom 

to  accomplish  it,  and  he  was  going  to  endure  that  martyrdom  and 


550  THE   LAST    WEEK. 

accomplish  that  glorious  bringing  of  all  peoples  into  one.  The 
births  of  life  are  through  the  husks  and  corruption  of  death,  a 
truth  which  finds  forceful  and  beautiful  illustration  in  vegetable 
reproduction.  The  man  who,  like  the  foolish  farmer,  will  not 
sow  his  wheat  because  he  desires  to  save  his  wheat,  will  surely 
lose  it  all.  "  To  hate  "  one's  life  is  a  Hebraism  signifying  to 
"  value  less."  He  who  values  this  present  form  of  life  less  than 
the  life  which  is  perpetual  shall  keep  both  this  and  that.  Jesus 
intended  to  yield  this  petty  Pahu-Sunday  triumph,  and  even  the 
apparently  more  substantial  royalty  of  supreme  civil  rule,  so  that 
he  might  live  in  the  lives  of  the  world  and  be  king  over  the 
hearts  of  the  ages.  He  desired  his  disciples  to  follow  his  example, 
and  promised  that  all  who  did,  whatever  earthly  distincticnis  they 
might  miss,  should  have  honor  from  God. 

Then  a  great  shudder  passed  through  him,  and  he  said,  "  Now  is 
my  soul  troubled :  and  what  shall  I  say  ? "  He  paused.  He  had 
not  been  misled  for  an  instant.  He  knew  where  all  this  would 
end.  The  horror  of  death  came  upon  him.  He  cried  out,  "  Father, 
save  me  from  this  hour."  It  was  a  natural  cry.  It  was  the 
instinctive  love  of  life.  If  he  had  yielded  and  pressed  that  ques- 
tion, it  would  have  been  that  loving  of  life  which  loses  it.  He 
rallied.  No  ;  he  will  not  sacrifice  the  perpetual  to  the  temporary. 
He  said,  "  But  on  this  account  came  I  to  this  hour.  Father,  glo- 
rify thy  name."  TVe  do  not  know  what  Jesus  meant  by  "  on  this 
account."  There  was  something  in  his  mind  which  did  not,  per- 
haps could  not,  come  out  in  words.  It  was  a  great  soul  in  a 
frightful  spiritual  storm.  In  his  agitation  the  anguish  coinpelled 
the  utterance  of  the  first  prayer.  He  was  strong  enough  to  rcvei*se 
it,  and  to  change  it  instantly  from  "  my  deliverance  "  to  "  thy  glory." 
A  notable  thins:  then  occurred.  A  sound  was  heard.  It  seemed 
to  be  a  voice  from  heaven.  Three  interpretations  were  given  to 
it.  Some  said  it  thundered.  Some  said,  "  An 
angel  has  spoken  to  him."  Some  said  there  were 
these  words  spoken  :  "  And  I  have  glorified,  and  I  will  glorify." 
It  is  plain  that  all  heard  a  sound.  The  three  interpretations  are 
to  be  explained  on  two  grounds,  the  difference  in  relative  position 
and  the  difference  in  psychical  condition.  Thus  on  the  more  dis- 
tant it  may  have  produced  only  the  impression  of  an  inarticulate 
heavy  noise  like  thunder;  on  those  nearer,  the  impression  of  arti- 
culate yet  confused  utterances,  articulate  in  themselves  but  not  dis- 


THE   FIRST   DAT.  551 

tinct  to  the  hearers ;  on  the  nearest,  the  very  syllables  which  are 
repeated  in  the  histoiy.  Or  Jesus  himself  may  have  heard  these 
words,  and  have  given  a  subsequent  explanation  of  them  to  hia 
disciples.  Again,  on  the  supposition  that  these  very  words  were 
spoken,  there  were  but  few  who  were  so  receptive  as  to  hear 
them,  while  to  others  they  sounded  like  a  voice  in  the  air,  and  to 
others  like  thunder. 

This  latter  view  of  the  case  seems  to  me  the  more  reasonable. 
That  God  has  spoken  to  man,  all  believe  who  are  not  atheists  oi 
the  most  dreary  materialists.  Instances  in  which 
men  of  good  understanding  have  believed  that 
they  heard  voices  are  not  to  be  put  aside  by  our  grossly  material 
philosophy  as  the  hallucinations  of  a  diseased  mind.  The  Jewish 
writers  speak  of  the  Bath-Kol,  b'p-ra ,  the  daughter  of  the  voice, 
as  a  kind  of  second  voice,  an  internal  articulation,  addressed  to 
the  inner  sense  by  the  good  God,  and  second  in  autliority  only  to 
the  inspiration  enjoyed  by  the  Old  Testament  prophets.  The 
Targum  and  Midrash  represent  it  as  the  actual  medium  of  divine 
communication  witli  Abraham,  Moses,  David,  Nebuchadnezzar, 
etc.  In  the  history  of  the  early  Christians  we  have  accounts  of 
a  "  voice  or  voices,"  as  in  the  conversion  of  Saul  and  the  vision 
of  Peter.  (Acts  ix.  7,  x.  13,  15.)  Josephus  tells  of  a  "  voice," 
supposed  by  some  to  be  the  Bath-Kol,  which  informed  Ilyrcanus 
that  his  sons  had  conquered  Antiochus.  {Ant.,  xiii.  10,  3.)  The 
same  historian  relates  that,  just  before  the  fall  of  Jerusalem,  one 
night  as  the  priests  were  going  into  the  Temple  to  perform  their 
sacred  ministrations,  they  heard  a  multitudinous  voice  saying, 
"  Let  us  go  hence."  ( War,  vi.  53.)  Similar  instances  might  be 
adduced  from  the  records  of  all  succeeding  ages  like  the  "  tolle, 
lege,"  taJce,  read,  which  Augustine  heard  when  he  was  converted. 
Perhaps  any  finely  organized  reader  of  this  page  will  bring 
from  his  memory  something  similar  in  his  own  experience. 

It  is  scarcely  philosophical  to  call  these  fancies.  Our  modern 
science  instructs  us  that  the  phenomena  which  are  able  to  affect 
objectively  do  exist  subjectively  in  every  man's  constitution. 
Thus  there  is  something  existing  subjectively  in  every  man  which 
responds  to  the  objective  impingement  of  the  atmospheric  waves 
on  the  tympanum.  Now,  unless  one  be  an  atheist,  or,  believing 
in  the  existence  of  God,  believe  that  He  never  desires  to  com- 
municate with  man,  or  desiring  to  communicate,  has  not  left  open 


552  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

to  Himself  every  avenue  of  approach  which  is  free  to  a  man's 
fellow-men,  I  can  see  no  difficulty  in  receiving  the  theory  that 
this  God  can  fonn  in  a  man,  immediately^  the  very  sensations  and 
perceptions  which  are  produced  mediately  by  his  fellow-men 
who  form  sounds  in  the  brain  of  the  hearer,  through  the  audi- 
tory nerves,  by  waves  of  air  which  the  speaker  sets  in  motion. 
Even  then  each  man's  impression  would  be  measured  by  his  capabi- 
lities of  reception,  as  in  an  audience  of  a  thousand  there  are  a 
thousand  different  results  j>roduced  by  the  same  speech ;  as  on 
the  exhibition  of  a  picture  to  a  thousand  persons,  a  thousand  dif- 
ferent impressions  have  been  made.  To  any  human  or  divine 
fountain,  whosoever  comes  carries  away  just  so  much  water  as  his 
vessel  holds. 

Jesus  recognized  the  voice.     He  was  no  fanatic.     Through  his 
whole  history  nothing  is  more  apparent  than  the  absence  of  all 

fanaticism.     He  is  no  trickster.     Nothing  seems 
Jfisufl  knew  itta 

more  open  than  his  public  life.  His  whole  his- 
tory is  like  a  structure  which  is  all  windows.  From  any  side  one 
sees  all  through.  He  said,  "  This  voice  came  not  on  my  account, 
but  for  you.  Kow  is  the  judgment  of  this  world.  Now  shall  the 
prince  of  this  world  be  cast  out.  And  I,  if  I  be  lifted  up  from 
the  earth,  will  draw  all  things  unto  myself."  John  says  that  he 
said  this  signifying  what  manner  of  death  he  should  die.  He  felt 
sure  that  he  was  to  be  crucified.  He  felt  sure  that  that  which 
his  enemies  supposed  would  be  a  wall  between  him  and  the 
world,  keeping  all  men  away  from  him,  namely,  his  death  of 
ignominy,  would  Ije  a  position  of  elevation  from  which  he  should 
exert  the  attractive  influence  of  his  great  character  on  the  whole 
w^orld. 

Then  a  voice,  representing  the  skepticism  of  the  multitude, 
said,  "We  have  heard  out  of  the  law  that  the  Christ  abides  through 

the  ages,  and  how  do  you  say  that  it  is  necessary 
Christ    abides    that  the  Son  of  Man  be  lifted  up  ?     ^Mio  is  this 

forever.  ^ 

Son  of  Man?"     It  seems  clear  from  this  that  the 

name  "  Son  of  Man,"  to  the  apprehension  of  the  common  people, 
was  identical  with  the  ^Messiah,  the  Christ,  the  Anointed  Saviour 
of  Israel.  Of  him  the  people  had  a  belief,  gathered  from  their 
sacred  writings,  that  he  should  alude  forever,  and  this  they  inter- 
preted in  a  sensuous  manner.  If  the  reader  will  take  the  pains 
to  consult  the  passages  in  Isaiah  ix.  7,  and  Daniel  vii.  14,  he  will 


THE   FIRST   DAT, 


553 


see  how  easy  it  was  for  minds  not  given  to  tlie  study  of  spiritual 
things,  but  filled  with  violent  national  prejudices,  to  make  an  in- 
terpretation like  that  these  people  placed  on  the  words.  It  is  also 
clear  that  in  some  part  of  his  sayings  that  day  Jesus  had  called 
himself  the  Son  of  Man.  Especially  were  they  unprepared  now 
to  give  up  so  suddenly  the  hopes  which  the  Palm  procession  had 
BO  greatly  kindled.  He,  Jesus,  was  to  be  the  Messiah,  to  remain 
on  the  throne  of  David  forever,  to  administer  a  government  which 
should  have  no  end,  to  subdue  all  peoples  to  the  Hebrew  theo- 
cracy ;  and  now  he  speaks  as  if  he  were  the  Son  of  Man,  on  whom 
is  laid  the  necessity  of  being  crucified.  They  never  suspect  the 
soundness  of  their  own  orthodoxy  nor  the  correctness  of  their  own 
logic,  by  which,  from  a  perpetual  reign,  they  had  inferred  a  per- 
petual personal  presence  of  the  Messiah. 

Jesus  does  not  resolve  this  question  directly.  He  says  simply, 
"  Walk  whilst  you  have  the  light,  that  the  darkness  may  not  over- 
take you :  for  he  who  walks  in  darkness  knows  not  where  he  goes. 
As  you  have  the  light,  believe  in  the  light,  that  you  may  be  sons 
of  the  light."  As  if  he  had  said :  You  need  not  perplex  your- 
selves with  questions  whose  solution  one  way  or  another  would 
have  no  benefit  on  your  moral  character.  Do  what  your  present 
duty  enjoins.  Go  forward.  Children  are  obedient  to  their  parents. 
"  Children  of  the  light "  is  a  Hebraism  for  those  who  are  obedi- 
ent to  the  light. 

Thus  ended  Sunday  the  2d  of  April. 

Jesus  went  out  of  the  city  as  the  evening  approached,  and  over 
the  darkening  hills  took  his  way  to  Bethany,  where  he  lodged  that 
night. 


STATER— ANTIOCHUS    EPIPHANE8. 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  SECOND  DAY — FROM  SUNDAY  EVENING  TO  MONDAY  EVENING. 

The  second  day  of  the  week  found  Jesus  early  on  the  road 
accompanied  by  his  disciples,  going  up  to  Jerusalem.     The  record 

B  t  B  th  ^^  ^^^^  ^^^  ^^^  hungr3\  AYliy  the  early  morn  should 
any  and  Jerusa-  ^^^  ^"^  SO,  when  he  might  have  broken  fast  with 
lem.  Monday,  3d  his  friends  in  Bethany,  is  not  so  very  clear.  He 
April.  Matt,  xxi.;  j^g^y  j^ave  Spent  the  night  in  devotion,  and,  being 
joined  by  his  disciples  before  sunrise,  proceeded 
at  once  to  the  city,  knowing  that  his  time  was  short,  and  it  be- 
hooved him  to  do  promptly  all  that  he  would  do  before  the  final 
catastrophe. 

As  they  were  going  towards  the  city  he  saw  a  solitary  fig-tree 

on  the  roadside,  at  some  distance  in  advance,  and  was  attracted 

by  its  display  of  leafage.     lie  approached  it,  if 

The  barren  fig-    ^    .    ^^  ^-  .^  ^^^  something  on  it.     There  was 

no  fruit ;  there  was  nothing  but  leaves.  He  said 
to  it,  "May  no  one,  to  the  end  of  this  age,  eat  fruit  of  you!" 
"We  shall  see  that  the  next  morning  the  disciples  noticed  that  it 
was  utterly  withered. 

Few  passages  in  the  life  of  Jesus  have  been  so  perplexing  to  his 
friends,  and  such  an  apparent  vantage-ground  to  those  who  either 
dislike  Jesus  or  disbelieve  his  history  as  this.  The  destructive 
critics,  such  as  Dr.  Strauss,  call  it  "  a  vindictive  miracle."  This 
author  calls  attention  to  tlie  fact  that  "  it  is  the  only  one  of  its 
kind  in  the  Evangelical  history."  The  friends  of  both  the  his- 
torian and  Jesus  have  felt  that  it  is  a  passage  specially  pressed 
with  difliculties.  It  is  a  flaw  in  the  crystal,  a  muddy  place  in  the 
clear  stream,  an  ugly  cloud  on  the  pure  sky.  And  so  the  com- 
mentators have  endeavored  to  explain  away  what  seems  to  obscure 
the  character  of  Jesus  in  this  act.  But  after  all  attempts  there 
stands  the  fact  tliat  Jesus  cursed  a  tree,  and  it  withered.  It  was 
a  miracle.     Was  it  vindictive?     If  Jesus  was  angry,  had  he  just 


THE    SECOND   DAT.  555 

cause  to  be  angry  ?  He  had  his  passions.  There  is  no  more  sin 
in  anger  than  in  hunger,  in  the  abstract.  But  was  he  at  all 
angry  ? 

The  trouble  in  the  narrative  is  that  it  is  believed  to  tell  the  fol 
lowing  story,  namely :  Jesus  saw  a  fig-tree  in  full  leaf ;  he  was 
hungry,  and  went  to  it,  hoping  to  be  able  to  gather 

%s :  he  was  disappointed ;  he  was  antrered :  he 
'  '■  ^  '  ..11      narrative. 

cursed  the  tree :    under  that  curse  it  withered. 

This  is  not  a  pleasant  picture  of  a  great  and  good  man.  The  dif- 
ficulty is  increased  by  the  statement  of  Mark,  "  for  it  was  not  the 
season  of  figs."  Then  the  tree  could  not  reasonably  have  been 
expected  to  have  figs.  It  is  treated  as  a  free  moral  agent,  being 
only  a  vegetable,  and  is  then  destroyed  for  not  doing  what  it  could 
not  do.  This  seems  a  hard  fate  for  the  tree,  and  unhandsome  con- 
duct in  Jesus. 

To  abate  the  embarrassment,  one  commentator  *  proposes  a 
change  in  the  reading  of  the  Greek,  so  that  it  shall  read,  "  where 
he  was  it  was  the  season  of  figs."  This  has  two  difiiculties,  1. 
There  is  no  codex  that  justifies  this  reading  ;  and,  2.  It  was  not  a 
fact.  He  was  in  the  rocky  regions  of  Judgea,  and  it  was  early  in 
April.  Josephus  tells  us  that  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee  figs  grew  ten  months  in  the  year  ;  but  this  was  not  true  of 
the  vicinity  of  Jerusalem.  Equally  futile  is  the  suggestion  of 
another,  to  read  the  passage  as  a  question :  "  For  was  it  not  the 
season  of  figs?"  Of  course  it  was  not.  Moreover,  that  style  does 
not  appear  in  Mark.  While  he  is  a  graphic  word-painter,  he  has 
no  emotional  rhetoric.  The  same  may  be  said  of  another  f  sug- 
gestion :  "  it  was  not  a  good  season  for  figs."  There  is  no  author- 
ity for  the  reading,  and  it  was  quite  too  early  in  the  year  to  de- 
clare whether  it  was  to  be  a  good  season  or  not.  Another  explan- 
ation is  that  the  "  fig  harvest "  had  not  yet  arrived ;  that  is,  Jesus 
came  expecting  fruit,  because  the  time  in  which  the  figs  were 
gathered  had  not  yet  come,  so  that  there  could  not  be  the  explan- 
ation that  there  had  been  a  good  crop,  and  that  it  had  been  gath- 
ered. This  is  more  nearly  reasonable  than  the  others.  But  still 
there  is  the  fact,  in  the  natural  history  of  the  fig,  that  it  does  not 
ordinarily  ripen  in  Palestine  until  June.  "We  are  told  there  is  an 
early  kind  which  has  been  gathered  as  far  up  as  Lebanon  as  early 

*  Heinsius,  Exercit.  Sac.,  ed.  1639,  p.  |      f  Hammond,  Annot.  ad  3.  Mare. 
116. 


556  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

as  May,  yet  the  general  time  of  ripening  is  June.  There  are  othei 
Interpretations,  but  these  will  suffice  as  samples. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  none  of  these  explanations  touch  the 
root  of  the  matter — the  destruction  of  an  inanimate  object  because 
it  was  not  in  the  condition  in  wliich  it  was  expected  to  be  found. 

Friends  and  foes  seem  to  agree  on  one  point,  which  Dr.  Strauss 

states  thus :  "  Mark  adds  these  words  in  order  to  explain^ — what 

in  the  case  c)f  a  particular  tree  may  be  easily  ex- 

A  great  mistake.      i.j  '     n     ,.•  ij-  "r  ii 

plained,  even  in  iig-time,  by  disease  or  from  local 

causes, — why  Jesus  found  no  fruit  njion  itP  It  seems  to  me  that 
Mark  did  no  such  thing.  It  was  not  the  absence  of  fruit  but  the 
presence  of  leaves  which  Mark  sought  to  explain.  It  appears  that 
in  the  case  of  the  fig  the  fruit  often  appeal's  before,  and  generally 
with,  the  leaves ;  the  early  fruit  comes  before  the  leaves,  which 
do  not  appear  until  late  in  the  season.*  Indeed,  the  appearance 
of  fig-leaves  is  one  of  the  signs  of  approaching  summer,  as  Jesus 
said  (Matthew  xxiv.  32),  "  When  its  branch  .  .  .  puts  forth 
leaves  you  know  that  the  summer  is  nigh."  If  the  '^ap  in  the 
original  be  translated  "  althougli "  instead  of  "  for,"  it  seems  to 
me  that  great  help  will  be  afforded  to  the  proper  comprehension 
of  the  passage.  No  man  was  expecting  figs ;  but  as  they  went 
towards  Jerusalem,  in  these  first  days  of  April,  they  saw  a  fig- 
tree  in  foliage,  "  although  it  was  not  the  season  of  figs."  If  leaves, 
then  there  should  have  been  fruit,  for  the  fruit  comes  fii-?t.  Jesus 
was  not  angr}',  but,  as  was  usual  with  Oriental  teachers,  when  he 
found  occasion  to  teach  a  lesson  symbolically,  he  seized  the  occa- 
sion. 

He  blighted  the  tree  not  because  it  did  not  have  fruit,  but  be- 
cause being  fruitless  it  did  have  leaves.  The  tree  stood  a  symbol 
of  the  Jewish  people,  leafy  and  fruitless ;  in 
advance  of  all  the  nations  of  the  earth  in  religious 
pretensions,  while  being  at  the  same  time  quite  as  destitute  of 
real  fruit  as  the  Greeks  and  Romans  and  others,  whom  tlioy  re- 
garded as  barbarians  and  pagans.  In  a  special  manner  that  par- 
ticular sect  of  the  Jews  called  the  Pliarisees  leafed  out  into  mani- 
fold baptisms,  and  minute  titliings,  and  excessive  fastings,  and 
broadened  phylacteries,  while  the  fruits  of  j^iety  and  humanity 
were  nowhere  to  be  found  in  their  lives.  The  act  of  Jesus  was 
not  vindictive,  but  didactic ;  he  did  no  harm  to  the  tree,  while  he 

•  Hackett's  IUu«.  of  Soripturcs,  p.  141. 


THE   SECOND   DAT.  557 

impressed  a  profound  lesson  upon  his  disciples  by  what  may  he 
considered  an  acted  Parable  and  Prophecy. 

But  there  is  still  another  consideration  which  seems  to  me  more 
important  than  all  others.  Possessing  power  to  smite  and  tc 
destroy,  and  beiup;  about  to  yield  himself  volun- 

•  1  1        11        ^      r  1-11  -    ^  J.     ^  gfrand  truth. 

tarily  to  death,  a  death  irom  winch  he  might 
easily  extricate  himself  by  destroying  all  his  enemies,  it  was  im- 
portant that  the  world  should  know  that  he  had  this  power; 
otherwise  the  scrandeur  of  his  self-sacrifice  would  be  unknown  to 
the  race.  There  were  only  two  ways  in  which  he  could  exhibit 
it,  by  smiting  things  animate  or  things  inanimate.  It  was  in  pur- 
est mercy  that  he  chose  the  latter.  We  now  know  what  he  could 
have  done  when  bound,  and  buffeted,  and  insulted,  and  led  out 
to  be  crucified.  He  could  have  made  Caiaphas,  or  Pilate,  or 
Herod,  or  the  Roman  centurion  the  blasted  result  of  the  exercise 
of  his  power.  To  know  that  he  had  this  power,  and  did  not  exert 
it  on  men,  under  the  circumstances,  is  the  grandest  display  of 
mercy  possible  to  man,  and,  let  it  be  said  devoutly,  possible  to 
God.  It  is  worth  more  than  all  the  trees  that  ever  grew.  Plant 
this  stricken  tree  of  Tuesday  beside  the  cross  of  Friday,  and  you 
have  a  suggestion  worth  the  study  of  man  through  all  ages  of  time 
and  of  eternity. 

We  have  seen  that  very  early  in  his  ministry  Jesus  had  entered 
the  Temple  and  rebuked  its  secularization  by  driving  the  profaning 

mouev-chano-ers  from  the  sacred  precincts.     (See     ^        ,  ,       . 

^  ^    .      -r      ,  1  1  Second  cleansing 

p.  12b.)     It  does  not  seem  to  have  made  a  per-    ^^  ^^^  Temple. 

manent  cure  of  the  evil.  The  Temple-market  as 
it  was  called,  tabernoi,  where  animals  for  sacrifice,  and  oil,  and 
wine,  and  salt,  and  incense,  were  sold  to  worshippers,  and  the 
uncurrent  and  profane  coin  of  those  who  came  fi-om  distant  coun- 
tries was  exchanged,  had  been  set  up  again  in  the  Court  of  the 
Gentiles.  Again  Jesus  overturned  the  tables  of  the  money- 
changers and  the  seats  of  the  dove-sellers,  and  drove  these  mer- 
chants from  the  House  of  God,  and  forbade  the  carrying  of  uten- 
sils through  the  Holy  House,  as  if  it  were  a  common  edifice.* 


*  It  is  supposed  that  operatives  and 
mechanics  on  their  way  to  work  stepped 
in  for  worship,  bringing  their  tools  with 


take  a  longer  way  around,  those  who 
were  engaged  about  the  Temple  carried 
utensils  through   the   holy   places.     It 


them  and  setting  them  down  while  they  I  was  the  general  secularization  of  holy 
prayed,  thus  making  the  Temple  a  com-  things  which  Jesus  rebuked  and  endeav- 
mon-place.     Perhaps  also,  rather  than  i  ored  to  reform. 


558  THE    LAST    WEEK. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  first  cleansing  of  the  Temple,  at  the 
beginning  of  his  ministry,  was  performed  by  Jesus  as  an  act  of 
zeal  on  his  part  as  a  prophet.  The  learned  Selden  *  and  others 
maintain  the  existence  of  a  zealot-right,  which  justified  one  who 
was  moved  by  sudden  uncontrollable  prophetic  impulse  to  attack 
existing  irregularities  in  the  national  worship.  In  some  such 
spirit  Jesus  seems  to  have  performed  the  first  cleansing.  This 
second  purification  appears  to  be  made  in  character  of  Messiah. 
The  people  were  giving  him  such  a  recognition.  He  could  not, 
in  such  a  position,  allow  this  profanation  of  the  Temple  of  God. 
It  is  to  be  noticed  that  the  first  purification  excelled  in  violence  of 
act,  and  the  second  in  severity  of  word.  In  both  cases  there  was 
a  majesty  and  moral  force  in  the  very  presence  of  Jesus,  Avliich 
accomplished  the  cleaning  of  the  courts  by  the  quick  disappear- 
ance of  the  merchants.  Freely  combining  and  using  two  passages 
from  the proplietic  writings,  Isaiah  Ivi.  7,  and  Jer.  vii.  11,  he  says: 
"  Is  it  not  written  that  My  house  shall  be  called  a  house  of  prayer 
for  all  the  nations  ?  But  you  are  making  it  a  den  of  robbers."  The 
charge  is  that  The  Chlkc]!  had  become  at  once  narrow  and  pro- 
fane. God's  religion  has  the  spirit  of  universality  ;  it  is  a  religion 
for  all  the  nations  ;  theii-s  excluded  the  nations,  and  where  Human- 
ity should  have  been  represented  there  was  a  body  of  thieves. 

These  fine  discriminations  are  characteristic  of  Jesus — discri- 
minatit)ns  which  escape  ordinary  observation,  but  which,  when 

once  made  by  him,  summon  the  history  «»f   the 
Fine  discnmina-  ^,^j.j^  ^^  ^Ymu'  demonstration.     In  every  age  we 

can  now  see,  since  Jesus  has  indicated  it,  that 
there  is  an  exceedingly  slight  difference  between  a  bigot  and  a 
thief.  He  who  is  unwilling  to  allow  to  his  fellow-man  the 
spiritual  rights  he  has  in  virtue  of  being  a  man,  will  not  long 
hesitate  to  take  from  him  his  material  properties.  And  he  who 
will  cheat  a  saint  will  not  long  hesitate,  when  he  has  an  oppor- 
tunity, to  defraud  a  sinner. 

This  severity  was  followed  by  acts  of  mercy.  ]?lind  and  lame 
people  came  to  him,  and  he  healed  them  publicly  in  the  Tem])le. 

The  children  caught  the  general  enthusiasm.   The 
ac  o  mercy.  j.y,uy,j^]jr5j,^(,g ^f  Palm-Sunday  jul)ilations  and  the 

sight  of  the  discomfited  merchants,  and  of  the  healed  patients, 

•  DeJure  Nat.  et  Oent.,  iv.  6.     The  I  Phinehas,  Numb.  xxv.  11. 
supposition  is  suggested  by  the  act  of  I 


THE   SECOND   DAT.  559 

whose  sight  and  activity  had  been  restored,  kindled  the  ardor  of 
the  young,  and  they  sang  around  the  powerful  Teacher,  "  Ilosanna 
to  tlie  Sou  of  David."  It  gave  sore  displeasure  to  the  churchmen 
to  see  a  man  who  was  not  in  the  succession,  not  of  the  tribe  of 
Aaron,  doing  things  more  wonderful  than  miracles,  and  receiving 
these  Messianic  salutations.  To  the  latter  they  called  his  atten- 
tion, pointing  to  the  children,  and  saying:  "Do  you  hear  what 
these  say  ?  "  His  reply  was  prompt  and  emphatic  :  '*  Yes  !  Have 
you  never  read,  '  Out  of  the  mouths  of  babes  and  sucklings  Thou 
hast  perfected  praise  ? '  "  (Psalm  viii,  2.)  They  did  not  believe 
that  he  was  the  Messiah  in  any  sense.  The  children  employed 
words  from  the  sacred  writings  which,  whatever  sense  their  ten- 
der minds  may  have  seen  in  them,  no  man  could  accept  who  did 
not  believe  himself  to  be  the  Messiah  in  some  sense.  Jesus  did 
accept  them. 

More  and  more  the  malignity  of  the  church  deepened  against 
him.  The  scribes  and  chief  priests  sought  how  they  might  destroy 
him  ;  for  they  feared  him  because  the  people  were  astonished  at 
his  teaching.  During  the  day  he  taught  in  the  Temple.  Wlien 
the  evening  came  he  retired  to  rest  in  Bethany. 


CHAPTER    III. 


THE  THIRD   DAT — FROM   MONDAY   EVENING   TO   TUESDAY   EVENINO. 


Bethany  and  Je- 
rusalem. Tuesday, 
3d  AprU,  12th  Ni- 
san,  A.  u.  783. 
Matt,  xxi.,  xxii. , 
xxiii. ,  xxiv. ,  xxv. , 
xxvL  ;  Mark  xL, 
xi:  ,  xiii.,  xiv.  ; 
Luke  XX.,  xxi. 


The  morning  of  the  third  day  found  Jesus  and  his  disciples  re- 
turning to  Jerusalem.  It  would  seem  to  have  been  dark  when 
they  crossed  the  Mount  of  Olives  the  evening  be- 
fore, so  dark  that  they  had  not  noticed  tlie  condi- 
tion of  the  fig-tree  which  they  had  %'isited  the  morn- 
ing previous.  But  now  its  appearance  arrested 
their  attention.  The  blight  which  Jesus  shed 
upon  it  seems  to  have  begun  to  take  effect  at  once, 
and  in  twenty-four  hours  such  a  change  had  been 
wrought  that  now  it  was  dried  up  from  the  rocts. 
Peter,  calling  the  yesterday  to  remembrance, 
said  to  Jesus :  "  Rabbi,  see  ;  the  fig-tree  which  you  cui-sed  is 
withered  away."  The  solemn  reply  of  Jesus  was :  "  If  you  have 
faith  in  God,  I  assuredly  say  to  you,  whosoever  shall  say  to 
this  mountain,  '  Be  removed  and  cast  into  the  sea,'  and  shall  not 
be  divided  in  his  heart,  but  shall  believe  that  what  he  says  is 
coming,  it  shall  be  to  him.  On  this  account  I  say  to  you,  All 
things  whatever  you  pray  and  ask,  believe  that  you  have  received, 
and  they  shall  be  to  you.  And  when  you  stand  praying  forgive, 
if  you  have  anything  against  any  one,  that  your  Father  in  the 
heavens  may  also  forgive  you  your  trespasses."  * 

It  is  noticeable  that,  frequent  and  wonderful  as  has  been  the 
exhibition  of  the  powers  of  Jesus,  each  fresh  displa}'  strikes  his 
disciples  with  astonishment.  They  had  seen  tlie  dead  raised,  and 
now  tliey  are  astoni.-^lied  at  the  withering  of  a  fig-tree. 

Jesus  turns  them  from  astonishment  at  the  phenomena  to  con- 
sider the  necessary  intei-nsil  condition  of  a  powerful  soul  to  be 
that  of  faith  in  God.    A  litei-al  interpretation  of  his  woids  about 


*  In  the  common  version,  Mark  xi. 
20,  tliere  is  added,  "But  if  ye  do  not 
fortpve,  neither  will  your  Father  which 


is  in  heaven  forgive  your  trespasses." 
But  these  words  do  not  appear  in  the 
original  in  the  oldest  MSS. 


THE   THIRD    DAT. 


561 


removing  mountains   may   be   quite   puzzling,  and   perhaps  we 

can  hardly  satisfy  ourselves  with  the  suggestion  that  he  pointed 

to  the  oi^posite  mountain,  on  whicli  the  Temple 

.         1         ,      p.ii.T-i  -i^      Removing  moun- 

stood,  as  meanmg  that,  by  raith,  his  disciples  might    ^.^^^^ 

be  sustained  in  such  a  course  as  should  lift  the 

mountain  of  Judaism,  and  fling  it  out  of  the  way  of  the  progress 

of  true  religion.     But  it  is  quite  natural  to  suppose  that  he  taught 

that  faith  is  superior  to  bodily  strength,  and  that  generally  the 

spiritual  forces  of  the  universe  are  superior  to  the  physical.    And 

this  is  consistent  with  the  spirit  of  the  whole  body  of  his  teaching. 

As  for  the  remainder  of  his  speech,  it  is  a  repetition  of  what  we 

have  had  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount. 

The  people  assembled  at  an  early  hour  in  the  Temple.     There 

never  had  been  so  exciting  a  Feast  in  the  knowledge  of  the  oldest 

worshipper,  and  the  occurrences  of  the  previous 

^'^   .  ,      ,  .  CI  r.  By  what  author- 

day  had  mcreased  the  excitement,     feoon   aiter    .^  ^ 

the  arrival  of  Jesus,  the  representatives  of  the 

church  party,  the  High-Priest,*  accompanied  by  the  scribes  and 

the  elders,  came  to   him  with  that  same   old   foolish   churchly 

question,  "  By  what  authority  are  you  doing  these  things  ?  and 


*  In  the  Evangelists  it  is  "chief 
priests."  Lange  saj's :  "The  plural  is 
explained  by  the  then  existing  relations 
of  the  high-priesthood.  The  high-priest 
^was  supposed  legally  to  enjoy  his  func- 
tion during  life  {see  Winer,  art.  Hohe- 
pi-iester) ;  and  before  the  exile  we  read 
of  only  one  deposition  (1  Kings  ii.  27). 
But  since  the  time  of  the  Syrian  domi- 
nation the  office  had  often  changed 
hands  under  foreign  influence ;  it  was 
often  a  foot-ball  of  religious  and  politi- 
cal parties,  and  sometimes  even  of  the 
mob.  This  change  was  especially  fre- 
quent under  the  Roman  government. 
Thus  Annas  (Ananus)  became  high- 
priest  seven  years  after  the  birth  of 
Christ  (.ffira  Dion.)  ;  seven  years  later 
Ishmael,  at  the  command  of  the  Roman 
procurator  (Joseph.,  Antiq.,  xviii.  2,  2); 
afterward  Eleazer,  son  of  Annas ;  a  year 
later,  one  Simon;  and  after  another 
year,  Joseph  Caiaphas,  a  son-in-law  of 
Annas.     Thus  Caiaphas  was   now  the  i 

36 


official  high-priest ;  but,  in  con.sistency 
with  Jewish  feelings,  we  may  assume 
that  Annas  was  honored  in  connection 
with  him  as  the  properly  legitiimite  high- 
priest.  This  estimation  might  be  fur- 
ther disguised  by  the  fact  of  his  being 
at  the  same  time  the  pD,  or  vicar  of 
the  high -priest  (Lightfoot) ;  or,  if  he 
was,  the  N'L"3,  president  of  the  Sanhe- 
drim (Wieseler).  Compare,  however, 
Winer,  sub  Si/nednum.  That,  in  fact, 
high  respect  was  paid  to  him,  is  proved 
by  the  circumstance  that  Jesus  was 
taken  to  him  first  for  a  private  examin- 
ation (John  xviii.  13).  And  thus  he 
here  appears  to  have  come  forward  with 
the  rest,  in  his  relation  of  colleague  to 
the  official  high-priest.  Moreover,  the 
heads  of  the  twenty-four  cla.sses  of  the 
priests  might  be  included  under  this 
name.  Probably  the  whole  was  the  re- 
sult of  a  very  formal  and  solemn  ordi- 
nance of  the  Council,  at  whose  heads 
stood  the  high-priests." 


562  THE  LAST  WEEK. 

who  gave  yon  this  authority  to  do  these  things  ?  "  It  ought  not 
60  much  to  surprise  us  that  the  bigots  of  the  old  narrow  Judaism 
should  ask  these  questions  as  that  the  nonsense  of  propounding 
them  should  have  been  perpetuated  through  eighteen  centuries, 
and  be  in  as  full  force  in  London  and  New  York  to-day,  not  to 
say  in  Home,  as  it  was  in  Jerusalem  in  the  days  of  Jesus.  As  if 
in  all  ages  of  the  world  the  knowing  of  any  truth  does  not  give  to 
liim  that  knows  the  authority  to  proclaim  it.  As  if  in  all  ages, 
the  possession  of  any  moral  power  to  do  good  does  not  give  the 
possessor  the  right  to  exert  that  power.  As  if  the  luminousness 
of  the  intellect  of  Jesus,  and  the  manifest  control  he  held  over 
the  physical  world,  did  not  lift  him  out  of  the  circle  to  which 
these  stupid  and  powerless  churchmen  could  with  any  propriety 
address  such  a  question.  But  tliey  had  just  that  dulness  of  spir- 
itual perception  which  ordinarily  accompanies  narrow  cumiing. 
This  latter  trait  appears  in  them.  They  hope  to  give  him  trouble 
by  a  dilemma.  He  might  put  forth  some  claim  which  would  con- 
flict with  the  acknowledged  canons  of  "  the  church  ; "  any  claim 
he  could  make  they  supposed  would  do  that ;  or,  if  he  could  show 
no  credentials,  he  would  lose  his  hold  upon  the  people. 

It  is  to  be  noticed  that  when  the  zeal  of  Jesus  led  him  in  the 
first  instance,  and  in  the  beginning  of  his  ministry,  to  purify  the 
Temple,  the  church  party  demanded  a  "sign."  Now,  for  the 
space  of  three  years,  he  had  been  filling  his  ministry  with  marvels, 
and  signs,  and  wondei'S,  and  miracles.  It  would  make  them 
ridiculous  to  demand  a  sign  so  near  the  very  spot  where  Lazarus 
was  raised  from  the  dead.  They  now,  perversely,  demand  his 
"  authority." 

In  their  own  nets  were  their  feet  entangled.     Jesus  submitted 

a  counter-dilemma.     They  claimed  to  be  the  body  set  to  judge 

the  riglit  of  teachei-s  and  prophets  to  fulfil  their 

vocation.  Jesus  determined  that,  as  thev  had 
lemma.  " 

publicly  challenged  him,  they  should  as  publicly 
demonstrate  their  capability  of  sitting  in  judgment  on  such  cases. 
With  that  view  he  submitted  to  them  a  case  well  Icnown  to  them, 
to  him,  and  to  the  multitude  who  were  listening — the  case  of  John 
Baptist.  Jesus  said,  "  I  also  will  ask  of  you  one  question,  and 
answer  mc,  and  I  will  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do  these  things. 
The  baptism  of  John — was  it  from  lieaven,  or  from  men  ?  Answer 
me !  "     All  the  people  knew  John  ;  so  did  the  Sanhedrim. 


THE  THIRD  DAT.  563 

It  was  a  sudden  question  in  the  field  of  theocratic  investigation 
They  saw  the  dilemma,  and  held  a  short  private  consultation.^ 
Jesus  silently  awaited  their  answer.  The  multi- 
tude were  too  dee^ily  interested  to  disperse.  The 
Sanhedrim  had  only  two  coui-ses  from  which  to  elect,  to  retire  and 
leave  the  field  to  Jesus,  or  shape  some  reply.  It  was  a  question 
which  demanded  a  categorical  answer.  Should  it  be  "  from  hea- 
ven," they  knew  Jesus  would  reply,  "  Wliy  then  did  you  not  be- 
lieve him  ? "  and  they  recollected  that  John  had  borne  the  most 
emphatic  testimony  to  Jesus.  They  would  thus  acknowledge 
John,  whom  they  had  rejected ;  but  if  they  did  so,  it  would  deprive 
them  of  all  prestige  and  influence  in  judging  Jesus.  "  The 
Church  "  weighed  consequences,  not  truth ;  that  is  the  fashion  of 
"  The  Church  "  in  every  land,  in  all  ages.  But  if  they  should  say 
"  of  men,"  deciding  that  John  had  no  authority  fi'om  heaven,  that 
his  was  a  self-assumed  office,  in  which  he  was  sustained  by  his 
partisans,  who  also  were  without  divine  authority,  then  they  feared 
that  the  people  would  stone  them,  for  the  multitude  held  John  to 
be  a  prophet. 

There  was  no  escape.  They  saw  it,  and  returned  to  Jesus  A\'ith 
the  statement,  "  "We  do  not  know."  And  Jesus  said  to  them, 
'*  Neither  do  I  tell  you  by  what  authority  I  do  these  things."  If 
tliey  were  not  able  to  determine  from  the  whole  ministry  of  John, 
which  was  now  completed,  whether  he  had  God's  favor  or  not, 
still  less  wei'e  they  able  to  judge  Jesus  in  the  midst  of  this  excite- 
ment. Their  discomfiture  was  complete.  They  acknowledged 
their  inability  to  exercise  the  functions  of  the  highest  office  in  a 
theocracy,  which  office  they  were  ostentatiously  parading,  and  the 
dignity,  the  authority,  and  the  power  of  which  they  had  brought 
forth  to  crush  Jesus.  lie  appealed  from  the  higliest  church  tri- 
bunal to  the  private  judgment  of  mankind,  and  is  sustained  wher- 
ever there  are  candid  judges. 

He  then  poured  in  upon  these  pretentious  churchmen  a  raking 
broadside  of  parables. 

In  further  reply  he  said,  "  But  what  think  ye  ?  A  man  had  two 
children :  and  he  came  to  the  first  and  said,  '  Child,  go  work  to- 


*  For  the  report  of  this  consultation 
we  are  probably  indebted  to  Nicodemus, 
who  was  a  member  of  the  Sandedrim, 
and  a  private  friend  to  the  disciples  of 


Jesus,  to  whom  he  probably  communi- 
cated what  had  passed  in  this  consulta- 
tion. 


564  THE    LAST   'WEEK. 

day  in  the  vineyard.'     And    he    answering,  said,  '  I  will  not.' 

Afterwards,  having  repented,  he  went.     And  he  came  to  the  other, 

and  said  likewise.    And  he  answering,  said,  '  1  g<\ 
Parable  of  the    gj      »  ^^^^  ^^.^^^  ^^^^     ^y^j^j^  ^^  ^j^^    ^.^^.^  ^^j^^   -j^^ 
Two  Sons. 

will  of  his  father  ? "  They  answered,  "  The 
first."  Jesus  said  to  them,  "  The  tax-gatherei-s  and  the  harlots  <ro 
into  the  kingdom  of  God  before  you.  For  John  came  to  you  in 
the  way  of  righteousness,  and  you  believed  him  not ;  but  the  tax- 
gatherers  and  the  harlots  believed  him ;  but  you,  when  you  had 
seen,  repented  not  afterward,  that  you  might  believe  him." 

This  was  exceedingly  severe.  These  churchmen  had  expressed 
a  willingness  to  serve  God,  as  had  been  shown  in  their  high  moral 
professions  and  pi'ctensions  of  legal  righteousness.  John  came  an 
earnest  preacher  of  that  very  kind  of  righteousness,  urging  that  it 
be  done  fi*om  the  heart  toward  God.  The  scribes  and  Pharisees 
showed  their  insincerity  by  rejecting  just  such  a  preacher  as  it  is 
evident  they  would  have  hailed  with  jo}',  if  they  had  not  been 
hypocrites.  And  when  God  set  the  seal  of  His  sanction  by  the 
conversion  of  the  worst  class  of  men  and  women  in  the  comnui- 
nity,  even  then  the  church  anthorities  rejected  him  who  bore  the 
credentials  of  the  heavenly  Father's  approval  of  his  ministiy. 
So  perverse  was  their  h}'))ocrisy,  that  when  the  most  convincing 
proofs  of  their  error  came,  they  refused  to  repent  of  the  original 
rejection  of  John. 

In  general  two  classes  of  sinners  are  here  represented,  as  in 
the  paral)le  of  the  Prodigal  Son,  the  one  at  first  outbreaking,  yet 
afterward  repentant  and  obedient,  the  other  pretending  to  obedi- 
ence, going  the  full  length  of  obedience  in  speech,  while  dis*^^)be- 
dient  at  heart  and  in  action.  Publicans  and  harlots  are  the 
former,  hypocrites  and  chnrchmen  are  the  latter. 

Jesus  continues  his  pungent  appeal  to  the  consciences  of  his 
advei'sai-ies.  lie  said  :  "  Hear  another  parable :  A  man,  a  house- 
holder, planted  a  vineyard,  and  made  a  hedge 
„..  f^^ .?  ^,    ^  .'^    about  it,  and  diijijced  a  wine-trough,  and  built  a 

Wicked  Husband-  ■,  ^       .  r  i 

j^j^j^  tower,  and  let  it  out  to  larmei'S,  and  went  abroad. 

And  at  the  season  of  fruit  he  sent  a  slave  to  the 
farmei-s,  that  he  might  receive  from  the  farmers  [his  share]  of 
the  fruits  of  the  vineyard.  And  [the  farmers]  having  caught 
him,  beat  and  sent  liim  away  with  nothing.  And  again  ho  sent 
to  them  another:  and  him  they  wounded  in  the  head  and  dishon- 


THE   THIRD   DAT.  565 

ored.  And  again  he  sent  anotlier,  and  that  one  they  killed  ;  and 
many  others,  beating  some  and  killing  some.  lie  had  yet  one  be- 
loved son.  He  sent  him  at  last  to  them,  saying,  '  They  will  rever 
ence  my  son.'  But  these  farmers  said  among  themselves,  '  This 
is  the  heir ;  come,  let  us  kill  him,  and  the  inheritance  will  be 
ours.'  And  they  took  and  killed  him,  and  cast  him  out  of  the^ 
vineyard." 

Then  Jesus  put  the  question  :  "  When,  then,  the  lord  of  the  vine- 
yard shall  come  what  shall  he  do  to  these  farmers  ? "  From  some 
one  burst  foiili  the  rejjly :  "  He  will  miserably  destroy  those 
wicked  men  and  let  out  the  vineyard  to  other  farmers,  who  shall 
render  him  the  fruits  in  their  season."  Some  one  present  ex- 
claimed :  "  Be  it  not  so ! "  or,  as  the  passage  stands  in  our  com- 
mon version,  "  God  forbid."  Quoting  Psalm  cxviii.  22,  Jesus  said  : 
"  Have  you  not  read  this  Scripture  :  '  A  stone  which  the  builders 
rejected  the  same  became  a  head  of  a  corner;  from  the  Lord  this 
came,  and  is  wonderful  to  our  eyes  ? ' " 

The  chief  priests  and  Pharisees  felt  the  keenness  of  the  speech 
against  their  principles  and  practices.  They  were  not  able  to  an- 
swer him,  and  therefore  sought  to  silence  by  killing  him,  a  thing 
tliey  had  already  decreed  to  do.  They  were  deterred  only  by  a 
fear  of  the  people,  whose  enthusiasm  for  Jesus  was  still  easily  ex- 
cited. 

Jesus  went  forward  with  his  parables,  so  searching  and  so  in- 
structive. He  said  to  them :  "  The  kingdom  of  the  heavens  is 
likened  to  a  man,  a  king,  who  made  wedding- 
feasts  for  his  son,  and  sent  forth  his  slaves  to  call  .  P^^^^^^'  ^^r- 
those  who  had  been  invited  to  the  wedding-feast ;  ^^^ 
and  they  did  not  wish  to  come.  Again  he  sent 
other  slaves,  saying :  '  Tell  those  who  have  been  invited.  Behold  I 
have  prepared  my  dinner,  my  oxen  and  my  fatlings  are  killed, 
and  all  things  are  ready :  come  to  the  feast.'  But  they,  making 
light  of  it,  went  away,  one  to  his  farm,  another  to  his  merchan- 
dise. And  the  rest,  having  seized  his  servants,  insulted  and  slew 
them.  And  the  king  was  enraged,  and  having  sent  his  armies  he 
destroyed  those  murderers  and  burned  their  city.  Then  says  he 
to  his  slaves :  '  The  wedding-feast  is  ready,  but  they  who  were  in- 
vited were  not  worthy.  Go  you,  therefore,  to  the  outlets  [the 
roads  leading  out  into  the  country],  and  as  many  as  you  find  call 
to  the  wedding-feast.'     So,  going  out  into  the  roads,  those  slaves 


56G 


TnE   LAST   WEEK. 


gathered  all  whom  they  found,  both  bad  and  good,  and  the  bride- 
chamber  was  fully  furnished  with  guests.  And  the  king,  coming 
in  to  view  the  guests,  saw  there  a  man  who  had  not  on  a  wedding- 
garment  ;  and  he  says  to  him :  *  Friend,  how  did  you  come  in 
here,  not  having  a  wedding-garment  ? '  And  he  was  speechless. 
Then  the  king  said  to  his  servants :  '  Having  bound  his  feet  and 
hands,  cast  him  into  the  darkness  which  is  without ;  there  shall  be 
the  weei^ing  and  gnashing  of  teeth :  for  many  are  called,  but  few 
chosen.  " 

This  seems  to  be  an  enlarged  repetition  of  a  parable  uttered 
earlier  in  his  ministry  in  tlic  house  of  the  Pharisee.  (See  p.  4S5.) 
That  such  a  Teacher  as  Jesus  often  repeated  his  teachings  is  what 
may  reasonably  be  supposed. 

lie  represents  the  heavenly  kingdom  in  the  light  of  a  festivity, 
combining  the  two  images  under  which  the  prophets  were  fond  of 
painting  the  reign  of  the  Messiah,  namely,  a 
kingdom.  ^*^^^^  ^^^^  ^  wcdding.*     Here  it  is  a  feast  given 

by  a  king  on  a  special  high  occasion,t  the  mar- 
riage of  his  son.  Invitations  are  issued  to  great  numbei-s  of  per- 
sons. In  accordance  with  Oriental  custom,  at  the  time  specified 
the  second  invitation  is  issued.  An  instance  of  this  appears  in 
the  invitation  of  Esther  to  Ilaman  to  come  to  a  banquet  on  the 
morrow,  and  the  sending  a  chamberlain  at  the  appointed  hour  to 
bring  him  to  the  feast.  (Compare  Esther  v.  8,  with  vi.  14.)  The 
subjects  of  this  king  had  been  entertaining  feelings  of  rebellion 
against  him,  and  now  that  they  were  able  to  insult  him  through 
his  messengers,  they  did  not  let  the  occasion  pass.  Some  treated 
the  invitation  with  contempt,  going,  one  to  his  estate,  which  he 
had  already  acquired,  and  another  to  the  business  Avhich  he  hoped 
woiild  enrich  him,  showing  how  they  preferred  their  private  inter- 
ests to  the  will  and  pleasure  of  their  sovereign.  Others,  wrought 
up  to  rebellion,  went  so  far  as  to  kill  the  messengers  of  their  king. 

The  Pharisees  saw  in  all  this  that  Jesus  meant  to  present  a  pic- 
torial history  of  the  rebellions  Jews,  and  felt  that  he  was  severe 
on  them.  But  then  he  began  to  speak  }>rophetically  l)y  describing 
the  burning  of  the  city  by  the  enraged  king.  Could  he  be  to 
audacious  as  to  mean  Jerusalem,  lioly  Jerusalem,  that  that  top- 


*  Compare  Isaiah  xxv.  6,  Ixv.  13 ; 
Cant.  V.  1,  with  Isaiah  Ixi.  10,  Ixii.  5, 
and  Ilosea  ii.  10. 


f  Uoclizeit^  high-time,   in  Gennanj, 
still  means  a  marriage-feast. 


THE   THIRD   DAY. 


567 


most  of  cities  should  be  so  destroyed  ?  It  really  seemed  so.  And 
if  this  festival  was  the  good  time  of  the  Messianic  reign,  did  he 
mean  that  the  Jews  were  to  be  destroyed  and  the  Gentiles 
brought  in  ?  It  really  seemed  so.  After  the  destruction  of  the 
city  the  servants  were  ordered  to  go  into  the  "  outlets,"  where  the 
streets  ran  into  the  countiy,*  and  bring  in  the  outsiders.  Jesus 
thus  added  fuel  to  the  flame  of  the  wrath  of  his  enemies. 

But  another  lesson  is  made  from  this  narrative.      When  the 
house  became  crowded  the  king  went  in  to  survey  the  guests,  and 
found  a  man  without  the  weddinp'-o-arment.     lie 
addressed  him  in  language  at  once  gentle  and 


lie  called  him  "  friend :"  but  in  the 


Without  the 
wed  ding -gar- 
ment. 


searching. 

Greek  the  "  not  having "  is  put  in  a  word 
which  suggests  not  simply  the  absence  of  the  wedding-dress,  but 
some  defect  in  the  behavior  of  the  guest  in  allowing  himself  to  be 
present  without  such  a  dress.f  The  speechlessness  of  the  guest 
indicates  that  he  had  not  even  a  specious  apology  to  offer.  The 
narrative  assumes  that  garments  were  at  the  guest's  command, 
and  therefore  that  the  king  himself  had  provided  them.  There 
seems  to  be  no  trace  of  such  a  custom  exactly  in  this  form,  but 
we  do  know  that  splendid  garments  were  reckoned  among  the 
treasures  of  Eastern  chieftains  and  kings ;  that  some  of  theni  pos- 
sessed immense  numbers  of  robes ;  that  the  gift  of  costly  rahnent 
was  a  mark  of  honor ;  and  that  a  mantle  presented  by  a  king  was 
to  be  worn  in  his  presence,  and  that  a  failure  to  appear  therein 
was  considered  oft'ensive.ij:  In  addition  to  what  we  read  in  the  Old 
Testament,  Horace  §  tells  us  that  Lucullus  found  in  his  wardrobe 
not  less  than  five  thousand  mantles.  The  fashions  did  not  change 
as  with  us,  and  a  man  of  wealth  might  accumulate  and  preserve 


*  Trench  guards  his  readers  against 
being  misled  by  the  English  word 
•'  highways,"  as  if  this  referred  to  the 
country,  whereas  the  whole  scene  is 
represented  as  lying  in  a  city.  But 
this  usually  accurate  and  learned  writ- 
er seems  to  have  forgotten  that  the 
city  is  represented  to  have  been  burned 
before  those  servants  go  out  into  the 
highways.  The  original  Greek  word 
means  oufways  as  well  as  tlirougli- 
ways. 

t  We  are  indebted  to  Trench  for  call- 


ing attention  to  the  fact  "  that  it  is  the 
subjective  and  not  the  objective  particle  of 
negation,  which  is  here  used."  Ou  ex""' 
signifies  not  Staving,  without  being  con- 
scious of  the  absence  of  anything,  or 
the  necessity  of  its  being  present ;  /utj 
€X'<"'  signifies  intentional,  7iot  Jiaving 
what  one  knows  one  should  have. 

X  In  illustration  of  these  points  read 
Judges  xiv.  12  ;  .Tobxx\-ii.  16  ;  Gen.  xlv. 
22 ;  2  Kings  v.  5  ;  2  Chron.  ix.  24  ;  Matt, 
vi.  19;  Acts  xx.  33  ;  James  v.  1,  2. 

§  Ei)i9t.,  i.  6,  40. 


§68 


THE   LAST   "WEEK. 


Wilful   unwor- 
tbiness. 


an  immense  wardrol^e.  The  customs  of  the  East  are  so  change- 
less, that  we  find  the  same  state  of  affairs  to-day.  A  modern 
writer,  Chardin,  acknowledged  to  be  unusually  well-infcn-med  and 
accurate,  says  of  the  King  of  Persia :  "  The  number  of  dresses  he 
gives  away  is  infinite."  *  The  same  writer  tells  of  a  vizier  who 
lost  his  life  from  failing  to  wear  a  gai-ment  which  had  been  sent 
him  by  the  king.  He  tells  us  that  the  ofticer  through  whose  hands 
the  robe  from  the  king  Avas  to  be  sent,  out  of  spite  forwarded  a 
plain  dress  instead.  The  vizier  thought  that  if  he  appeared  in 
that  it  would  announce  that  he  was  in  disgrace  at  court,  and  so 
made  his  public  entry  in  a  robe  presented  by  the  late  king.  Uis 
enemies  represented  to  the  monarch  that  his  minister  had  refused 
to  wear  his  gift,  which  so  incensed  him  that  he  ordered  the  vizier 
to  be  executed.! 

The  whole  picture  in  the  parable  is  in  accord  with  Oriental  cus- 
toms, and  represents  the  punishment  of  wilful  unworthiness.  The 
guest  was  willing  to  have  the  good  of  the  feast, 
if  he  could  enjoy  it  in  his  own  way  and  on  his 
OM-n  terms,  which  were  derogatory  to  the  honor, 
of  the  king  and  injurious  to  the  pleasure  of  the  other  guests.  He 
was  a  bold,  perhaps  a  despei-ate,  intruder.  He  who  could  dare 
enter  the  banqueting  saloon  of  his  king  in  such  a  shameful  style 
miglit  offer  resistance,  as  the  Jews  sliowed  when  they  were  about 
to  be  ejected  from  a  position  which  they  were  not  worthy  to  main- 
tain. But  resistance  would  be  ineffectual.  lie  was  to  be  bound, 
and  forced  out,  and  left  in  the  dark.  If  weak,  he  would  wail ; 
if  strongly  passionate,  he  would  gnash  his  teeth.  The  Marriage 
Feast  is  a  sifting  process.  So  God  sifts  and  sifts.  Only  those 
who  are  willing  to  partake  of  the  joys  of  the  universe,  and  will- 
ing to  take  them  in  the  way  of  God's  appointing,  a  way  intended 
to  heighten  the  individual  and  the  general  joy, — only  such  shall 
remain  in  the  high  feasts  of  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens. 

Then  tlie  Pharisees  went  and  took  counsel  how  they  miglit  en- 
tangle Jesus  in  his  talk.     And  they  watched  him,  and  sent  to  him 
a  company  of  spies  made  up  of  their  own  sect 
onspiracy.       ^^^^i  ^^^  ^|^^  Ilerodians.     The  latter  represented  a 

political  party,  whose  highest  hope  was  in  the  continuam^e  of  the 


*  Voyage  en  Perse,  vol.  iii.,  p.  230. 
Ilia  words  are  :  "  Le  nombre  des  hab- 
ita  qu'il  donne  est  infini." 


f  For  the  manner  in  which  the  rejec- 
tion of  a  monarch's  gift  was  resented, 
see  Herodotus,  i.  9,  c.  3. 


THE    THIRD   DAY.  5G9 

rule  of  the  Ilerodian  family.  They  were  the  special  adherents 
ot  Herod  Antipas,  and  perhaps  personal  attendants  npon  that 
tetrarch,  who,  we  learn  from  Luke  xxiii.  Y,  happened  to  be  pres- 
ent at  this  Passover.  That  dynasty  was  a  compromise  betwec]! 
total  national  independence,  of  which  this  party  of  the  Jews  were 
in  despair,  and  direct  Roman  rule,  which  was  to  the  minds  of  the 
Jews  the  extreme  of  political  degradation.  The  Ilerodians  did 
not  represent  a  theological  or  ecclesiastical  sect,  but  a  i)olitical 
party.  The  Sadducees,  although  they  were  unorthodox  material- 
ists, desired  to  maintain  the  ancient  faith  against  pagan  forms  of 
civilization  ;  and  the  Pharisees,  who  were  the  orthodox  religionists, 
preferred  the  domestic  tyranny  of  the  family  of  Ilerod  the  Great, 
who  were  nominally  orthodox  Jews,  to  the  pi-esence  and  rule  of 
Bome  heathen  appointee  of  the  Roman  emperor.  It  thus  hap- 
pened that  sometimes  the  Pharisees,  and  at  other  times  the  Sad- 
ducees, are  found  in  close  fellowship  with  the  Herodians  ;  but  the 
basis  of  the  fellowship  was  political  and  not  religions. 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  all  these  parties  had  the  most  intense 
bitterness  of  hatred  towards  Rome,  and  that  makes  their  conduct 
on  this  occasion  the  more  vile,  because,  since  Jesus  cannot  be 
forced  to  take  the  role  of  a  political  Messiah,  they  detennine,  if 
possible,  to  involve  him  in  the  fate  which  wonld  have  come  upon 
any  man  who  attempted  that  perilous  part  and  failed.  Or  per- 
haps the  intention  was  to  drive  him  into  taking  the  headship  of  a 
rebellion  against  Rome,  and  thus  realize  their  political  hopes,  or 
crush  him  out  of  their  way  as  the  social  rulers  of  the  people. 
Wlien  priests  and  politicians  combine  there  is  the  culmination  of 
human  villany. 

With  these  malicious  feelings  they  sent  a  body  of,  probably, 
young  men  of  both  parties,  who  should  now  go  to  him  as  private 
persons,  as  orthodox  Jews,  as  devoted  to  the  the- 
ocracy, as  scrupulous  men,  who  were  to  propound        Attempt  to  en- 
,T  •  •  .p   .  .  snare  Jesus, 

to  Jesus  an  ensnaring  question,  as  it  it  were  sim- 
ply one  which  was  troubling  their  consciences.     The  historian 
says  (Luke  xx.),  "who  should  feign  themselves  to  be  just  men, 
that  they  might  take  hold  of  his  conversation,  so  that  they  might 
deliver  him  to  the  power  and  authority  of  the  governor." 

The  manner  of  the  approach  was  gracious,  the  style  of  the  ad- 
dress was  complimentary.  They  said,  "  Teacher,  we  know  that 
you  are  true,  and  that  you  teach  the  way  of  God  in  truth,  neither 


570  THE   LAST   "WEEK. 

do  you  care  for  any  one,  for  you  do  not  look  to  the  face  of  men." 
Guileful  as  were  his  enemies,  tliey  were  compelled  to  give  this 
faithful  description  of  the  character  and  teaching  of  Jesus.  He 
was  truthful  because  he  was  independent.  He  had  demon- 
strated in  his  ministry  of  three  years  that  he  could  not  be  moved 
by  any  appeal  men  could  make  to  his  hopes  or  to  his  fears.  He 
was  independent  because  he  was  righteous.  All  this  was  truth  to 
which  the  people  could  bear  witness ;  but  it  was  not  uttered  in  the 
spirit  of  truth,  and,  while  essentially  and  profoundly  true  in  it- 
self, it  was  a  lie  on  the  lips  of  these  tempters. 

The  intent  of  this  manner  of  address  is  quite  obvious.  It  was 
an  attempt  to  cozen  Jesus.  It  was  a  movement  to  excite  him  into 
such  a  feeling  of  superiority  that  he  should  dare  utter  what  would 
bear  a  treasonable  interpretation,  which  the  Herodians  would  re- 
port, and  to  which  the  Pharisees,  as  impartial  and  unpolitical  per- 
sons, would  bear  testimony. 

The  question  was  one  of  marvellous  adroitness.     It  seemed  to 

demand  a  categorical  answer,  "  yes  "  or  "  no,"  or  enforced  silence. 

It  was  this:  "Tell  us,  then,  what  you  think  :  is  it 
An  adroit  ques-     j^^^.f  ^^^  ^^     -^  ^^..^^^^^  ^^  ^^^^^,  ^^,  ^^^^  ,  „      j^  j^^ 
tion.  ,  ,  ° 

said,  "  Yes,  it  is  lawful,"  he  would  shock  the  Jew- 
ish prejudices  of  the  populace.     He  would  be  charged  with  in- 
culcating a  humiliating  submission  to  a  heathen  conqueror.     He 
would  disparage  his  claims  to  the  Messiahship.     It  would  be  out- 
rageous that  the  theocratic  king  of  the  Jews  should  teach  submis- 
sion to  a  heathen  oppressor  of  his  own  people.     An  affirmative 
answer  Avould  thus  destroy  his  present  popularity  and  his  prospects 
of  future  advancement.     If  he  said,  "  No,  it  is  not  lawful,"  there 
would  be  o-round  on  which  to  rest  an  accusation  of  rebellion. 
It  might  be  a  speech  to  pass  without  notice  if  uttered  by  some 
bigoted  rustic  in  a  Jewish  village,  but  spoken  by  a  very  po])ular 
Teacher  at  the  high  festival,  in  the  metropolis,  and  in  the  Tem- 
ple of  his  nation,  it  becomes  altogether  another  thing.     Rt)me 
would  not  pass  lightly  by  such  a  speech  of  such  a  man  under  such 
circumstances.     These  conspirators  supposed  that  he  must   say 
"yes"  or  "  no,"  and  perhaps  it  occurred  to  them  that  if  for  any 
reason  Jesus  should  see  fit  to  decline  an  answer,  this  would  put 
him  just  where  he  had  placed  them  by  his  dilemma  in  regard  to 
Jolin  the  Baptist,  and  that  thus  they  should  recover  the  ground 
they  had  lost  in  that  conflict. 


THE   TUIKD   DAT. 


571 


But  Jesus  neither  kept  silence  nor  gave  a  categorical  reply. 
He   read  them  through  and  through.     He  upbraided  them  for 

their  dissimulation.     "  AYhy  do  you 

tempt  me,  you  hypocrites  ?  "    And 

then  he   turned  upon  them  with  a 

^i>\i  SJ       ^^.p-^^Aa/    most  unexpected  movement.    "Show 

me  the  coin  of  the  tribute,"  he  said, 
and  they  brought  him  a  denarius,  the 


AUGTJ6T08  CiBSAB. 


The  net  torn. 


common  silver  coin  of  the  Empire  then  in  circulation  in  Palestine, 
being  the  ordinary  pay  for  a  day's  labor.  He  held  the  piece  of 
money  in  his  hand  and  asked — not  that  he  did  not  know,  but 
manifestly  that  their  own  lips  should  speak  it — "  "Wliose  is  this 
image  and  superscription  ? "  They  answered,  "  Caesar's."  His 
reply  was  like  a  flash  of  inspiration,  "  Kender  therefore  Caesar's 
things  to  Caesar,  and  God's  things  to  God !  " 

Was  there  ever  anything  fairer  ?  The  net  was  torn  to  pieces. 
All  morality,  all  piety,  and  all  the  companionship  of  the  numer- 
ous duties  were  put  into  eleven  Greek  words,  which 
require  only  the  same  number  of  English  words 
to  translate  them.  All  personal  devotion  to  God,  all  justice  towards 
man,  all  equipoise  of  character  were  set  forth  in  a  sentence  which 
can  be  pronounced  in  a  breath.  They  had  accepted  money  from 
Caesar's  mint,  thus  acknowledging  the  dominion  of  the  Emperor  ; 
thus  they  had  settled  against  themselves  in  practical  eveiy-day 
life,  the  question  which  one  of  their  schools  had  determined  in 
the  rabbinical  rule,  "  The  coin  of  the  comitry  shows  the  master."  * 

Jesus  thus  o;ave  a  summary  of  his  teachino^  In  an  answer  the 
most  profound,  because  it  states  what  underlies  all  life  and  all  the 
duties  thereof ;  the  most  lofty,  because  it  crowns 
the  highest  hopes  of  man  for  this  present  life,  and 
his  grandest  for  the  life  to  come ;  the  most  beauti- 
ful, because  in  it  law  and  freedom  kiss  each  other ;  the  most  power- 
ful, because  it  holds  despotism  and  anarchy  apart,  and  holds 
religion  and  progressive  free  life  together.  No  other  one  sentence 
uttered  among  men  has  done  so  much  for  the  progress  of  human 
society.  It  was  not  a  divorciui]'  of  relii^iou  from  government,  and 
a  putting  of  God  out  of  the  affairs  of  the  nations,  as  if  human 


A  profound  les- 
son. 


*  Ellicott  quotes  Maimonides  in  Ge- 
zdao,^^  chap  v. :  "  Ubicunque  numisma 
regis  alicujus  obtinet,  illic  iacola3  regem 


istum  pro  domino  agnoscunt. "     See  also 
Lightf oot,  Ho):  Heb. ,  in  Matt.  xxii.  20. 


573  TOE   LAST   WEEK. 

government  and  divine  rule  stood  at  neutrality  or  in  antagonism. 
Nor  was  it  a  sanction  of  Jewish  ideas  of  unity,  as  if  service  to  an 
earthly  nionarcli  were  treason  to  God,  as  under  their  theocracy 
they  had  grown  to  believe,  since  God  was  king.  Cajsar  exists  by 
appointment  of  God.  Government  does  not  exist  by  the  will 
of  the  governed,  nor  by  the  will  of  the  governor,  but  by  the  ordi- 
nance of  God.  Men  dare  not  be  without  government ;  nor  is  it 
practicable  if  men  should  attempt  it.  Duty  to  the  govei'nment  is 
best  discharged  by  devotion  to  God ;  and  duty  to  God  involves  the 
discharge  of  obligations  to  the  government.  These  hypocrites  and 
liai-s  who  were  tempting  Jesus  were  like  all  the  disciples  of  the 
"  higlier  law  "  school  in  every  age,  making  their  pretended  piety 
an  excuse  for  a  violation  of  civil  obligations.  They  were  willing 
to  serve  neither  God  nor  Caesar,  pleading  one  against  the  other  that 
they  might  be  free  from  both.  But  Jesus,  instead  of  admitting 
the  alternative  of  Caesar  or  God,  assumes  and  impresses  the  con- 
nection of  Caesar  and  God. 

Perhaps  the  idea  that  Jesus  intended  to  convey  a  lesson  by  the 
allusion  to  the  image  on  the  coin  is  not  without  foundation.  It  has 
obtained  in  all  Christian  ages.  Man  beare  God's  image  in  his 
Boul  from  the  birth,  and  is  a  man  because  he  does  bear  that  image, 
as  a  piece  of  silver  is  a  coin  because  it  bears  the  image  of  the 
reigning  prince.  Render  your  inner  spiritual  life  to  God  and 
devote  your  outer  worldly  life  to  your  country,  might  seem  to  be 
the  lesson  for  each  individual.  In  any  case  there  is  no  collision  of 
duties. 

AVlien  the  Pharisees  and  Ilerodians  heard  the  saying  of  Jesus 
they  marvelled  at  the  wisdom  of  his  reply,  and  seeing  that  they 
could  not  take  hold  of  his  words  before  the  people,  they  held  their 
peace  and  left  him,  and  went  their  way. 

But  their  pursuit  of  Jesus  was  not  to  be  thus  abandoned.  If  he 
cannot  be  caught  by  an  adroit  question  regarding  political  princi- 
ples, perhaps  he  can  be  betrayed  into  saying  some- 

The  pursuit  not    ^^i^inj,  which  shall  rouse  against  him  the  adherents 

abandoned.  ,.  ,.    ,  i  i         m       i     . 

of  one  of  the  sects  among  the  people,     lo  that 

end  the  Saddiicecs  approached  him ;  and  they  had  a  question  so 

shaped  that  any  answer  they  could  conceive  would  either  ct)mmit 

him  against  the  law  of  M(jses  or  drive  him  into  the  helplessness  of 

Bilence.     Jesus  had  endorsed  the  law  of   Moses,  and   had  also 

explicitly  tauglit  the  doctrine  of  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 


THE   THIRD   DAY,  573 

The  Sadducees  were  materialistic  pantheists.  They  did  not 
believe  in  any  spirit,  whether  of  man,  angel,  or  God.  They  did 
not  believe  in  the  resurrection  of  the  body,  and  therefore,  as  the 
body  was  all  there  was  of  man,  the  continued  existence  of  con- 
scious personal  identity  was  not  received  by  them.  They  ran  their 
principles  to  the  logical  ends  of  atheism  or  pantheism.  In  out- 
ward life  they  were  decent,  and  considered  themselves  a  part  of 
the  "  church,"  and,  so  far  as  we  can  see,  were  not  debarred  by  their 
philosophical  tenets  from  being  members  of  the  Sanhedrim.  For 
political  reasons  they  were  ready  to  join  the  Pharisees  and  the 
Herodians — indeed  some  of  the  sect  may  have  been  Ilerodians — 
in  putting  aside  a  man  whose  course  threatened  to  bring  the  Jews 
into  collision  with  the  Romans  without  the  prospect  of  making  a 
successful  revolt  against  the  dominant  empire. 

The  Sadducees  plant  themselves  on  Moses  and  quote  the  law  of 
the  Levirate  marriage,  thus :  "  Teacher,  Moses  said,  If  any  one 
die,  having  no  children,  his  brothe'r  shall  marry  his 
wife  and  raise  up  seed  to  his  brother.  But  there  g^^^^fj^g""  ^^^^^ 
were  with  us  seven  brothers ;  and  the  first,  having 
married,  died,  and  not  having  seed  he  left  his  wife  to  his  brother. 
Likewise  the  second  also,  and  the  third,  until  the  seventh.  And 
last  of  all  the  woman  died.  Now  in  the  resurrection  of  which  of 
the  seven  shall  she  be  wife?"  From  their  standing-point  this 
seems  like  a  difficulty  from  which  Jesus  cannot  extricate  himself. 
He  must  admit  that  their  statement  of  the  law,  being  a  free  render- 
ing of  Deuteronomy  xxv,  5,  is  quite  correct.  Then  they  state  a 
case.  Whether  it  occurred  in  real  life  or  is  imagined  in  order  to 
test  the  principle,  is  not  important.  It  might  occur.  It  would 
have  been  sufficient  to  take  the  very  case  which  Moses  supposed, 
namely,  of  two  brothers  ;  but  the  greater  the  number  the  greater 
the  perplexity,  and  therefore  they  state  seven.  It  is  clear  that 
they  suppose  that  IMoses  did  not  believe  in  the  resurrection,  and 
the  question  which  they  state  involves,  as  they  think,  in  any  reply 
which  Jesus  can  make,  a  surrender  of  the  truth  of  the  doctrine 
of  the  resurrection,  or  of  the  binding  force  of  the  law  of  Moses. 
It  is  quite  clear  that  they  did  not  propound  the  question  that  they 
might  be  enlightened.     It  was  to  entangle  Jesus. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  was  lofty  in  its  spirit  and  demolishing  in  its 
stroke.  He  did  not  deign  a  reply  to  a  sneer  at  a  great  doctrine, 
nor  a  solution  specially  applicable  to  a  case  sensually  conceived 


574  THE  LAST   WEEK. 

and  coarsely  stated.     He  showed  tlieir  folly  and  stated  the  great 
principle  involved  in  the  case,  and  demonstrated  by  a  single  quota- 
tion from  the  writings  of  Moses  that  the  great  law- 
pyo     esuB.    gj^.gj.  ^jj^g  neitiiej.  pantheist  nor  Sadducee.     Ilia 

reply  is,  "  Ton  are  wandering,  knowing  neither  the  ScriiDtures  nor 
the  power  of  God.  For  in  the  resurrection  they  neither  marry  nor 
are  given  in  marriage,  but  as  the  angels  of  God  in  heaven  are 
they.  But  concerning  the  resurrection  of  the  dead,  have  you  not 
known  precisely  that  spoken  to  you  by  God,  saying,  '  I  am  the  God 
of  Abraham,  and  God  of  Isaac,  and  God  of  Jacob  ? '  lie  is  not 
the  God  of  the  dead,  but  the  God  of  the  liN-ing." 

He  rejects  their  pantheistic  notions,  asserts  the  personality  of 

God,  teaches  that  those  of  whom  Jehovah  is  God  cannot  be  dead, 

but  alive.     God  is  /  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob 

Jesns     against    ^^^     These  men  are  dead,  so  far  as  the  world  is 
pantheism.  .  .•■,■,• 

able  to  perceive ;  but  they  are  as  certamly  alive  as 

God  is.  lie  answers  their  quotation  from  Moses  of  the  provision 
for  Levirate  marriages,  by  showing  them,  by  another  quotation 
from  Moses  (Exod.  iii.  6),  how  the  belief  in  the  continued  exist- 
ence of  men  after  death  underlay  the  highest  teachings  of  the 
great  lawgiver.  lie  gives  them  to  understand  that  their  question, 
which  was  propounded  in  the  spirit  of  libertinism,  involved  a 
gross  error,  which  came  of  their  ignorance  of  both  the  meaning  of 
Scripture  and  the  power  of  God.  It  does  not  seem  that  Jesus 
charged  the  Sadducees  with  being  ignorant  of  the  omnipotence  of 
God,  but  that  they  did  not  discern  the  power  of  God  in  holy 
Scripture ;  that  to  them  a  writing  was  a  writing,  and  nothing  more ; 
in  short,  that  they  did  not  know  that  the  fact  of  the  power  of  God 
being  in  the  Scripture  was  a  proof  that  God  is  a  spirit. 

The  marriage  relation  is  one  of  the  natural  and  not  of  the  spir- 
itual body.  This  forced  Levirate  marriage  was  most  unnatural. 
Wliether  any  love  existed  between  the  widow  and 
^  amage  na  -  j^^^  brother-in-law,  whether  or  not  she  loved  an- 
other man  better,  or  he  had  already  a  wife  whom 
he  loved,  liis  brother's  widow  must  be  taken  to  his  arms.  The 
whole  arrangement  was  made  for  the  preservation  of  the  family. 
There  should  be  no  need  for  any  such  regulation  in  the  world 
which  men  enter  at  death.  There  the  men  do  not  marry,  and 
women  are  not  married.  If  sex  remain,  there  is  nothing  which 
demands  such  unions  as  we  have  on  earth  ;  so  then  tlie  case  which 


THE   TUUKD   DAT.  575 

the  Saddiicees  cited  as  conclusive  really  liad  no  bearing  -whatever 
on  the  question  under  discussion.  The  Sadducees  did  not  see  far 
enough  to  perceive  that  human  beings  may  exist  in  two  states 
successively,  without  losing  their  identity ;  while  we,  who  are  in 
one  of  those  states,  do  not  see  how  arrangements  of  the  other  can 
at  all  correspond  with  this.  A  priori,  it  would  be  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  we  could  not  see  this  connexion,  and  that  any  diffi- 
culty proposed  \vould  amount  simply  to  an  acknowledgment  of 
our  ignorance,  and  no  proof  of  any  other  proposition  whatever. 
That  is  what  Jesus  implies.  You  are  in  error  ;  your  error  is  the 
result  of  your  ignorance ;  but  your  ignorance  can  have  no  effect 
upon  the  facts  of  God  and  of  eternity. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  silenced  the  Sadducees  and  excited  the 
admiration  of  the  multitude,  and  even  some  of  the  better-minded 
Pharisees,  according  to  Luke,  exclaimed:  "Well  said!"  so  de- 
lighted were  they  with  the  reply. 

One  of  them,  a  lawyer,  came  forward  with  a  question  to  Jesus. 

The  term  "  lawyer,"  vo^iiko^,  so  frequent  in  the  Evangelists,  must 

be  understood  to  mean  one  who  devoted  himself 

to  the  study  and  exposition  of  the  Mosaic  law,  a  '^^?  laser's 
,.,1.11,  x~r  r  T-v    •    •  1  question, 

bibhcai  scholar,  a  Doctor  or  Divinity,  rather  than 

one  practising  in  the  courts  of  civil  and  criminal  law.  "We  are 
not  quite  sure  as  to  the  spirit  which  prompted  this  question.  The 
Pharisees  were  undoubtedly  elated  that  Jesus  had  silenced  the 
Sadducees.  They  might  have  felt  that  now  was  the  time  to  show 
their  superiority  by  j^i'oposing  a  good  question,  implying  they 
were  not  concerned  in  things  so  gross  as  those  which  occupied  the 
Sadducees.  Or  this  lawyer  may  have  personally  desired  to  know 
what  was  the  opinion  of  this  Teacher  upon  a  question  which  was 
one  of  great  interest  in  the  schools  of  the  Pharisees.  Or  the 
Pharisaic  party  may  have  wished  to  make  him  repeat  the  com- 
mand which  asserted  the  great  doctrine  of  monotheism,  from 
which  they  argued,  as  Moliammed  has  subsequently,  that  God 
could  have  no  son,  and  to  reflect  it  upon  the  claim  which  Jesus 
had  made  of  being  the  Son  of  God  in  an  exceptional  sense. 

These  suppositions  are  suggested  by  the  question  itself,  by  the 
answer  of  Jesus,  and  by  the  counter-question  which  followed. 

The  lawyer  asked,  "  Of  what  nature  is  the  first  commandment 
of  all  ?  "  This  is  strictly  the  meaning  of  the  question,  and  not,  as 
in  the  common  veraion  of  Mark,  "  Which  is  the  first  ? "  and  of 


576  TnE   LAST   "WEEK. 

Mattliew,  "Which  is    the    great   commandment?"     The  legal 
spirit  had  taken  such  possession  of  the  Jews  that  they  enumer- 
ated, says  Braune,  305  prohibitions,  according  to 

mandmenT  ^^'  ^^^^  ^^^^  ^^  *^^  Y^^^i  ^"^  228  commandments, 
according  to  the  parts  of  the  body.  The  Pliarisees 
distinguished  between  light  and  heavy,  great  and  small  laws. 
They  regarded  them  quantitively.  Each  command  in  the  deca- 
logue had  its  adherents.  There  was  no  danger  in  any  selection 
Jesus  might  make.  But  the  point  of  peril  lay  here :  if  he  said, 
as  was  most  probable  from  his  character  and  teaching,  that  the 
first  commandment,  "  Thou  shaft  have  no  other  God  before  me," 
contained  the  principle  of  supreme  love  to  God,  his  answer  would 
make  the  basis  for  a  charge  of  blasphemy.  In  the  original  it  is 
TToia,  "  v:hat  kind  of  a  law,"  what  is  the  spirit  and  principle  of 
the  chief  law.  "We  shall  see  that  the  two  counts  against  Jesus  at 
last  were  political  aspiration  and  blasphemy,  into  both  which  his 
adversaries  had  endeavored  to  force  him ;  and  having  failed  of 
the  first  they  are  still  trying  the  second. 

Jesus   answered,  "  The  first  is,  Hear,    Israel  ;    the   Lord  our 

God  is  one  Lord  ;  and  you  shall  love  the  Lord  your  God  with  all 

your  heart,  and  all  your  soul,  and  all  your  intel- 

e  repy  0     lect,  and  all  your  strength.      This  is  the  first  and 
Jesus.  ■'  ~ 

great  command.    The  second  is  like  it,  this :  You 

shall  love  your  neighbor  as  yourself.  There  is  not  any  other 
commandment  greater  than  these  ;  on  these  two  commandments 
depend  the  law  and  the  prophets."  It  will  be  perceived  that  as 
he  had  foiled  their  efforts  to  make  him  compromise  himself 
politically,  so  now,  from  any  involvement  in  blasphemy,  which 
would  have  been  caused  by  a  surrender  of  the  claims  he  had  al- 
ready made,  especially  if  accompanied  by  an  assertion  of  the  debt 
of  supreme  love  to  God  alone,  Jesus  saves  himself,  by  adding  imme- 
diately after  the  first  command  the  second,  and  saying  that  it  was 
like  the  fir.<t,  and  then  conjoining  them  and  declaring  that  on  the 
two  was  suspended  all  that  the  law  and  the  prophets  contained. 
It  was  bringing  together  what  God  had  joined  and  man  had  sepa- 
rated, namely,  God  and  man,  heaven  and  earth.  It  was  a  decla- 
ration that  all  the  morality  of  the  law,  and  the  religious  faith  and 
fervor  of  the  prophets,  lay  in  loving  God  up  to  the  full  measure 
of  human  capal)ility,  and  loving  one's  fellow-man  up  to  the  full 
measure  of  a  healthy  and  natural  self-love  which  has  not  run 


THE   THIRD    DAY. 


577 


to  selfishness.  The  reply  was  simple,  coni]^  rehensive,  and  sub- 
lime. 

The  scribe  felt  it.  lie  exclaimed,  "  Well,  Teacher,  you  have 
spoken  the  truth.  One  lie  is :  and  there  is  not  another  1)esides 
Ilim.  And  to  love  Ilim  with  all  your  heart,  and  all  your  under- 
standing, and  all  your  strength,  and  to  love  your  neighbor  as  your- 
self, is  more  than  all  the  whole  burnt-offerings  and  sacrifices." 
This  gushing  expression  of  belief  seemed  to  please  Jesus,  who 
said  to  him,  "  You  are  not  far  from  the  kingdom  of  God.".  This 
is  an  important  sentence.  It  lets  us  into  the  knowledge  of  the 
meaning  of  Jesus  when  he  speaks  of  "  the  kingdom  of  God," 
which  he  makes  synonymous  with  "  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens." 
An  apprehension  of  the  spiritual  meaning  of  the  laws  of  God,  of 
the  abstract  essence  which  is  independent  of  the  concrete  forms 
of  right,  and  on  which  those  concrete  forms  themselves  depend,  is 
the  beginning  of  tlie  comprehension  of  a  kingdom  whose  existence 
does  not  rest  upon  matter  as  a  foundation,  nor  grow  out  of 
matter  as  a  root,  a  kingdom  which  is  itself  the  substance  of  all 
visible  things.  The  things  that  are  seen  are  to  be  known  thor- 
oughly only  as  understood  in  their  connection  with  the  things  that 
are  not  seen.  The  former  ^ccist  from  the  latter,  and  the  latter 
svh'&vsX  for  the  former.  That  is  the  fundamental  principle  of  all 
the  teachings  of  Jesus,  and  so  indispensable  did  he  consider  it  that 
he  regarded  his  whole  mission  of  teaching  as  embraced  in  the  work 
of  preaching  that  kingdom. 

While  the  Phai-isees  were  collected  together,  Jesus  in  las  turn 

began  to  propound  questions.      He  had  upset  all  their  traps  and 

silenced  all  their  cavils.     He  turned  upon  them 

.,,     ,,  ,.  ,,  y^  ,  .^  ^  Jesus   asks    a 

With  the  question :  "  How  does  it  seem  to  you    n^gg^jon 

about  the  Christ?  AVhose  son  is  he?"  They 
were  scandalized  because  Jesus  had  claimed .  to  be  the  Son  of 
God,  since  God  could  have  no  son,  in  their  opinion.  But  they 
were  looking  for  the  Messiah,  that  is  the  Christ,  that  is  the 
Anointed  Deliverer.  Now  He  must  be  some  one's  son.  Whose  ? 
"  David's,"  was  their  reply.  Jesus  said  :  "  In  what  sense,  then, 
did  David,  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  call  him  Lord,  saying,  '  The  Lord 
said  unto  my  Lord,  Sit  on  my  right  hand,  luntil  I  put  your  ene- 
mies under  your  feet."*  H,  then,  David  calls  him  Lord,  in  what 
sense  is  he  his  son  ?  " 

The  tranquillity  of  Jesus,  his  serene  self-possession,  after  the 
37 


578 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


The  Evangelista 
avoid  characteri- 
zation. 


badfrering  through  whicli  liis  unscriipnlons  and  malicious  enemies 
liad  carried  him,  must  occur  to  every  leader  of  the  narrative. 
The  original  historians  do  not  point  it  out,  in- 
deed they  almost  entirely  avoid  characterization, 
narrating  facts  and  sayings,  apparently  innocent 
of  all  their  highest  connections.  And  yet  there 
are  those  connections.  Jesus  had  been  hailed  by  the  people  as 
Messiah  ;  he  was  in  the  Temple  acting  as  Messiah  ;  he  turned  the 
conversation  with  his  enemies  into  a  discussion  of  the  Messiah. 
Let  the  reader  go  back  to  the  account  of  the  first  visit  of  Jesus 
to  the  Temple  after  his  circumcision,  and  recollect  the  question 
which  the  boy  of  twelve  years  propounded  to  his  mother  when 
she  was  concerned  at  his  being  separated  from  her  company : 
"  Do  you  not  know  that  I  must  be  about  my  Father's  business  ?  " 
in  a  special  manner  claiming  God  for  his  father,  and  the  affaii-s 
of  the  Temple  the  business  in  which  he  should  be  engaged. 
(Luke  ii.  49,  50.) 

Now  he  confounds  their  pertinacity  and  instructs  their  igno- 
rance at  the  same  time.  lie  quotes  the  firet  verse  of  Psalm  ex., 
a  psalm  the  Jews  in  the  time  of  Jesus  miiver- 
sally  interpreted  as  Messianic*  They  do  not 
deny  that  this  is  a  prophecy  of  the  Messiah, 
Christ.     But  the  Pharisees  in  their  teaching  had  entirely  lost 


David's  Son  and 
David's  Lord. 


*  The  Jews  never  denied  the  Mes- 
sianic application  of  this  psalm  before 
the  daj-s  of  Jesus,  and  his  argnmeut 
came  upon  them  so  suddenly  that  they 
did  not  think  of  dodging  his  blow  by 
making  the  denial  then.  Indeed,  as  I 
suggest  in  the  text,  they  would  not 
have  dared  to  face  the  people  \\nth  such 
a  denial.  Better  take  the  blow  of  Je- 
sus than  outrage  the  feelings  of  the 
multitude  by  denying  what  had  always 
been  taught  and  believed.  Uut  after- 
ward, when  Christians  pushed  this  ar- 
gument of  Jesus,  and  when  it  ceased  to 
be  dangerous,  they  denied  the  Jlosslanic 
applicability  of  the  psalm.  Ju.stin  Mar- 
tyr {Dinhff.  cont.  I'ri/ph.)  and  Ter- 
tuUian  (Ado.  M'irri'm)  mention  the  ex- 
planation whi<;h  makos  Ilo/ckiah  the 
subject  as  common  among  the  Jews  of 


that  day.  Chrj'sostom  found  in  his  day 
a  great  diversity  of  opinions  among  the 
Jews.  It  was  applied  to  Abraham, 
Zerubbabel,  Hezekiah,  the  Jewish  peo- 
ple, etc.  But  there  was  not  the  slight- 
est difference  of  opinion  among  the 
Jews  before  the  day  when  Jesus  pre- 
sented his  argument  in  tlie  Temple. 
Then  it  became  evident  that  if  the  Mes- 
sianic inteqiretation  be  adhered  to,  the 
charge  of  blasphemy  against  Jesus  was 
absurd,  and  his  execution  for  blasphemy 
was  a  murder  of  most  outrageous  char- 
acter. The  reader,  if  he  can  consult 
the  books,  will  find  this  historical  state- 
ment verified  by  Ilengsteuberg,  Chru- 
tol,  i.  vol.:  Michaelis.  A>i?i'>t  on  l/nr/io- 
graph.,  i.  vol.;  and  Wctstein  on  Matt, 
ixii.  44. 


THE    THIED    DAT.  579 

pi'glit  of  the  spiritual  character  of  the  Messiah.  They  liad  come 
to  regard  him  merely  as  a  man,  chosen  by  the  Almighty  to  be 
Messiah,  Christ,  because  of  his  surpassing  virtue.  They  could 
not  see  the  possibility  of  any  one  being  superior  to  themselves,  as 
they  were  in  the  succession  of  the  regularly  appointed  teachers  of 
the  Scriptures,  still  less  could  they  understand  that  any  one  should 
be  superior  to  David.  The  term  Messiah,  Clirist,  Anointed,  given 
in  words  from  three  lansruaefes,  but  meaning  the  same  thino-,  was 
originally  applied  to  all  Hebrew  kings  and  chief  magistrates,  as 
Arsaees  was  among  the  Persians,  Pharaoh  among  the  Egyptians, 
and  Oiesar  among  the  Romans.  But  in  process  of  thought  and 
of  time  it  came  to  be  associated  with  the  One  looked-for  Deliv- 
erer of  the  nation.  This  man  should  be  of  the  lineage  of  David. 
It  was  easy  to  say  he  was  David's  son,  and  in  one  sense  it  was  not 
incorrect.  But  David,  under  the  highest  inspiration,  as  they  be- 
lieved, said  that  Jehovah  said  to  this  Messiah  :  "  Sit  on  my  right 
hand  until  I  put  your  enemies  under  your  feet ;  "  and  David  calls 
this  Messiah  "  My  Lord."  They  had  not  thought  of  this  before. 
On  their  theory  they  are  confounded  ;  on  the  theory  of  Jesus  all  is 
plain.  God  could  have  a  son,  who  should  sit  at  his  right,  that  is, 
share  with  Him  the  government  of  the  world,  and  who  at  the 
same  time  could  be  a  descendant  of  David.  The  same  person 
conld  be  Son  of  God  and  Son  of  Man,  being  Son  of  David. 

They  could  not  deny  that  those  words  were  in  the  Scriptures. 
They  dared  not  say — whatever  Sadducees  might — that  the  words 
were  not  inspired,  and  they  could  not  stultify 
themselves,  and  shock  popular  prejudice  by  sud-  again  pe^llxed. ' 
denly  denying  what  they  themselves  and  all  their 
predecessors  had  taught,  namely,  that  that  inspired  splendid  lyric 
referred  to  the  Messiah.  They  were  silenced.  They  asked  Jesus 
no  more  questions. 

Then  followed  the  last  public  discourse  of  Jesus  to  the  Jews. 
It  is  exceedingly  terrible.  Turning  to  the  multitude  and  to  his 
disciples,  he  said : 

"  Upon  ^Moses's  scat  the  scribes   and  Pharisees  have  seated  themselves. 
Therefore  all,  whatever  they  sliall  say  to  you,  do ;  but  do  not  accordmg  to 
their  works,  for  they  say,  and  do  not.      And  they  bind 
great  heavy  burdens,  and  lay  them  on  the  shoulders  of      ^^  '"'*  ""^''^  ^'*- 

*^  course  of  Jesus. 

men ;  but  they  will  not  move  tliera  with  their  finger.     For 

all  their  works  they  do  for  to  be  seen  of  men;    for  they  broaden  their 


580  THE    LAST   -NVKEK. 

phylartorics  and  enlarge  their  fringes;  and  they  love  the  top  couches  at  feasts 
and  the  top-seats  in  the  synagogues  and  the  salutatif)ns  in  the  murket-phices 
and  to  be  called  of  men  Rabbi. 

"  But  do  not  you  be  called  Rahhi ;  for  one  is  your  Leader,  and  you  are  all 
bictluen.  And  call  no  one  your  father  on  the  earth  ;  for  one  is  your  Father, 
tlie  Heavenly :  neither  be  you  called  leaders ;  for  one  is  your  Leader,  the 
Christ  [Messiah].  But  the  greater  of  you  shall  be  sci-vant.  And  whosoever 
shall  exalt  himself  shall  be  abased,  and  he  who  shall  humble  himself  shall  be 
exalted." 

Then  turning  to  the  church  party,  he  said  : 

"  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hyi^ocrites !  because  ye  devour  the 
houses  of  widows  and  for  a  pretence  make  long  praj-ers ;  therefore  you 
shall  receive  the  greater  condemnation.  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees, 
hypocrites !  because  ye  shut  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens  in  front  of  men, 
for  you  neither  go  in  yourselves,  nor  allow  those  who  are  coming  in  to  enter. 
Woe  unto  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypocrites  !  for  you  go  al)Out  sea  and 
land  to  make  one  proselyte,  and  when  he  becomes  so  you  make  him  tenfold 
more  a  son  of  Gehenna  than  yourselves.  Woe  unto  you,  the  blind  guides, 
who  say,  'Whosoever  shall  swear  by  the  Temple,  it  is  nothing ;  but  whosoever 
shall  swear  by  the  gold  of  the  Temple,  he  is  a  debtor  ! '  Fools  and  blind  ! 
for  which  is  greater,  the  gold,  or  the  Temple  which  makes  the  gold  holy  ? 
And,  '  If  one  shall  swear  by  the  altar,  it  is  nothing  ;  ]jut  if  any  one  swear  by 
the  gift  tliat  is  on  it,  he  is  a  debtor  ! '  Blind !  for  which  is  the  greater,  the 
gift,  or  the  altar  which  makes  the  gift  holy  ?  He,  therefore,  who  swears  by 
the  altar,  swears  by  it  and  by  all  things  on  it ;  and  he  who  swears  by  the  Tem- 
ple, swears  by  it  and  by  Him  who  dwells  in  it ;  and  he  who  swears  by  heaven, 
swears  by  the  throne  of  God,  and  by  Him  who  sits  upon  it. 

"  Woe  to  you.  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hyi)ocrites !  for  you  tithe  mint  and 
anise  and  cummin,  and  have  omitted  the  weightier  matters  of  the  law,  judg- 
ment, mercy,  and  faith.  These  it  was  right  to  do,  and  not  to  leave  the  others 
vmdone.     Blind  guides !  straining  out  a  gnat,  swallowing  a  camel. 

"  Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hyjjocrites  I  for  you  cleanse  the  out- 
side of  the  cup  and  of  the  dish,  but  within  they  are  full  of  rapacity  and  in- 
justice. Blind  Pliarisoes  !  cleanse  first  the  inside  of  the  cup  and  of  tlie  dish, 
that  the  outside  of  them  may  l)e  clean  also. 

"Woe  to  you,  scribes  and  Pliarisees,  hypocrites!  for  you  arc  like  to 
whited  sepulchres,  which  outwardly  indeed  appear  beautiful,  but  are  within 
full  of  the  bones  of  the  dead  and  of  all  filth.  Tims  you  also  outwardly  in- 
deed appear  righteous  to  men,  but  within  you  are  full  of  hypocrisy  and  law- 
lessness ! 

"Woo  to  you,  scribes  and  Pliarisees,  hypocrites!  because  you  l)uild  the 
tonil)S  of  the  prophets  and  ornament  the  monuments  of  the  just,  and  say, 
If  we  had  been  in  the  days  of  our  fallura  we  would  not  have  been  partakers  with 
them  in  tlie  blood  of  the  prophets.  So  that  you  testify  to  yourselves  that  you 
are  the  sons  of  the  muiderers  of  the  prophets,  and  you  have  filled  up  the 


THE   THIKD   DAT.  581 

measure  of  your  fathers.  Serpents,  breed  of  vipers,  how  can  you  escape  the 
jndgmcnt  of  Gehenna  ? 

"  On  this  account,  see,  I  send  to  you  prophets  and  wise  men  and  scribes,  some 
of  whom  you  shall  kill  and  crucify,  and  some  of  them  you  shall  scourge  in 
your  synagogues,  and  persecute  them  from  city  to  city,  that  on  you  may  come 
all  the  righteous  blood  shed  upon  the  earth,  from  the  blood  of  righteous  Abel 
to  tlie  blood  of  Zacharias,  whom  ye  slew  ])etween  the  Temple  and  the  altar. 
I  assuredly  say  to  you.  All  tlicse  things  shall  come  upon  this  generation. 

"  O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem !  killing  the  prophets  and  stoning  them  that  are 
sent  to  you,  how  often  would  I  have  gathered  your  cluldren  together,  even  as 
a  hen  gathers  her  chickens  under  her  wings ;  and  you  were  not  willing !  See  ! 
your  house  is  left  to  you  desolate !  For,  I  say  to  you.  You  shall  not  see  me 
from  this  time,  till  you  shall  say.  Praised  he  lie  coming  in  the  Lord's  name  !  " 

This  is  a  terrible  speech. 

One  is  remanded  to  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  by  various 

points  of  similarity  and  contrast.     The  main  resemblance  lies  in 

this,   that    both   are   discourses   on    Chakacter. 

One  was  delivered   in   the   beffinnino-    and   the    ^    ompare    wi 

.    .  °  II  Sermon    on    the 

other  at  the  end  or  his  mniistry,  yet  both  set    jio^n^t. 

forth  the  ruling  doctrine  of  his  life,  namely,  that 
office  is  nothing,  that  profession  is  nothing,  that  internal  spiritual 
character  is  everything.  It  will  be  perceived  also  that  parts  of 
the  Sermon  of  the  Mount,  as  well  as  parts  of  this  Denunciatory 
Valedictory,  were  repeated  at  several  stages  of  his  ministry,  so  as 
to  give  a  certain  class  of  critics  some  ground  for  saying  that  both 
are  collections,  made  by  the  art  and  insight  of  the  Evangelist 
(lyiatthew),  who  grouped  his  teachings  into  something  like  ora- 
tions. But  there  is  a  terrible  beauty  of  unity  in  this  last  fiery 
discourse,  which,  more  than  any  argument  of  criticism,  it  seems 
to  me,  will  make  ever}'  reader  feel  that  it  was  all  delivered  at 
once.  Passages  may  have  been,  and  doubtless  were,  uttered 
as  occasion  called  them  forth ;  but  here,  in  his  Farewell  to  Juda- 
ism and  Jerusalem,  Jesus  pours  his  soul  in  a  full  tide  of  grand 
and  pure  passion  down  the  channel  of  a  final  discourse. 

Moreover,  one  perceives  that  the  Sermoii  on  the  Mount  is 
constructed  upon  the  principle  of  describing,  first,  the  essentials 
of  a  good  character,  and  then  the  results  in  the  open  life ;  while 
the  Denunciatory  Valedictory  first  describes  a  wrong  outward 
life,  and  then  traces  these  fruits  to  the  sap  of  hypocrisy.  It  has 
also  been  noticed  that  the  number  of  the  woes  in  this  case  is 
equal  to  the  number  of  benedictions  in  that,  and  some  have  made 


582 


THE    LAST    WEEK. 


a  Strict  correspondence.  Wliile  we  may  not  be  able  to  perceive 
that  as  closely  as  others,  the  analysis  of  this  discourse  will  never- 
theless suggest  it. 

The  speech  opens  with  some  instructions  to  his  disciples  in  the 
presence  of  the  multitude.  He  advises  them  to  do  as  the  sci-ibes 
Instruction  ^^^  ^^^^  Pharisees  said,  not  as  they  did.  These 
men  had  the  seat  of  doctrinal  authority.  Bur- 
densome as  M^ere  some  of  the  regulations  which  they  imposed  on 
the  people,  in  their  public  teachings  they  inculcated  sound  mo- 
rality. If  the  disciples  of  Jesus  had  set  themselves  in  a  revo- 
lutionary manner  against  these  teachei-s  of  the  law  there  would 
have  been  public  disorder,  a  worse  thing  than  allowing  these  men 
to  retain  the  seat  they  had  taken,  representing  Moses  in  the 
teacliing  of  the  law.  But  their  conduct  was  so  wicked  that  no 
authority  which  they  seemed  to  derive  from  their  position  was  to 
give  them  such  an  influence  over  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  and  the 
multitudes  who  heard  him,  as  to  lead  them  into  imitatiii<r  the 
example  of  these  hypocrites,  who  covered  the  viciousness  of  their 
lives  by  laying  heavy  burdens  on  the  shouldei-s  of  othc*  men. 
Their  whole  life  was  a  sham.  They  never  did  riglit  because 
it  was  right  and  because  it  would  be  pleasing  to  God,  but  simply 
that  they  might  enjoy  the  applause  of  men.  Their  life  was 
a  perpetual  lie.  That  they  might  have  the  reputation  of  sanctity 
they  made  broad  their  phylacteries  and  fringes. 

In  literal  aj)})!! cation  of  the  figurative  expressions  of  Exodus 
xiii.   9,  10,  and  Deuteronomy  vi.  8,  9,  that  the  law  should  be 

^.     ,   ,  bound  as  frontlets  between  the  eyes,  the  Phari- 

The  phylactery.  ,  ,         .  ,,     ,     ,    ,  ,  .,, 

sees  made  what  is  called  "  the  tejphtlla  on  the 

head,"  and  in  the  text  and  elsewhere  called  phylactery.  These 
were  strips  of  parchment  on  which,  with  an  ink  prepared  for  the 
purpose,  were  written  four  passages  of  Scripture,  namely.  Exodus 
xiii.  2-10,  11-17;  Deuteronomy  vi.  4-9,  and  13-22.  These 
strips  were  rolled  up  in  a  case  of  black  calf-skin,  which  was 
attached  to  a  stiffer  piece  of  leather,  having  thongs,  covered 
with  Hebrew  letters,  which  thongs  being  passed  round  tlie  head 
and  nuide  into  a  knot  in  the  shajje  of  n,  were  passed  over  the 
breasts.  Instead  of  writing  the  law  of  God  on  their  menKiries 
and  affections,  as  tlie  Scriptures  had  taught  tlicm,  these  Phari- 
sees contented  thenjselves  with  making  a  parade  of  their  phy- 
lacteries. 


THE   THIRD    DAY.  583 

In  Numbers  xv.  38,  Jehovah  commands  the  Israelites  to  "  make 
them  fringes  [in  Hebrew  r:t^:£,  tsitsitK]  in  the  borders  of  their 
garments,"  and  "  that  they  put  upon  the  fringe 
of  the  borders  a  ribbon  of  blue."  The  blue  was 
the  symbolical  color  of  heaven  and  of  God's  faitlif ulness.  It  was 
much  used  in  sacred  things.  The  High-Priest's  ephod,  the  loops 
of  the  curtains  of  the  Tabernacle,  the  ribbons  for  the  breastplate, 
and  the  ribbons  for  the  plate  of  the  mitre,  were  blue.  Setting 
up  these  tsitsithim  they  were  to  remind  themselves  of  their  being 
children  of  the  covenant,  and  that  they  were  faithfully  to  keep  the 
commandments  of  a  God  who  on  His  part  would  be  faithful  to 
all  His  promises.  Losing  all  memory  of  the  spiritual  meaning 
of  the  regulations,  these  liypocrites  had  learned  to  satisfy  them- 
selves with  an  enlargement  of  the  fringe  on  the  garment  in  place 
of  a  deepening  sentiment  of  humble  piety  in  the  soul. 

These  men  loved  the  chief  place  at  feasts.  Among  the  Greeks 
the  seat  of  honor  was  the  highest  place  on  the  divan,  among  the 
Persians  and  the  Komans  it  was  the  middle 
place.  The  Pharisees  loved  also  the  highest 
places  in  the  spiagogues,  and  it  gratified  their  vanity  to  be 
called  Teacher,  Doctor,  Rabbi.  Against  these  Jesus  warned 
his  disciples.  They  were  not  to  love  to  be  called  Pabbi,  a  title 
which  occurs  in  three  forms,  liab^  Teacher,  Doctor ;  liahbi, 
My  Doctor  or  Teacher ;  Bahhom,  My  great  Doctor.  Nor  were 
they  to  call  any  man  ''  Father,"  in  the  sense  of  granting  him  any 
infallibility  of  judgment  or  power  over  their  consciences.  All 
the  disciples  of  Jesus  are  of  equal  authority,  all  arc  brethren. 
"  Papa,"  as  the  simple  Moravians  call  their  great  man.  Count  Zin- 
zendorf ;  "  Founder,"  as  Methodists  denominate  good  John  "Wesley ; 
"Holy  Father  in  God,"  as  bishops  are  sometimes  called;  "  Pope," 
which  is  the  same  as  "Papa;"  "Doctor  of  Divinity,"  the  Chris- 
tian equivalent  of  the  Jewish  "  Rabbi,"  are  all  dangerous  titles.* 


*  It  is  contemptible  in  any  minister 
of  the  Gospel  to  seek  the  title  of  Doctor 
of  Divinity.  The  solicitation  of  its  be- 
stowal on  himself  proves  the  applicant 
unworthy.     It  is  foolish  and  Pharisaic 


known  to  his  acquaintances  to  be,  on 
other  grounds,  a  very  vain  man.  It  is 
as  Pharisaic  to  reject  it  as  to  seek  it. 
No  man  for  such  a  cause  can  plead  this 
teaching  of  Jesus  in  justification,   be- 


to  reject  it.  No  man  can  possibly  prove  cause  the  public  rejection  violates  the 
to  any  other  man  that  his  rejection  was  spirit  of  this  very  precept.  It  says  to 
not  prompted  by  vanity.  Probably  no  [  the  world,  ' '  See  :  1  am  greater  than 
man  yet  haa  rejected  it  who  was  not  ,  these  Doctors  of  Divinity  ;  I  can  afford 


584 


THJE   LAST   •^S'EEK. 


But  it  is  not  the  employment  of  a  name  which  Jesus  de- 
nounces, it  is  the  spirit  of  vanity  which  animated  the  Phari- 
sees, and  tlie  servile  spirit  which  the  employment  of  titles  is 
apt  to  engender.  Paul  and  Peter  spoke  of  themselves  as  spiri- 
tual fathers.*  Jesus  teaches  that  i^ositions  in  the  societies  of 
his  followers,  such  as  should  afterward  be  formed,  were  not  to 
be  regarded  as  dignities,  but  rather  as  services;  that  no  man 
should  seek  them  for  the  honor  they  might  confer,  but  for  the 
field  of  usefulness  they  might  afford ;  and  that  no  man  should 
lead  off  a  sect,  there  being  but  one  leader ;  and  that  the  whole 
body  of  believers  are  brethren,  of  whom  God  is  the  Father. 

Then  he   turned   upon   the   Pharisees  and   exposed   and   de- 
nounced them. 

1.  Opjx)6ed  to  that  "poverty  of  spirit"  which  is  the  subject 
of  the  first  benediction  in  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  is  a  de- 

^.  nunciation  of  that  lie  which  pervaded  the  long 

with  the  Sermon.  P^'^yers  of  charity  made  by  these  sanctimonious 
Pharisees,  while  they  were  privately  devouring 
the  houses  of  defenceless  widows.  Even  in  their  prayere  they 
lied.  They  were  not  able  to  be  honest  at  their  devotions. 
And  this  is  mentioned  first,  because  it  seems  to  be  a  key 
to  the  whole.  If  when  a  man  approaches  God  in  ])rayer  he 
is  a  hypocrite,  how  can  he  be  otherwise  with  his  fellow-men  ? 
To  obtain  the  ])roperty  of  the  helpless  unrighteously  is  bad 
enough,  but  to  commit  this  villany  under  the  garb  of  piety  is 
absolutely  damnable. 

2.  In  the  "  Sermon,"  he  had  blessed  inonmers,  encoinaging  all 
who  are  penitent,  making  tlieir  heartfelt  grief  a  source  of  com- 
fort to  them.     But  the  Pharisees,  being  unchari- 
table and  hyjxjcritical  at  once,  not  only  did  not 

repent  and  prepare  themselves  for  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens, 
but  actually  kept  others  from  entering.     They  sat  in  the  seat  of 


Second  coiitraet. 


to  di«peiM€  with  the  title."  The  only 
decent  comthh  in  Hilence.  But  Christian 
collegf;H  ought  to  \>e  careful  in  the  ViC- 
Rtowal  of  a  title  which  bo  tests  the 
Chriirtianity  of  the  recipient.  Jetnu 
teacheti  nn  that  we  ought  not  to  love  to 
be  calle<l  by  any  namcB  which  seem  to 
elevate  xxtt  atjove  our  brethren.  Mr., 
Hacter,  might  just  as  well  be  rejected 


as  Dr..  Teacher,  for  originally  it  mean! 
the  same ;  and  it  in  mnch  wonie  to 
allow  one's  self  to  be  called  "  Rever- 
end "  than  to  allow  the  title  of  Doctor. 
It  is  not  courtesy  which  Jesus  conflomns, 
but  vanity. 

•  See  1  Cor.  iv.  l.^  ;  1  Tim.  i.  2;  Ti- 
tufl  i.  4  ;  1  Peter  v.  13. 


THE   THIKD  DAY.  5 85 

Moses.  Tliev  should  have  been  the  teachers  of  a  true  spiritual 
religion.  But,  instead,  when  men  showed  any  signs  ol  a  spir- 
itual awakening  rhey  repressed  them,  as  they  were  trying  to  sup- 
press him  who  taught  the  highest  spiritual  truths.  Their  sitting 
at  tlie  door  of  knowledge  as  janitors  was  a  lie,  over  which  Jesus 
pronoimced  a  "  woe." 

3.  Their  position,  however,   demanded  that   they  should   do 

something.     They  spent  their  sti-ength  on  proselyting.     It  was 

not  to  save  souls ;  it  was  not  even  to  convert  hea- 

.v  -.T  ijT  '    ^  J     Third  contrast. 

thens  into  Jews,  nor  even  bad  Jews  into  good 

Jews,  but  it  was  to  add  to  the  number  of  their  sect.     It  was  that 

same  spirit  which  sometimes  now  seizes  the  sects  of  Christendom, 

making  them  pnnid  of  the  growth  of  the  "  denomination,"  the 

"  connection,"  '•  the  church,"  or  whatever  else  the  sect  may  be 

called.     It  is  opposed  to  that  "  meekness  "  which  is  the  subject  of 

the  third  beneiiiction  in  "  the  Sermon."     They  were  fierce  and 

hot^  like  the  Gehenna,  tlie  burning  valley  of  Ilinnom,  and  when 

they  made  a  pervert  he  was  doubly  as  bad  as  themselves,  as  per 

verts,  the  world  through,  usually  are. 

4.  Jesus  denounces  their  morality,  which  was  a  base  casuistry, 
the  very  opposite  of  that  "  hungering  and  thii^sting  after  right- 
eousness "  which  he  had  blessed  in   "  the   Ser- 
mon."    Tliey  had  g^uie  blind  on  the  simplest  and 

plainest  questions  of  morality.  He  gives  a  case.  The  oath  by 
the  Temple — *'  by  this  Dwelling  " — was  f i-equent.  Sometimes  it 
was  by  the  Temple-treasure.  The  Pharisees  distinguished  be- 
tween the  binding  obligation  of  these  oaths.  The  violation  of  the 
former  was  a  trivial  offence ;  of  the  latter  was  a  heinous  crime. 
It  was  the  foolish  casuistry  of  those  who  set  more  store  by  the 
church  than  by  the  chapel  or  meeting-house,  who  forget  the  value 
of  that  which  sanctities,  and  think  only  of  that  which  may  be 
sanctitied,  as  if  building,  ornaments,  vestments,  ceremonials,  cvni- 
stitute  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens.  So  of  their  other  cjise :  an 
oath  by  the  gift  on  the  altar  is  more  binding  than  an  Oiith  by  the 
altar  itself.  This  folly  would  seem  to  be  transparent  to  any  men, 
if  we  did  not  know  that  learned  "  doctors  "  of  the  later  ages  had 
not  taught  in  the  spirit  which  makes  the  rubric  of  a  ritual  more 
impvM-tant  than  an  enactment  of  the  Decalogue.  Their  whole 
Bvstem  of  ethics  was  ix^tten,  and  Jesus  cursed  it. 

5.  And  then  he  pronounced  a  woe  over  their  hyjxvrisy  in  what 


586 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


they  would  have  considered  their  devotion  to  religion.  The  law 
of  tithes,  as  set  fortli  in  Levit.  xxvii.  30 ;  Numb,  xviii.  21  ;  Deut. 

Fifth  contrast.  ^"'  ^ '  ^"*^  ^^^'-  -^'-'^j  embraced  only  the  grain  that 
grew  in  their  fields  and  the  fruits  that  grew  in 
their  orchaitl-^.  But  the  schools  had  applied  the  rule  to  the  smallest 
product  of  tlie  garden,  "With  scrupulous  exactness  the  Pharisees 
paid  these.  Jesus  does  not  intimate  that  they  defrauded  the  Tem- 
ple treasury;  but  their  sin  lay  in  devoting  themselves  to  outward 
goodness  of  behavior  and  neglecting  justice,  mercy,  and  fidelity.  It 
is  common  for  men  who  never  susoect  themselves  of  being  Phari- 
sees,  to  fancy  themselves  just  in  character  because  they  are  scru- 
pulous upon  some  one  right  point  of  practice.  It  is  the  sjyirit  of 
justice  that  is  required,  that  justice  which  dwells  with  fidelity  and 
mercy,  that  mercy  on  which  he  had  pronounced  the  fifth  benedic- 
titju  in  the  "  Sermon."  Of  what  avail  their  tithes,  their  outward 
strict  legality,  if  their  souls  were  "  lawless,"  that  is,  if  they  did 
not  submit  heartily  to  the  law  of  God  ?  He  does  not  disparage 
attention  to  the  minutest  regulation,  nor  the  most  punctilious  ob- 
servance of  all  regulations ;  what  he  denounces  is  the  being  con- 
tent with  these  while  the  weightier  matters  are  neglected. 

6.  It  was  not  wrong  to  cleanse  the  outside  of  the  cup,  but  if 
either  was  to  be  neglected  let  it  not  be  the  inside.     If  tlieir  scru- 
pulousness led  them  to  strain  their  wine  through 
a  filter,  so  that  they  might  not  swallow  an  unclean 

insect,  how  absurd  would  such  rigid  observance  of  the  law  be 
when  contrasted  with  the  swallowing  of  so  huge  an  unclean 
beast  as  a  camel !  Jesus  uses  this  proverbial  expression  to  e.xliibit 
their  enormous  hypocrisy. 

7.  This  is  set  forth  in  the  horrible  figure  of  a  grave,  the  ton  ib  ( )ver 
whicli  was  whitened,  not  to  beautify  it  but  to  warn  all  jiassi'i-jf-by 

that  they  were  in  peril  of  becoming  legally  un 
clean.*     But  that  very  signal  of  filth  made  the 
graveyai-d  picturesque,  while  it  failed  to  sweeten  the  grave  that 
was  full  of  the  corruption  of  putrefying  corpses.     Such  wei'C  these 
Purists — pure  and  white  as  lime  outside,  but  inwardly  filthy  as 


Sixth  contrast. 


Seventh  contrast. 


*  "  The  graves  were,  every  year,  on 
the  l.'ith  Adar,  whitened  with  a  kind 
of  chalk  ((fowo),  a  practice  derived  by 
the  Rabbins  from  Ezokinl  xxxix.  15 ; 
not  merely  for  the  sake  of  appearance 
but  also  that  these  places,  the  touch  of 


which  was  defilement  (Numb.  xix.  10), 
might  be  more  easily  seen  and  avoided. 
(See  tlie  Rabbinical  passages  in  I.ight- 
foot,  Schuttgen,  and  Wet«tein.)  Thus 
they  always  had  a  pleasant  outward  ap- 
pearance."— Meyer. 


THE   THIRD   DAT.  587 

rotting  flesh.  Wliat  a  contrast  with  the  pure  in  heart  who  re- 
ceive the  sixth  benediction  of  the  sermon  on  the  Mount! 

8.  The  eighth  "  woe  "  sums  up  the  whole  by  denouncing  their 
hatred  of  the  true  spiritual  life.  As  a  benediction  was  pro- 
nounced in  the  "  Sermon  on  the  Mount "  on  those 
who  were  persecuted  for  righteousness'  sake,  so 
in  this  valedictory  is  a  woe  uttered  against  those  who  are  murder- 
ci*s  of  the  prophets  and  those  who  inherit  the  spirit  of  the  perse- 
cutors. The  fathers  of  those  Pharisees  had  killed  the  prophets, 
and  those  Pharisees  themselves  had  adorned  their  graves,  glad 
that  the  prophets  who  harassed  their  wicked  fathers  were  not 
alive  to  torment  their  more  wicked  children.  Men  praise  those 
of  a  former  generation  who  did  the  very  thing  for  which  they 
denounce  those  of  their  own.  Stier  (vol.  iii.  232)  quotes :  "  Ask 
in  Moses's  times,  Who  are  the  good  people  ?  they  will  be  Abraham 
and  Isaac  and  Jacob  ;  but  not  Moses — he  should  be  stoned.  Ask 
in  Samuel's  times.  Who  are  the  good  people  ?  they  will  be  Moses 
and  Joshua ;  but  not  Samuel.  Ask  in  the  times  of  Christ,  and 
they  will  be  all  the  former  prophets,  with  Samuel ;  but  not  Christ 
and  his  Apostles."     {Berlenh.  Bihel.) 

They  were  in  the  last  times.     The  opposition  to  spiritual  views 
of  God's  government  of  the  universe,  which  has  prevailed  in  the 
Jewish  heart  and  was  growing  intenser  with  each 
succeeding  generation,  culminated  in  the  men  of  ^^' 

the  time  of  Jesus.  He  was  about  to  close  the  list  of  raartyi-s.  Of 
those  who  had  preceded  him  he  speaks  strangely.  He  speaks  as 
from  the  consciousness  of  Almighty  God  ;  as  if  he,  in  fact,  were 
Almighty  God.  He  (Jesus)  had  been  sending  prophets  and  wise 
men  to  persuade  them  away  from  their  materialism  to  a  spiritual 
religion.  It  had  been  a  failure.  They  had  grown  worse  and 
worse.  They  were  now  reaching  the  very  worst.  Tlie  blood  of 
the  martyrs  was  about  to  be  demanded  at  their  hands,  from  the 
blood  of  Abel,  who  represented  the  religion  of  spirituality,  and 
was  killed  by  Cain,  who  represented  material,  outward,  churchly 
religion,  to  the  blood  of  Zachariah,  who,  by  the  order  of  King 
Joash,  was  stoned  in  the  Court  of  tlie  Temple,  and  who  died  say- 
ing, "  The  Lord  looks  on  this  and  requires  it."  *     The  goodness 

*  See  2  Chron.  xxiv.  20.  The  cri-  I  Zacharias  is  called  "the  son  of  Bara- 
tics  and  commentators  have  had  much  chias."  Relief  came  with  Tischendorf  a 
hard  work  with  Matt,   xxiii.   3G,   where  i  discovery  of  the  Codex  Sinailicus,  from 


588 


THE   LAST    WEEK. 


The     heart    of 
Jesus  melta. 


of  this  man  and  of  his  father  Jehoiada,  and  the  atrocity  of  his  mur- 
der, kept  his  memory  vividly  in  the  minds  of  the  Jews.  Jesus 
told  the  Jews  that  the  measure  was  full.  They  were  making  the 
last  martyrdoms,  and  then  would  come  their  judgment  and  theii- 
destruction. 

lie  seemed  to  hear  the  wings  of  the  Tv<jman  eagle  sounding  in 
the  air.  Dear  Jerusalem  was  the  frightened  brood  of  cliick(3ns. 
lie  had  denounced  with  the  utmost  vehemence 
the  sins  which  he  had  ])ictured  with  the  most 
poignant  invective.  But  the  sinnei-s  were  his 
own  people.  That  which  was  about  to  be  the  prey  of  the  bii'd  of 
power  and  plunder  was  his  own  Jerusalem,  metropolis  of  his 
nation,  seat  of  the  throne  of  his  ancestors,  site  of  the  Temple 
of  his  Father.  His  heart  melted.  After  the  flash  of  the  light- 
ning-stroke  of  his  terribly  eloquent  denunciation  of  their  sins 
came  the  shower  of  the  rain  of  his  pity  and  compassi(m.  The 
omnipotence  of  God  is  not  able  to  reduce  the  obstinacy  of  man. 
Even  this  Jesus,  who  had  opened  the  eyes  of  the  blind,  and  the  ears 
of  the  deaf,  who  had  stilled  the  stormy  sea,  who  had  cleansed  the 
leper,  and  raised  the  dead,  even  this  Jesus  had  not  power  to  break 
the  rebellion  of  his  proud  countrymen.  Even  Omnipotence  is  not 
a  sufficient  servant  for  Love.  He  sets  the  feel)leness  of  his  teai-s 
over  against  the  power  of  his  miracles,  and  to  this  day  his  sub  in 
the  j)athos  of  his  ''' O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,"  wins  more  hearts  t<i 
ways  of  goodness  and  love  tiian  his  eightfold  '*  woe,  woe,"  repels 
from  the  paths  of  badness  and  hate. 

And  thus  ended  his  Valedictory  to  Judaism.  It  is  no  longer 
his,  Jerusalem  is  no  longer  the  House  of  his  Father.  He  speaks 
of  it  to  the  Jews  as  "  Your  House."  It  represents  no  longer 
Tieligion  but  Churchism.  It  has  ceased  to  be  God's,  and  becomes 
Man's. 

He  sat  down  in  the  Court  of  the  Women,  opposite  the  Treasury, 
whei-e  the  chest  for  alms  is  placed.  He  saw  the  rich  ostenta- 
tiously throw  in  their  heavy  coin,  whose  ring  arrested  the  atten- 

which  it  appears  that  those  words  were  ,  son  of  Iddo,"  and  in  the  book  of  Zecha- 


not  originally  in  Matthew,  but  crept  in 
from  some  copyist's  note.  Zacharias 
is  known  to  have  been  the  son  of  Je- 
hoiafla.  After  all,  it  may  have  been 
Ze<-harias,  the  son  of  Karachias.  In 
Ezra,   V.   1,   we  have    "  Zechariali,    the 


riah,  i.  1,  7,  we  have  Zecharias.  the  son 
of  Barachias,  the  son  of  Iddo.  The 
Old  Testament  does  not  ment'on  his 
murder,  bnt  Whitby  quotes  the  Tarpuni 
assayiupr  that  he  was  killed  "in  the  day 
of  propitiation." 


THE   THIRD    DAT.  589 

don  of  spectators.     Among  the  donors  came  a  woman,  a  poor 

widow,  and  she  threw  in  two  lepta,  which  make  a  quadrans.     A 

lepton  was  a  bronze  coin,  the  smallest  in  valne 

^  ,     .  ,  .  m         1      i  The    widow's 

of  all  in  circulation   at   that   time.      iwo  lepta    ^.^^ 

made    a  Roman  quadrans,  which  was   equal   to 
about  one-fifth  of  an  Ameiican  cent,  so  that  one  lepton  really 
represented  the  imaginary  mill    of   American   currency.     When 
Jesus  saw  all  this,  there  stood  before 
him  again  the  two  types,  the  religionist 
of   externals  and  the  religionist  of  in- 
ternals :  one  good  in  such  deeds  as  men 
would  acknowledge,  and  the  other  good 
in  such  thoughts  and  character  as  God 

acknowledges.  He  called  the  attention  of  his  disciples  to  this. 
His  comment  was,  "  I  assuredly  say  to  you,  That  this  poor  widow 
has  cast  more  in  than  all  they  that  have  cast  into  the  trea- 
sury ;  for  all  they  cast  in  of  their  superfluity ;  but  she  of  her 
poverty  cast  in  all  that  she  had,  even  her  whole  living."  She 
had  two  lepta.  She  might  have  given  alms  and  saved  something 
for  herself.  The  beauty  of  her  character  lay  in  her  perfect  con- 
secration. She  held  nothing  back.  The  moral  sense  of  the 
world  has  indorsed  the  verdict  of  Jesus. 

The  testimony  of  one  of  his  biographers,  John  (xii.  42),  is  that 
"  among  the  chief  rulers  many  believed  on  him;  but  on  account 
of  the  Pharisees  they  did  not  confess  him,  lest  they  should  be  put 
out  of  the  synagogue ;  for  they  loved  the  praise  of  men  more 
than  the  praise  of  God."  We  cannot  now  leam  what  means  the 
friends  of  Jesus  had  of  knowing  this,  but  the  conduct  of  jSTico- 
demus  would  make  it  probable,  even  if  it  had  not  been  asserted. 

It  may  have  been  at  this  time,  and  in  the  presence  of  these  os- 
tentatious alms-givei-s  and  of  these  time-serving  rulers,  that  Jesus 

made  the  utterances  recorded  by  John,  xii.  44-50  : 

,     ,.  ^  ,     .        Last  appearance 

"  He  who  believes  on  me  believes  not  on  me  but  ^  ^^^  Temple. 
on  Him  that  sent  me.  And  he  who  sees  me  sees 
Him  that  sent  me.  I  have  come  a  light  into  the  world,  that  who- 
soever believes  on  me  should  not  remain  in  darkness.  And  if 
any  one  hear  my  words,  and  keep  them  not,  I  do  not  judge  him  ; 
for  I  did  not  come  that  I  should  judge  the  world,  but  that  I 
should  save  the  world.  He  who  rejects  me,  and  does  not  receive 
my  words,  has  one  who  judges  him     the  woi-d  that  I  have  spoken 


590  XnE    LAST    WEEK. 

that  shall  judge  him  in  the  last  day.  For  I  liave  not  ppol<cn  of 
myself,  but  tlie  Father  who  sent  me  gave  me  a  commandment 
what  I  should  say  and  what  I  should  speak.  And  1  know  that 
his  commandment  is  continuous  life :  whatever  I  speak,  as  the 
Father  has  spoken  to  me,  thus  I  speak." 

lie  ceased.  It  was  his  last  utterance  in  the  Temple,  from  which 
he  now  departed. 

As  they  were  going  ont  the  disciples  looked  upon  the  Temple, 
its  massiveness  and  solidity,  and  beautiful  adornings  of  gifts  and 
goodly  stones.  They  said,  "  Teacher,  see  what 
_       .  manner  of  stones  and  what  buildings ! "     They 

would  seem  to  intimate  a  contrast  between  the 
apparent  strength  of  the  huge  structure  before  jhem  and  the 
prophecy  of  desolation  which  Jesus  had  uttered  concerning  it. 
Perha]is  also  they  had  a  natural  national  pride  in  the  grandeur  of 
their  Temple,  and  there  might  have  been  a  deprecatory  tone  in 
their  speech.  The  solemn  reply  of  Jesus  was,  "  Do  you  see  all 
these  great  buildings  ?  There  shall  not  be  left  here  stone  on 
stone  that  shall  not  be  thrown  down." 

They  silently  passed  up  Mount  Olivet  on  the  way  to  Bethany. 

It  was  evening.     He  sat  down  to  rest  on  a  projection  from  which 

could  be  seen  the  city,  now  crowded  with  nearly 

^,      .  tliree  millions  of  worshippers,  and  from  which  the 

the  sign.  ^  . 

Temple,  its  roof  covered  with  golden  spikes,  that 
flashed  and  glittered  in  the  setting  sun,  was  specially  conspicuous. 
It  was  a  grand  sight.  Perhaps  also  faintly  through  the  evening 
stillness  came  snatches  of  psalms  and  hynms  from  singere  in  the 
Temple,  as  up  through  the  quiet  air  curled  slowly  the  smoke  from 
the  evening  sacrifice.  Then  Peter,  James,  John,  and  Andrew  came 
to  him  with  the  complex  question,  "  Tell  us,  when  shall  these  things 
be  ?  and  what  shall  be  the  sign  of  your  coming  and  of  the  end  of 
the  present  order  of  things  ?  "  They  acknowledged  his  Messiah- 
ehip.  They  connected  the  fall  of  the  Temple  with  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  existing  order  of  things.  They  could  not  conceive  for 
a  moment  that  the  downfall  of  the  world  should  not  immediately 
follow  the  overthrow  of  the  Temple. 

Jesus  replied  :  "  Take  care  lost  any  one  should  deceive  you,  for  many  sliall 
come  in  my  name,  saying,  '  I  am  tlie  Clirist,'  and  sliall  deceive  many.  Tlie 
time  draws  near.  Go  not  after  them.  And  you  shall  be  about  to  [you  sliall 
in  the  future]  hoar  of  wars  and  rumors  of  wars:  nee  to  it,  be  not  troubled; 


THE   THIRD   DAY.  691 

for  it  is  necessary  that  this  come  to  jiass,  but  the  end  is  not  yet.     For  nation 

shall  rise  against  nation,  and  kingdom  against  kingdom, 

and  there   shall  be    shocks   and  famines  in  places;  and      Discourses  to  the  dis- 

f earful  things  and  great  signs  shall  there  be  from  heaven,    TTients  anroUhe'Ten 

but    all    these  are  only  the    beginning  of  the  pangs   of   virgins. 

childbirth. 

"  But  beware  of  men,  for  before  all  these  things  they  shall  lay  their  hands 
on  you  and  persecute  you,  they  will  deliver  you  up  to  the  councils,  and  into 
the  prisons,  and  shall  scourge  you  in  the  synagogues ;  and  you  shall  be 
brought  before  govemoi-s  and  kings  for  my  sake,  and  it  shall  turn  to  you  for 
a  testimony  to  them  and  to  the  nations.  But  when  they  shall  deliver  you  up 
be  not  over-anxious  beforehand  how  or  what  ye  shall  speak,  nor  premeditate 
what  you  shall  answer,  but  whatever  shall  be  given  you  in  that  hour,  that 
speak.  I  will  give  you  a  mouth  and  wisdom  which  your  adversaries  shall  not 
be  able  to  resist  nor  gainsay ;  for  you  are  not  the  spcakere,  but  the  Sjjirit  of 
your  Father  speaking  in  you. 

"  Think  not  that  I  came  to  cast  jicace  on  the  earth ;  I  came  not  to  cast  peace 
but  a  sword  rather,  and  divisions.  I  came  to  cast  fire  upon  the  earth  ;  and 
what  will  I  ?  If  it  were  already  kindled  !  For  I  came  to  set  a  man  against 
his  father,  and  a  daughter  against  her  mother,  and  a  daughter-in-law  against 
her  mother-in-law.  And  the  enemies  of  a  man  are  those  of  his  omti  house- 
hold :  for  from  henceforth  there  shall  be  five  in  one  house  divided,  tliree 
against  two,  and  two  against  three. 

"  And  they  shall  deliver  you  up  to  affliction.  And  a  brother  shall  betray  a 
brother  to  death,  and  a  father  a  child,  and  children  shall  rise  up  against  their 
parents  and  shall  put  them  to  death.  They  shall  kill  some  of  you,  and  you 
shall  be  detested  of  all  nations  on  account  of  my  name.  And  afterwards 
many  shall  be  caused  to  fall  and  l)ctray  their  associates  for  affliction. 

"  I  say  to  you,  my  friends.  Be  not  afraid  of  those  who  kill  the  body  and  after 
that  have  not  anything  more  to  do.  I  will  show  ye  whom  ye  should  seiwe : 
Him,  who  after  He  has  killed  has  power  to  cast  into  Gehenna.  Fear  Him. 
And  many  false  projihets  shall  be  raised  up  and  deceive  many.  And  because 
lawlessness  shall  abound,  the  love  of  many  will  become  cold.  But  he  who  en- 
dures to  the  end,  the  same  shall  be  preserved.  By  your  patience  gain  your  lives. 
Fear  not,  little  flock,  for  it  is  your  Father's  good  pleasure  to  give  you  the  king- 
dom. And  preached  shall  be  this  glad  tidings  of  the  kingdom  through  the  wliole 
inhabited  world,  for  a  testimony  to  all  nations,  and  then  shall  come  the  end. 

"When,  then,  you  shall  see  Jerusalem  compassed  -SNath  armies,  and  the 
abomination  of  desolation,  spoken  of  through  the  prophet  Daniel,  stationed  in 
the  sacred  place,  where  it  should  not  be — [he  who  reads,  let  him  undei-stand] 
— then  know  that  her  desolation  is  at  hand ;  then  let  those  who  are  in  Judaea 
flee  to  the  mountains ;  and  let  those  who  are  in  the  midst  of  her  depart  out, 
and  let  not  those  who  are  in  the  country  places  enter  into  her,  and  let  not  him 
who  is  on  the  roof  come  down  to  take  anything  out  of  his  house ;  nor  let  him 
that  is  in  the  field  turn  back  to  take  his  garment.  Remember  Lot's  Avife. 
For  these  are  days  of  punishment,  that  all  things  which  are  written  may  be 
fulfiUed. 


592  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

"  And  woe  unto  them  that  are  with  child,  and  to  them  that  suckle  in  those 
days !  But  pray  that  your  flight  be  not  in  winter  nor  on  tlie  Sabbatli-da3-8  ; 
for  there  shall  be  in  those  days  great  distress  on  the  land,  and  wratli  on  this 
people,  such  as  lias  not  l)een  seen  from  the  beginning  of  the  world  until  now, 
nor  ever  shall  be.  And  they  shall  fall  by  the  edge  of  the  sword,  and  shall  Ije 
led  away  captive  into  all  nations ;  and  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down  by 
the  nations,  until  the  times  of  the  nations  shall  be  fulfilled.  And  except  those 
days  were  shortened  there  should  no  flesh  be  saved :  but  on  account  of  the 
chosen  tliose  days  shall  be  shortened. 

"  Days  will  come  when  ye  shall  desire  to  see  one  of  the  days  of  the  Son  of 
!Man,  and  you  shall  not  see  it.  Tlien  if  any  one  shall  say  unto  you,  '  Lo  I  here 
is  Christ,'  or  '  there,'  believe  not.  For  there  shall  arise  false  Christs  and  false 
prophets,  and  shall  show  signs  and  wonders,  so  as  to  deceive,  if  possible,  even 
the  chosen-  But  I  have  told  you  before.  If  they  shall  say  to  you,  '  Behold  he 
is  in  the  desert ! '  go  not  forth ;  '  Behold  he  is  in  the  secret  chambers  ! '  l)elieve 
not  For  as  the  lightning  comes  out  of  the  east  and  shines  to  the  west,  so 
shall  be  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man,  in  his  day." 

Ilis  hearers  broke  in  with  the  interrupting  question,  "  "Where, 
Lord  ? "  lie  replied,  "  "Wliere  the  carcass  is,  there  are  gathered 
the  eagles."     He  resumed : — 

"Immediately  after  the  tribulation  of  those  days  shall  the  sun  be  darkened, 
and  the  moon  shall  not  give  her  light,  and  the  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven, 
and  the  powera  of  the  heavens  shall  be  shaken ;  and  on  the  earth  distress  of 
nations,  men  in  perplexity  at  the  roaring  of  the  sea  and  waves,  men  fainting 
for  fear  and  expectation  of  the  things  coming  on  the  inhabited  world.  And 
tlien  shall  appear  the  sign  of  the  Son  of  Man  ;  and  all  the  tribes  of  the  earth 
shall  mourn,  and  they  shall  see  the  Son  of  Man  coming  in  the  clouds  of 
heaven  with  power  and  great  glory.  And  lie  shall  send  his  angels  with  a 
great  trumpet,  and  he  shall  gather  his  chosen  from  the  four  winds,  from 
one  end  of  heaven  to  the  other.  And  when  these  things  begin  to  come  to 
pass,  then  look  up  and  lift  up  your  heads,  because  your  redemption  draws 
nigh. 

"  Now  learn  the  paraljle  from  the  tig-tree  and  all  the  trees.  "Wlien  already 
its  branch  has  become  tender  and  puts  fortli  leaves,  you  know  that  summer  is 
nigh.  Thus  also  when  you  shall  see  all  these  things,  know  tliat  the  kingdom 
of  God  is  near,  at  the  doors.  I  assuredly  say  to  you.  This  race  shall  not  pass 
away  until  all  these  things  be  done.  But  concerning  that  day  and  hour  knows 
no  one,  not  the  angels  of  heaven,  nor  the  Son,  but  the  Father  only.  But  as 
the  Days  of  Noe,  so  shall  be  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  Man.  For  as  they  were 
in  the  days  wliich  were  before  the  flood,  eating  and  drinking,  marrying  and 
giving  in  marriage,  until  the  day  that  Xoe  entered  into  tlie  ark,  and  did  not 
know  until  the  flood  came  and  took  all  away  ;  likewise  as  it  was  in  the  days 
of  Lot ;  they  were  eating,  they  were  drinking,  they  were  bujing,  they  were 
selling,  they  were  planting,  they  were  building ;  but  on  the  day  Lot  went  out 
from  Sodom,  it  rained  fire  and  brimstone  from  heaven,  and  destroyed  them 


THE   TIIIKD    DAY.  593 

ah ;  tlms  shall  be  also  in  the  day  when  the  Son  of  Man  shall  be  revealed.  I 
tell  you  that  in  that  night  there  shall  be  two  in  one  bed,  one  shall  be  taken 
and  the  other  left :  then  there  shall  be  two  in  the  field,  one  shall  be  taken  and 
one  left :  two  grinding  at  the  mill,  one  shall  be  taken  and  one  left. 

"  Look  to  yourselves  lest  at  any  time  your  liearts  be  oppressed  with  surfeit- 
ing and  drunkenness  and  anxious  cares  of  this  life,  and  so  that  day  may  come 
on  you  unawares  ;  for  as  a  snare  shall  it  come  on  all  those  who  dwell  on  the 
face  of  all  the  earth.  Watch,  then,  and  at  every  season  pray  that  you  may  be 
considered  worthy  to  escape  all  the  things  about  to  come  to  pass,  and  to  stand 
before  the  Son  of  Man  :  for  you  know  not  when  the  time  is.  But  know  this, 
that  if  the  householder  had  known  in  what  watch  the  thief  would  come,  he 
would  have  watched,  and  would  not  have  suffered  his  house  to  be  broken 
into :  on  this  account  do  you  be  ready  also,  for  in  an  hour  when  you  do  not 
think  it,  the  Son  of  Man  comes." 

Peter  broke  in  with,  "  Lord,  do  yon  speak  this  parable  to  us,  or 
even  to  all  ? "     Jesus  replied  : — 

"  Wliat  I  say  to  you  I  say  to  all.  Watch.  It  is  as  a  man  taking  a  far  journey, 
who,  leaving  his  house,  gave  authority  to  his  slaves,  and  to  each  man  liis 
work,  and  commanded  the  gatekeeper  to  watch.  Who,  then,  is  the  faithful 
and  wise  slave  whom  the  Lord  will  make  ruler  over  his  household,  to  give 
them  the  food  in  season  ?  Happy  slave  that,  whom  his  lord  commg  shall  find 
doing  so  !  I  assuredly  say  to  you  that  he  shall  make  him  ruler  over  all  his 
possessions.  But  if  the  bad  slave  shall  say  in  his  heart,  '  My  lord  delays,'  and 
shall  begin  to  strike  his  fellow-slaves,  and  to  eat  and  drink  with  the  drunken, 
the  lord  of  that  slave  shall  come  on  a  day  which  he  expects  not,  and  in  an 
hour  that  he  knows  not,  and  shall  cut  him  in  two,  and  give  him  his  part  with 
the  hy])ocrites ;  there  shall  be  wailing  and  gnashing  of  teeth. 

"Now  that  slave  who  knew  his  Lord's  will  and  prepared  not,  neither  did 
according  to  his  will,  shall  be  beaten  much ;  but  he  who  knew  not  and  did 
commit  things  worthy  of  stripes,  shall  be  beaten  with  few.  To  whom  much  is 
given,  of  him  much  shall  be  required ;  and  to  whom  men  have  committed 
much,  of  him  they  ^ill  ask  the  more.  Watch,  therefore,  for  you  know  not 
what  day  your  Lord  comes— whether  at  even,  or  at  midnight,  Jr  at  the  cock- 
crowmg,  or  in  the  morning— lest,  coming  suddenly,  he  find  you  sleeping. 

"Then  the  kingdom  of  the  heavens  shall  be  likened  to  ten  virguis° who, 
having  taken  their  lamps,  went  forth  to  meet  the  bridegroom.  Five  of  them 
were  foolish,  five  prudent.  For  the  foolish,  having  taken  lamps,  took  no  oil 
with  them ;  Ijut  the  prudent  took  oU  m  the  vessels  with  their  lamps.  But,  the 
bridegroom  delaying,  they  all  slumbered  and  slept.  And  at  midnight  a  cry 
was  made,  'Behold !  the  bridegroom  !  go  out  to  meet  him.'  Tlien^all  those 
virgins  arose  and  trimmed  their  lamps ;  and  the  foolish  said  to  the  pradent, 
'  Give  us  of  your  oil.  for  our  lamps  are  gone  out.'  But  the  pnulent  answered, 
saying:  '  Lest  there  be  not  enough  for  us  and  you,  go  rather  to  those  who  seU, 
and  buy  for  yourselves.'  And  whUe  they  went  to  buy,  the  bridegroom  came, 
and  they  who  were  ready  went  in  with  him  to  the  wedding-feast ;  ardthe 
38 


594  THE    LAST    \VEEK. 

door  was  shut    Afterwards  come  also  tbe  other  ^'irgins,  saying :   '  Sir,  sir,  open 
to  us ; '  but  he  answering,  said,  '  I  assuredly  say  to  you,  I  do  not  know  you.' 

"  Let  your  loins  be  girded  about,  and  your  lamps  burning,  and  yourselves 
like  men  waiting  for  tlieir  lord,  when  he  -n-ill  return  from  the  wedding,  thai 
when  he  comes  and  knocks  they  may  open  to  him  immediately.  Happy 
slaves  they  whom  the  lord  coming  shall  find  watching.  I  assuredly  say  to 
you,  that  he  shall  gird  himself  and  make  them  recline,  and  ^\^ll  come  near  and 
serve  them.  And  if  he  shall  come  in  the  second  watch,  or  in  the  third  watch, 
and  find  them  thus,  happy  are  they  !  Watch,  tlierefore,  for  ye  know  neither 
the  day  nor  tlie  liour. 

"  And  wlion  the  Son  of  Man  sliall  come  in  his  glory,  and  all  the  angels  with 
him,  then  shall  he  sit  upon  the  throne  of  liis  glory,  and  before  him  shall  be 
gathered  all  the  nations ;  and  he  shall  scijarate  them  from  one  another,  as  the 
shepherd  separates  the  sheep  from  the  goats ;  and  he  will  place  the  sheep  on 
the  right  hand,  but  the  goats  on  his  left.  Then  shall  the  King  say  to  those  on 
his  right  hand,  '  Come,  you  who  are  praised  of  my  Father,  inherit  the  king- 
dom prepared  for  you  from  the  foundation  of  the  world :  for  I  hungered  and 
you  gave  me  to  eat,  I  thii"sted  and  you  gave  me  drink,  I  was  a  stranger 
and  you  made  me  a  companion,  naked  and  you  clothed  me :  I  was  sick,  and 
you  visited  me ;  I  was  in  prison,  and  you  came  to  me.'  Then  shall  the  right- 
eous answer  him,  saying:  '  Lord,  when  did  we  see  you  hungry,  and  fed  you  ? 
or  thii-sty,  and  gave  you  drink  ?  and  when  did  we  see  you  a  stranger,  and  en- 
tertained you ;  or  nuked,  and  clothed  you  ?  and  when  did  we  see  you  sick,  or 
in  jiriscm,  and  came  to  you  ? '  And  the  King,  answering,  shall  say  to  them  : 
'  I  assuredly  say  to  you,  inasmuch  as  you  did  it  unto  one  of  the  least  of  these 
my  brethren,  you  did  it  to  me.'  Then  shall  he  say  also  to  those  on  the  left 
hand,  '  Depart  from  me,  you  accureed,  to  the  i)erpetual  fire  prepared  for  the 
devil  and  his  angels  ;  for  I  hungered  and  you  did  nut  give  me  to  eat,  I  thirsted 
and  you  did  not  give  me  to  drink,  I  was  a  stranger  and  you  did  not  enter- 
tain me,  naked  and  you  did  not  clothe  me,  sick  and  in  prison  and  you  did 
not  visit  me.'  Tlien  they  shall  answer,  saying,  '  Lord,  when  did  we  see  you 
hungering,  or  thirsting,  or  a  stranger,  or  naked,  or  sick,  or  in  prison,  and  did 
not  minister  to  you  ? '  Then  he  shall  answer  them,  saying,  '  I  assuredly  say 
to  you,  inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  not  to  one  of  these  least  ones,  ye  did  it  not  to 
me.'  And  tliese  shall  go  away  into  perpetual  punishment,  l)ut  the  righteous 
into  perpetual  life." 

This  e.xtraordinary  discoiii-se  contains  statements  of  wliat  was 
then  future,  which  cajniot  be  regarded  as  the  mere  results  of 
extraordinary  sagacity,  as  some  political  men 
prop  ecy.  foj-gtold  the  French  Revolution  ycai-s  before  it 
broke  upon  Europe,  The  character  of  the  average  Jewish  mind 
and  the  state  of  feeling  among  the  Jewish  people  might  have  led 
any  observant  pereon  to  perceive  that  the  fanaticism  of  the  ])e<)ple 
was  becoming  frantic,  and  that  the  wild  excitement  which  led 
them  to  persecute  Jesus  to  the  deatli,  because  he  would  not  be  a 


THE   TIlUiD    DAT.  595 

political  leader  against  Rome,  would  finally  dash  Judaism  with 
such  violence  against  the  Kuler  of  the  nations  as  to  produce  such 
results  as  came  forty  years  afterwards,  in  the  taking  of  the  city 
by  Titus  and  the  dispersion  of  the  Jewish  people  by  Hadrian. 
IBut  here  some  of  the  details  are  such  as  one  would  utter  who  had 
the  veil  of  the  future  lifted,  and  beheld  coming  events  with  the 
intense  spiritual  insight  of  an  inspired  Seer.  And  yet  there  are 
none  of  the  particularities  which  distinguish  the  predictions  of 
the  believers  in  a  millennium,  none  of  their  chiliastic  sensuous 
ideas.  He  takes  the  complexity  of  the  question  of  his  friends  as 
the  foundation  of  a  description  of  the  future,  which  embraced 
both  the  destruction  of  the  Jewish  theocracy  and  the  final  ground 
of  judgment  of  men  and  nations. 

What  he  had  said  in  the  Temple  naturally  led  his  disciples  to 
ask  for  further  information.  He  had  dislocated  their  ideas  of  the 
government  of  the  world.  They  had  not  dreamed  that  the  Tem- 
ple would  be  destroyed.  There  would  come  days  of  darkness, 
but  the  arrival  of  the  Messiah  would  cover  Mount  Zion  with 
splendor  and  flood  the  world  with  theocratic  glory.  Now  he  says 
that  Judaism,  with  its  Temple,  is  to  be  swept  away.  "VVluxt  thei; 
should  be  their  relation  to  the  world  and  to  God  ?  They  had  rea- 
son to  seek  to  be  taught  on  these  points. 

He  first  warns  them  to  beware  of  interpreting  the  pangs  of 

child-birth  into  the  agonies  preceding  death.     The  nations  would 

be  astir.     Vast  physical  atid  national  uplieavals 

111         11  1  ^      r     ^  •     •  The        nations 

would  take  place,  but  the  end  or  the  existing  or-    ^11,.,.^^ 

der  of  things  is  not  yet.  "Wliat  men  call  endings 
are  really  beginnings.  Deaths  are  births.  His  people,  those  who 
adopted  his  principles,  would  suffer  many  bitternesses.  Christians 
should  suffer  especiall}^  at  the  hands  of  churchmen.  The  truth, 
for  which  he  was  about  to  suffer  death,  would  always  be  an  occa- 
sion of  contention.  Tliere  would  always  be  the  double  trouble  of 
opposing  ecclesiastical  influence  and  those  distracting  pretenders 
the  false  prophets.  But  endurance,  prudence,  and  vigilance  would 
bring  his  followers  through  all  troubles. 

Jerusalem  should  certainly  be  destroyed.     A  desolating  abomi- 
nation should  stand  in  the  holj' place,  when  the 
eagles  of  the  Eoman  standard,  which  were  wor-       Jerusalem  de- 
1^         1  •!!  .  1,...  p    stroyed. 

shipped  as  idols,  as  representing  the  divinity  or 

power,  should  be  planted  in  the  precincts  of  the  Temple  of  Jeho 


596  THE    LAST    WEEK. 

vah.  lie  gave  directions  to  his  followers  what  to  do  then.  They 
should  flee  to  the  mountains,  probably  those  of  Perea,  any  place 
which  should  take  them  from  these  horrore.  That  the  gospel  of 
Matthew  was  written  before  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  ap 
peai-8  from  the  fact  that  he  calls  attention  to  this  prediction  and 
these  directions  by  the  parenthesis,  "  Let  the  reader  understand." 
The  Christians  subsequently  obeyed  these  directions.  When  the 
Roman  armies  encamped  against  Jerusalem,  they  fled  to  Pella, 
and  thus  escaped  that  terrible  slaughter  in  which  1,500,000  Jews 
are  said  to  have  fallen.  If  the  whole  Jewish  populace  had  given 
up  their  idea  of  a  political  Messiah,  and  yielded  to  the  spiritual 
teachings  of  Jesus,  and  felt  that  the  Messiah's  kingdom  was  inward 
and  not  outward,  and  abandoned  all  thought  of  attempting  by 
the  sword  what  was  in  that  way  wholly  impracticable,  they  would 
have  avoided  that  terrific  catastrophe,  which  filled  the  world  with 
shudderings,  and  to  this  day  stands  up  as  the  bloodiest  horror  of 
the  past. 

But  amid  all  commotions,  when  pseudo-Christs  arose,  the  dis- 
ciples of  Jesus  were  not  to  be  drawn  hither  and  thither  in  vain 

expectation  of  the  revelation  of  the  Son  of  Man. 

When  that  really  occurred,  men  should  not  have 
to  look  after  it.  It  would  force  itself  on  the  attention  of  all  men 
like  a  li'^htninor-flash.  It  would  fall  like  a  thunderbolt.  The 
disciples  said,  "  Where,  Lord  ? "  His  reply  was  a  proverbial  form 
of  expression  containing  a  general  principle.  Wherever  there  is 
a  dead  carcass,  there  the  vultures  do  come.  To  keep  from  being 
eaten  by  birds  of  prey,  you  must  keep  alive.  God  has  his  scaven- 
gers everywhere.  If  a  man  die,  or  a  nation,  or  a  church,  there 
are  forces  provided  to  consume  the  dead  body  and  transmute  it 
into  live  tissue.  Judaism  is  dead.  The  wings  of  the  vultures  are 
abroad  in  the  sky,  and  these  devouring  birds  will  scent  the  prey, 
and  come  and  take  it  away. 

From  the  fatal  downfall  of  Jerusalem  the  Teacher  ascends  to 
the  general   judgment  of  mankind.     Here  there   is  nothing  to 

gratify  vain  curiosity.  There  is  a  graphic  rcpre- 
mStTf  munkS."    se"tation  of  prodigious  events  in  nature  and  in 

hnman  society,  as  ushering  in  what  Jesus  calls 
the  Parousia  of  the  Son  of  Man,  that  is,  his  coming,  his  appearing, 
his  revelation  of  himself.  It  may  be  delayed,  but  it  will  come. 
God  works  gradually  forward  to  great  residts ;  but  they  often 


''"■-■''•'^iiiiiiiiiiiiSi' 


THE   THIRD   DAY.  597 

break  upon  the  world  at  last  like  thunder-claps.  The  flood  in  the 
days  of  Noah  and  the  rain  of  fire  in  the  days  of  Lot  are  examples. 
The  people  on  whom  this  ruin  fell  were  years  in  ripening  for 
their  doom  ;  but  it  fell  at  last  like  the  downcoming  of  an  enor- 
mous trip-hammer.  It  will  be  so  as  often  as  God  shall  \^sit  the 
world  with  summary  judgment.  One  cataclysm  may  succeed  an- 
other, but  the  woi'ld  does  not  take  warning.  The  Deluge  was  no 
lesson  to  Sodom  and  Gomorrah,  nor  the  destruction  of  those  cities 
a  warning  to  the  Jews  in  the  days  of  Jesus,  nor  the  downfall  of 
Jerusalem  and  Judaism  any  preventive  of  the  French  Revolution. 
So  whatever  this  "Parousia"  of  the  Son  of  Man  may  mean,  it 
will  come  suddenly,  and  all  the  development  of  the  causes  will 
not  make  men  ready  for  the  results.  The  race  of  mankind,  Jesus 
taught,  should  not  disapi)ear  from  the  earth  before  all  the  things 
he  had  predicted  should  come  to  pass.  The  certainty  should 
strengthen  the  faith,  while  the  suddenness  should  keep  all  who 
believe  that  Jesus  is  a  true  Teacher  on  the  spiritual  alert.  The 
words  of  warning,  he  distinctly  asserts,  were  not  confined  to  his 
immediate  friends,  but  to  all  men,  for  they  are  founded  on  gen- 
eral and  perpetual  principles. 

The  necessity  of  vigilance  is  illustrated  further  by  the  case  of 
servants  whose  master  is  absent.  Of  the  time  of  his  return  they 
have  no  certain  knowledge,  but  they  know  he  will  return,  and 
they  must  keep  in  a  perpetual  state  of  readiness.  This  is  further 
illustrated  by  the  parable  of  ten  virgins,  who,  according  to  Oriental 
custom,  M'ere  waiting  until  the  bridegroom  should  appear,  bringing 
his  wife  to  his  home.  They  were  to  add  to  the  splendor  of  the 
procession  by  their  torches.  As  is  often  the  case  in  these  in- 
stances, a  delay  keeps  the  bridegroom  until  midnight.  The  vii'- 
gins  all  sleep,  so  that  the  foolish  do  not  perceive  that  their  lamps 
are  dying  out,  nor  are  the  wise  virgins  wakeful  enough  to  warn 
their  sisters  of  their  danger ;  and  so  the  call  comes  upon  all  sud- 
denl3\  The  wise  ha\'e  oil  enough  for  themselves,  and  they  proper- 
ly conclude  that  it  is  better  to  have  five  torches  burning  brilliantly 
through  the  Avhole  time  of  the  procession  than  that  the  party 
should  enter  with  ten,  all  of  which  should  soon  be  extinguished.* 

*  Trench  quotes  Ward  {View  of  the  i  He  sajs :  "After  waiting- two  or  three 
Hinctoos,  vol.  2,  p.  29),  who  describes  '  hours,  at  length,  near  midnig-ht,  it  was 
the  parts  of  a  marriage  ceremony  in  i  announced,  as  in  the  very  words  of  Scrip- 
India  of  which  he  was  an  eye-witness.  .  ture,  'Behold,  the  bridegroom  comes 


598  TIIE   LAST   "S\-EEK. 

He  thus  teaches  personal  responsibility  and  the  necessity  of  cease- 
less vigilance. 

Jesus  sets  forth  himself  as  the  representative  of  humanity. 

Humanity  shall  be  judged  by  him   in  bttth  senses.     His  moral 

sense  is  the  standard  of  judgment.      "Whatever 

Jesus  the  re-  iui^u-y  jg  (Jquc  to  any  human  beinf;,  however  feeble, 
presentative      of     „  r       i,  •    n  ■   ■,  I  ^  ■,         ■ 

humanity  iriendless,  unmHuential,  appai-ently  worthless,  is  to 

bring  to  the  injurer  just  what  that  act  would 
bring  if  done  to  Jesus.  He  is  the  Son  of  Humanity.  Hurt 
humanity  and  you  hurt  him.  Do  good  to  humanity  at  any  point, 
and  you  do  good  to  him.  Water  to  any  thirsty  man,  bread  to  any 
hungry  woman,  clothing  to  any  naked  child,  kind  attention  to  any 
unknown  stranger,  visit  to  any  prisoner,  criminal  or  innocent,  is 
set  down  as  done  to  the  Son  of  Man.  He  refuses  to  have  any- 
thing which  the  giver  is  not  w^illing  to  bestow  upon  humanity. 
He  takes  tlie  lowliest  human  being,  whoever  he  or  she  ma}'  be, 
and  says,  "  Inasmuch  as  you  did  it  not  to  this  least  one  you  did  it 
not  to  me."  Any  failure  of  duty  to  anf/  human  being  Jesus  takes 
as  a  personal  neglect  of  himself,  while  he  acknowledges  as  a  per- 
sonal favor  the  slightest  kindness  done  to  the  most  nearly  insigni- 
ficant human  being. 

This  is  the  most  sublime  and  tender  Humaneness. 

It  is  to  be  remarked  how,  in  the  setting  forth  of  the  doctrine  of 
future  rewards  and  punishments,  the  goodness  of  the  heavenly 
Father  is  presented  by  Jesus.  From  the  foundation  of  the  M'orld 
a  state  of  exaltation  had  been  prepared  for  all  the  good.  God 
does  not  make  devils,  and  bad  people,  and  hells.  Angels  may 
make  themselves  devils,  the  sons  of  God  may  make  themselves 
bad  people,  wickedness  may  make  hells ;  but  God  makes  only 
kingdoms  of  glory,  and  angels,  and  sons  of  God.  He  does  all  he 
can  to  keep  angels  from  becoming  devils,  and  men  from  becoming 
bad,  and  high  celestial  places  from  becoming  infernal  pits.  He 
uses  all  possible  attractions  to  keep  men  from  going  away  from 
liim.  He  does  not  curse  them,  but  they  are  accursed.  He  does 
not  drive  them  away,  but  they  do  depart.  To  be  a  man,  one  must 
liave  a  free  wilk     To  be  a  son  of  God,  and  made  in  the  likeness 


go  ye  out  to  meet  him.'  All  the  per- 
sons employed  now  lighted  their  lamps 
and  ran  with  them  in  their  hands  to  fill 


some  of  them  had  lost  their  lights  and 
were  unjtrcpared,  but  it  was  then  too  l(te 
to  seek  them  ;  and  the  cavalcade  moved 


up  their  stations  in  the  procession —    forward." 


THE   THIRD    DAY.  599 

of  God,  one  must  be  as  free  as  God.  Does  not  every  man  who  re- 
flects and  examines  his  consciousness  feel  sure  that  he  is?  Wlien 
a  man  chooses  to  put  himself  in  such  position  that  the  attraction 
( )f  hell  becomes  greater  than  the  attraction  of  heaven,  he  gravitates 
naturally  toward  hell. 

And  yet  there  is  nothing  dogmatic  in  all  this  w^onderful  dis- 
course. There  is  no  question  of  curiosity  settled,  no  question  the 
answer  to  which  could  have  no  bearing  on  the 
moral  character  of  men.  No  subscription  to  jj^atism 
formal  creeds  secures  the  final  benediction,  but 
only  such  belief  as  is  the  necessary  root  of  the  moral  tree  which 
bears  the  fruits  of  humanity,  is  saving.  God's  discriminations 
here  are  all  made  in  regard  to  character ;  and  so  will  be  the  dis- 
criminations of  the  other  world.  Jesus  sets  himself  forward  as 
the  re2^resentati^'e  of  humanity,  while  he  is  the  judge  of  mankind. 
Such  belief  in  him,  as  that  representative,  as  shall  lead  to  such 
love  for  him  as  shall  produce  on  all  possible  occasions  all  possible 
kindness  to  all  kinds  of  men,  it  is  that  belief  which  keeps  a  man 
in  the  circle  of  the  humane,  and  the  humane  are  those  who  are 
drawn  closely  to  Jesus,  " the  Son  of  Man"  and  thus  to  one  an- 
other. As  humanity  dies  out  of  man  devilishness  sets  in.  Jesus 
recognized  the  existence  of  a  personal  devil.  Men,  in  every  act, 
become  more  and  more  like  one  or  the  other — like  Jesus  or  the 
devil.  There  are  judgments  from  time  to  time  on  earth:  there 
are  to  be  judgments  in  the  future,  the  details  of  which  are  not  fui-- 
nished,  but  in  general  terms  of  appalling  grandeur  those  judg- 
ments are  described.  One  of  these  temporal  judgments  of  men 
should  be  had  at  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  the  horrors  of  which 
should  tj'pify  another,  a  spiritual,  a  grander  judgment  on  a  broader 
Scale.  That  stupendous  event  should  have  no  effect  upon  the 
character  of  those  whose  sentence  it  should  pronounce,  but  that 
character  should  determine  the  sentence.  They  shall  go  away,  the 
righteous — that  is  the  humane — into  continuous  life ;  the  wicked — ■ 
tliat  is  the  inhumane — into  continuous  punishment.  He  does  not 
tell  us  how  long  that  punishment  and  that  life  shall  be.  lie  uses 
a  word  {al(ovLo<i)  which  specially  conceals  any  definite  conclusion. 
It  may  be  endless,  it  may  have  an  end,  it  may  be  immediate  and 
to  continue  through  the  existing  state  of  things ;  it  is  pain  and 
pleasure  set  over  against  one  another,  with  no  limit  of  time.  TimCj 
measureless  or  limited,  is  very  little,  but  character  is  cverytliing. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE     FOUBTn      DAT — FKOM     TUESDAY     ETENENG     TO     ■^^EDNESDAT 

EVEKING. 

At  the  conclusion  of  this  speech,  most  probably  on  the  same 

evening,  Tuesday,  which  was  the  beginning  of  the  fourth  day  of 

_.  the  week,  accordiuo;  to  Jewish  reckoniuff,  and 

Disappointed  ,  .,      i  ?  i      -r.     i  V 

jjQ    g  while  they  were  going  towards   isethany,  Jesus 

said  to  his  friends,  "  Tou  know  that  after  two 
days  is  the  Feast  of  the  Passover,  and  the  Son  of  Man  is  be- 
trayed to  be  crucified."  There  could  be  nothing  plainer  than 
that.  He  should  not  carry  out  the  Jewish  Messianic  idea.  lie 
should  disaj^poiiit  all  the  M'orldly  hopes  of  his  personal  friends. 
They  must  give  up  forever  their  expectations  that  he  would  prove 
a  temporal  Deliverer  and  regard  him  hereafter  as  a  spii*itual 
Met^siah. 

When  Jesus  and  his  disciples  reached  Bethany  they  found  that 

an  entertainment  had  been  provided  for  them  in  the  house  of 

Simon  "  the  leper."     ^V"'ho   he  was  Ave    do    not 

Feast  in  Simon's    kiiow.     It  is  probable  that  he  had  had  the  leprosy 
house.      Tuesday     ^^^j  ^^^^  ^^^^^^  ^^^^^^^^  ^^.  j  ^^^^j  ^^^^^  j^^ 

evening,  April  4  '.  "T 

^  J,  3Q  this  supper  m  token  oi  his  gratitude.     1  erliaps 

he  was  a  relative  of  Lazarus ;  if  not,  the  two 

families  were  intimate,  as  Lazarus,  and  Martha,  and  Mary  were 

present,  "  and  Martha  served." 

After  the  meal  had  begun,  while  Jesus  reclined  at  the  table, 

Mary  came  in  quietly  and  opened  a  flask,  and  noiselessly  poured 

the  ointment  on  the  head  of  her  friend.    She  had 
Mary  anoints  Je-         ^  i      i       -^i     i      •  -i  .c  i  •  i 

gyg  wati'hc'd  witli  loving  eyes  the  agony  di  his  soul, 

his  liaiassed  lcx)k  as  he  returned  from  his  daily 

conflicts  in  Jerusalem.     She   naturally  desired    to    make    some 

marked  and  significant  display  of  her  love.     On  that  aching  head 

she  poiu'ed  the  nard.     There,  stretclied  from  the  coucli,  were  the 

.'ollen,  throljbing  feet  that  had  been  standing  in  the  Temple 


THE   FOUKTn   DAY.  601 

during  the  day,  and  bringing  him  across  Olivet  in  the  evenino- 
She  recollected  that  they  had  stood  beside  her  brother's  grave. 
Now,  there  sat  that  brother,  alive,  well,  and  eating.  Her  heart 
went  out  in  all  lovingness.  She  spent  the  remainder  of  the  oint- 
ment on  his  feet,  then  threw  the  flask  away,  and  wrapped  the  dear 
limbs  in  her  hair. 

So  silently  and  unobtrusively  had  she  done  this,  that  it  was  only 
M'hen  the  house  was  filled  with  the  odor  of  the  ointment  that  the 
disciples  perceived  M'hat  had  been  done,  although  Jesus  from  the 
first  knew  that  it  was  Mary,  and  what  she  was  doing. 

There  was  one  dark  spirit  at  the  feast,  Avho  was  about  to  do  the 
deed  of  treason  which  was  to  damn  his  fame  forever.  It  was  Ju- 
das Iscariot.  He  ventured  the  first  sinister  criti- 
cism. "Wliy  was  this  M-astc  of  the  ointment  J^^'^^  °^J«<=*«- 
made  ?  Wliy  was  it  not  sold  and  given  to  the  poor  ?  "  The  other 
disciples  concurred  in  this  view,  after  it  liad  been  suggested  by 
treasurer  Judas  under  the  s])ecious  guise  of  consideration  for  the 
poor.     The  criticism  grew  into  a  murmur  round  the  table. 

The  reply  of  Jesus  is  most  strikiug.  "  Let  lier  alone,"  said  he  ; 
"  why  do  you  trouble  her  ?  She  has  wrouglit  a  beautiful  work  on 
me.  You  have  the  poor  with  yon  ahvays,  and 
when  you  will  you  may  do  them  wod  :  but  me  The  reply  of  Je- 
you  have  not  always.  She  has  done  what  she 
could :  she  came  bcforeliand  to  anoint  my  body  for  the  burial. 
Verily  I  say  to  you.  Wherever  the  gosi)el  shall  be  preached  in  the 
whole  world,  what  she  has  done  shall  also  be  spoken  of  as  a  me- 
morial of  her." 

This  is  a  remarkable  speech  every  way.  Jesus  was  caught  in 
the  toils  of  liis  enemies.  lie  always  knew  that  there  was  to  be 
no  temporal  kingdom,  with  ofticcs,  and  honoi-s,  and  emoluinents, 
and  that  now  death  lay  near  before  him.  Beyond  that  death  he  saw 
that  his  cause  was  to  rise  and  concpier,  that  the  whole  world  was 
to  liear  the  glad  tidings  of  Jesus,  and  that  whenever  and  wher- 
ever that  gospel  was  preached,  Mary's  graceful  tribute  should  be 
recited  as  a  memorial  of  her.  It  is  noticeable  as  showing  the 
care  of  Jesus  for  the  graceful  when  it  has  no  special  utility. 
Jesus  took  care  of  the  beautiful ;  he  knew  that  the  useful  would 
take  care  of  itself.  He  showed  how  much  more  precious  in  his 
Bight  is  the  service  of  the  heart  than  the  service  of  the  head ;  the 
worship  of  love  than  the  labor  of  thought. 


602 


THE   LAST    WEEK. 


A    meetin 
conspirators. 


of 


"While  Jesus  was  predicting  the  downfall  of  Jerusalem,  as  he 
sat  on  a  projection  of  Mount  Olivet,  the  churchmen  inside  the 
city  were  plotting  his  destruction.  lie  had  that 
day  humbled  them  in  the  sight  of  the  people, 
lie  had  every  day  increased  their  rage  more  and 
more,  and  had  constantly  escaped,  always  going  out  of  the  city  at 
nightfall.  They  felt  that  they  must  do  something  promptly  and 
decisively  to  suppress  Jesus.  "With  that  view  a  large,  and  perhaps 
confidential,  assemblage  of  chief  priests  and  scribes  and  elders 
met  together  "  in  the  palace  of  the  high-priest,"  says  Matthew. 
They  did  not  go  to  the  usual  place,  the  council-chamber  called 
Gazith,  which,  according  to  the  Talmud,  joined  the  south  side  of 
the  Temple  ;  they  went  to  the  hall  or  com-t  of  Caiaphas,  son-in- 
law  of  Annas,  a  man  who  had  degraded  the  pontificate  by  giv- 
ing it  political  connections.  It  is  not  certain  where  this  "  palace," 
or  hall,  or  court  was.  An  ancient  tradition  makes  it  the  country- 
house  of  Caiaphas,  the  ruins  of  which  are  still  shown  on  the  sum- 
mit of  the  Ilill  of  Evil  Counsel.* 

The  intent  of  the  meeting  was  to  devise  some  scheme  of  subtil- 
ity  by  which  they  could  quickly  move  him  out  of  the  way.  They 
did  not  dare  to  attempt  to  take  him  openly.  He 
had  adherents  and  warm  partisans.  The  popu- 
lace were  excited  in  liis  behalf.  His  recent  mir- 
acles and  his  manifest  triumph  over  the  church  party  in  the  most 
public  manner  had  brought  the  people  to  his  side.  The  shouts  of 
the  Palm-Sunday  Messianic  salutations  had  scarce  yet  died  out  of 
the  air.  If  they  arrested  hiui  publicly  there  nn'ght  be  a  public 
attempt  at  rescue,  and  then  there  would  have  been  a  collision. 
The  lloman  guard,  Avho  never  studied  Jewish  ecclesiastical  ques- 
tions, and  who,  from  the  tower  of  Antonia,  looked  downujion  the 
Temple  court  and  kept  the  often  tunniltuous  crowd  of  woi-sliip- 
pere  under  8U7'veillance,  would  have  rushed  upon  them  with  the 
sword  and  consigned  both  parties  to  indiscriminate  slaughter.  Ey 
craft,  therefore,  must  he  be  taken.  After  a  long  consultation  this 
was  the  result  of  their  deliberations :  that  the  Passover  should  be 


The      capture 
postponed. 


*  "  Tradition  makes  the  bargain  with 
Judas  to  have  been  entered  into  at  the 
oountrj'-house  of  Caiaphas,  the  rtiins 
of  which  are  still  shown  upon  the  sum- 
mit of  the  Hill  of  Evil  Counsel.  The 
tradition  is  ngt  ancient ;  but  it  in  men- 


tioned as  a  singular  fact  that  the  mon- 
ument of  Annas,  who  may  have  had  a 
coimtry-seat  near  his  son-in-law,  is 
found  in  this  neighborhood."  Williams, 
JI.  C,  ii.  490,  quoted  by  Andrews. 


THE   FOUKTH   DAY. 


603 


allowed  to  go  by,  that  the  crowds  of  visitors  to  the  metropolis  on 
this  festal  occasion  should  be  permitted  to  depart,  and  that  then 
the  Sanhedrim  should  contrive  to  do  away  with  Jesus,  ^vithout 
noise,  without  calling  attention  to  him.  It  never  seemed  to  have 
entered  their  minds  that  this  end  might  be  gained  by  the  treason 
of  some  member  of  tlie  circle  of  Jesus.  "V\^at  they  were  resolv- 
ing should  be  after  the  Passover,  Jesus  was  predicting  should 
take  place  on  that  very  day. 

"We  can  fancy  the  surprise  and  diabolical  delight  of  the  San- 
hedrim when  suddenly  one  of  the  Twelve,  one  of  the  most  inti- 
mate friends  of  Jesus,  found  access  to  them  and 
offered  to  betray  him  to  them,  so  that  they  might  ^^^^ 
avoid  the  difhculties  of  his  apprehension  in  pub- 
lic. This  was  Judas  of  Kerioth.  The  reply  of  Jesus  to  his  criti- 
cism of  Mary's  waste  of  the  ointment  seemed  to  con^dnce  Judas 
that  things  were  not  going  forward  on  the  path  he  had  marked 
out  in  his  own  mind,  and 
so  he  took  the  resolve  to 
precipitate  the  work  by  a 
bold  movement.  He  went 
back  from  Simon's  house 
to  Jerusalem  and  souglit 
the  ecclesiastical  authori- 
ties. They  were  glad,  and  covenanted  with  him  "for  thirty 
pieces  of  silver."  Tliese  pieces  are  supposed  to  be  the  silver 
shekels,  each  of  which  was  worth  a  little  over  two  English  shil- 
lings, or  fifty  American  cents,  so  tliat  the  whole  sum  offered  Ju- 
das was  a  little  more  than  £3  English,  or  $15  American.  A  re- 
ference to  Exodus  xxi.  32,  shows  that  this  had  more  anciently 
been  the  price  of  a  slave.*  It  has  been  suggested  by  Lange  that 
when  the  Sanhedrim  made  tliis  offer  to  Judas  it  was  with  cunning 
irony.     Judas  accepted. 

The  case  of  Judas  is  a  study.  We  may  as  well  enter  upon  it 
here,  anticipating  so  much  of  the  remainder  of  his  history  as  the 
New  Testament  writers  record.  jS'o  historical 
character  has  had  so  hard  a  fate.  Even  if  the 
ingenuity  of  those  who  please  themselves  in  mak- 
ing theories  which  shall  expose  the  falseness  of  long-received 
conclusions,  or  the  pleas  of  those  whose  amiability  is  in  excess, 

*  Compare  the  remarkable  passage  in  Zechariah  xi.  12. 


The  case  of  Ju- 
das. 


C04 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


shall  do  sometliing  for  poor  Judas,  tliere  will  still  remain  the  fact 
that  for  more  than  eighteen  centuries  his  name  has  been  a  horror 
in  all  lands  where  it  has  been  known,  his  fame  the  blackest  amung 
men,  his  portrait  in  the  gallery  of  historical  i)crsonages  the  most 
deeply  dj'aped,  and  his  whole  character  considered  the  most  infer- 
nal of  all  that  have  been  mortal.  Poets,  painters,  and  preaehei-s 
have  united  to  danm  him  from  generation  to  generation.*  lie 
has  been  the  one  culj^rit  who  for  long  ages  had  not  a  single  hu- 
man brother  to  say  one  word  in  his  behalf.  This  itself  has  been 
a  terrible  doom. 

Of  late  yeara  examination  of  his  character,  his  motives,  and  his 
conduct  has  gone  far  to  mitigate  the  verdict  of  the  past.  Every 
examination  of  the  career  of  Jesus  involves  an  ex- 
amination of  the  case  of  Judas,  and  the  very 
unanimity  of  opinion  in  past  ages  has  so  aroused 
the  suspicion  of  modern  criticism,  that  some  writers  who  have 
not  concerned  themselves  with  Jesus  have  found  a  fascination 
in  the  unique  historical  position  of  Judas,  attracting  them  to 
an  analysis  of  his  natural  characteristics  and  of  his  motives  in 
this  most  unfortunate  and  fatal  betrayal  of  his  Teacher.  The 
Gennan  critics  first  suggested  that  the  story  of  Judas  had  been 
misread  and  the  man  misunderstood  ;  that  appearances  were  so 
frightfully  against  him  at  the  first  as  to  put  him  under  a  cloud, 
which  his  sudden  death,  quickly  following  his  betrayal  of  Jesus, 
prevented  him  from  dissipating,  and  which  no  one  subsequently 
had  any  interest  in  removing,  while  partisanship  for  Jesus  gave 
his  followers  a  reason  for  making  that  cloud  as  dark  as  possible. 


Fresh  examina- 
tions. 


*  I  have  been  told  by  a  friend  that  in 
South  America  au  image  of  Judas  is 
submitted,  on  ceri;ain  days,  to  the  pop- 
ular execration,  and  that  he  himself  had 
given  Juda.s  a  kick  in  the  streets  of  Rio. 
There  was  not  much  of  Judiis  left  at  the 
close  of  a  day  of  such  treatment. 

In  the  Prince  of  the  Jfonsfl  of  Da- 
rul,  a  romance  founded  on  the  facts  in 
the  life  of  Jesus,  the  author,  Rev.  Mr. 
In^aham,  gives  his  ideal  of  Judas  in 
the  following  description,  which  shows 
how  this  ideal  was  constructed  by  the 
natural  dislike  to  Judas  caused  by  the 
historical  position  he  Bostoins  towards 


Jesus: — "He  was  low  in  height,  was 
ill-featured,  and  his  attire  was  mean  : 
but  he  had  a  susjiicious  air.  combined 
with  a  cringing  deference,  that  made 
made  me  think  he  must  be  a  hj-pocrite. 
He  smiled  with  his  mouth  and  teeth, 
but  at  the  same  time  looked  sinister  out 
of  his  eyes.  An  air  of  humility  seemed 
to  be  put  on  to  conceal  the  pride  and 
wickedness  of  his  character.  He  looked 
like  a  man  who  could  artfully  deceive 
to  gain  Ids  scllish  cuds,  and  who  would 
kneel  to  you  to  overturn  you.  The 
Botxnd  of  his  voice  confirmed  my  first 
impression  of  him." 


THE   FOURTH    DAY.  605 

De  Quiiicey  sums  up  the  reasonings  of  the  Germans  along  thi;? 

line  of  thought  with  suggestions  of  his  own,  the  amount  of  which 

is  that  Judas  was  not  in  the  had  sense  a  traitor,       ^     ^  . 

,      .  ,  .      T-»  ,  De     Quincey  s 

that  his  movements   dunng  this  rassover  week    ^^^^j^ 

were  not  intended  to  crush,  nay,  nor  even  to  re- 
tard, hut  rather  to  advance  the  cause  of  Jesus.  He  may  have 
had  some  self-seeking  in  all  that  he  did,  hut  not  base  treachery 
and  certainly  not  petty  avarice.  His  reasoning  was  fallacious, 
as  subsequent  events  have  shown,  but  it  was  just  such  as  an  aver- 
age intellect  would  have  pursued  before  the  catastrophe,  in  view 
of  such  facts  as  are  now  known  to  have  been  before  the  mind  of 
Judas,  and  specially  operative  upon  such  a  mental  and  moral  con- 
stitution as  that  of  Judas. 

Quite  lately  this  theory  has  been  taken  up  by  Mr.  Story,  an 
American  sculptor  residing  in  Rome,  and  worked  into  a  poem  of 
considerable  dramatic  force,  entitled  The  Roman 
Laioyer  hi  Jerusalem,  first  published  in  Blade- 
wood^  and  afterward  in  a  small  volume.  In  this  poem  the  theory  is 
such  an  advance  on  that  of  the  Germans  and  De  Quincey  as  to 
make  Judas,  upon  the  whole,  the  very  best  and  noblest  of  the 
Twelve  Apostles,  most  believing,  most  daring,  yet  most  delicate. 
Of  all  the  Apostles  he  was  the  only  one  who  so  believed  in  the 
Godhood  of  Jesus  that  he  felt  that  no  power  could  kill  him,  and  if 
he  could  put  his  Master  in  just  such  relation  to  human  power 
that  he  would  be  compelled  to  let  his  Godhead  break  through  his 
humanity,  then  should  be  brought  to  pass,  what  they  all  desired, 
the  immediate  inauguration  of  the  Messianic  kingdom.  It  might 
be  a  personal  disaster  to  Judas  to  do  it,  but  none  of  the  other  dis- 
ciples had  the  faith  in  Jesus  and  the  daring  to  make  the  venture. 
Judas  had.  But  when  he  saw  his  dire  mistake,  and  that  Jesus 
did  not  burst  out  into  undeniable  Messianic  splendor  and  power, 
Judas  was  so  delicately  constituted  that  his  heart  broke.  This  is 
the  argument  of  Mr.  Story's  poem. 

Let  us  see  how  much  of  all  this  has  ground  in  history  and 
reason. 

Jesus  originally  selected  Judas  from  a  company  of  at  least 
sixty  of  his  followers  to  be  of  the  number  of  the  Twelve  who 
should  be  on  his  "  staff "  and  should  be  charged  with  the  special 
duty  of  propagating  his  doctrines.  Judas,  then,  was  no  worse 
and  no  better  than  the  rest  of  them.     He  was  an  average  man, 


GOG  THE   LAST   "WEEK. 

of  average   moral   and   intellectual   endowments.     But   lie  waa 
dra\m  to  Jesus,  and  by  Jesus  selected  to  tlie  Apostolate.     He  was 
religious  ab(jve  the  average.     Through  his  whole 
Judascompared    connection  with  Jesus,  up  to  this  point,  he  does 
with    the    other         ^,  .  ,  i  .  i  .  i      , 

Apostles.  nothnig  and  says  nothing  which  draws  a  reproof 

from  Jesus.  He  behaves  better  than  the  rest. 
He  never  had  said  or  done  anything  to  make  Jesus  say  to  him  as 
he  had  to  Peter,  "  Get  behind  me,  Satan."  He  was  a  better-tem- 
pered man  than  John,  who  is  the  admiration  of  paintei-s  and 
romancers,  for  never,  like  John,  had  he  desired  to  call  down  fire 
from  heaven  to  consume  his  fellow-inen.  He  never  was  such  a 
profane  liar  as  Peter  proved  to  be,  nor  so  ambitious  as  John  and 
his  brother  James,  who  desired  to  share  the  Messianic  kingdom 
with  Jesus,  and  sit  one  on  his  right  hand  and  the  other  on  his 
left,  ruling  over  their  brethren. 

The  only  occasion  when  even  acuteness  can  discover  anything 
that  can  be  tortured  into  a  reproof  is  the  supper  in  the  house  of 

Simon  the  Leper,  when  Judas  suggested  that  the 
.  money  Avhich  had  been  spent  on  the  ointment  by 

Mary  might  have  been  better  expended  on  the 
poor.  If  any  candid  reader  will  forget  that  it  was  Judas  who 
made  this  remark,  and  notice  that  what  Jesus  said  was  not  in 
opposition  to  the  remark  of  Judas,  a  remark  which  Judas  himself 
had  learned  fi-om  the  very  teaching  of  Jesus, — if  the  reader  will 
only  fancy  that  John  might  have  said  the  same  thing,  and  Jesus 
might  have  made  to  him  the  same  reply,  then  all  sign  of  reproof 
will  disappear.  It  is  to  be  recollected  by  those  who  will  be  criti- 
cal that  when  we  read  the  account  of  that  supper  in  John's  twelfth 
chapter,  we  are  prejudiced  by  the  statement  that  it  was  Judas 
Iscariot  who  made  the  suggestion  of  economy  in  the  matter  of 
the  ointment,  and  that  John  takes  ])ains  to  inform  us  that  it  was 
he  "  which  should  betray  him,"  and  then  he  adds  the  damaging 
parenthesis :  "  This  he  said,  not  that  he  cared  for  the  ])our,  but 
because  he  was  a  tliief,  and  had  the  bag,  and  bore  what  was  put 
tlierein."  If  we  had  only  the  narratives  of  Matthew  and  Mark  we 
could  never  have  had  any  suspicion  that  Jesus  was  reproving  the 
suggestion  of  giving  the  money  to  the  poor,  but  was  rather,  with 
his  usual  lofty  yet  tender  courtesy,  protecting  the  woman  who 
loved  him  and  was  anointing  him. 

It  is  to  be  considered,  then,  that  John's  saying  "he  was  a  thief" 


THE   FOURTH   DAY.  607 

does  not  prove  that  Judas  had  ever  committed  an  act  of  theft  or 
showed  any  signs  of  a  proclivity  towards  peculation.  lie  certainly 
liad  not  been  a  thief  up  to  the  time  of  his  elec- 
tion for  the  Apostolate.  He  was  a  man  of  execu-  ^  ^  ^  ^  ®^*" 
tive  ability  surpassing  them  all,  and  supposed  to  be 
a  man  of  honesty  equal  to  them  all,  else  he  had  not  been  made  their 
treasurer.  That  they  had  an  insignificant  exchequer  is  not  proof 
that  they  would  therefore  be  careless  as  to  the  person  wlio  should 
manage  it :  quite  the  contrary.  Poor  people  who  invest  their  sav- 
ings a  dime  at  a  time,  need  to  be  more  careful  than  men  who  would 
not  be  embarrassed  for  an  hour  by  the  breaking  of  a  bank  in 
M^hich  they  have  dei)Osited  ten  thousand  dollai-s.  These  disciples 
were  scrupulous  and  careful  There  must  have  been  frequent 
auditing  of  the  accounts  of  Judas,  not  from  any  suspicion  of 
foul  dealing  on  his  part,  but  to  know  how  far  their  little  fund 
would  meet  their  pressing  wants.  A  widow  whose  toil  brings 
such  weekly  wages  as  that  the  most  rigid  economy  must  be  exer- 
cised to  keep  her  outgo  from  exceeding  her  income,  counts  over 
her  little  store  more  frequently  and  carefully  than  the  Eoths- 
childs  count  their  ample  assets.  The  disciples  would  have  de- 
tected the  leakage  if  Judas  had  purloined.  Jesus  would  have 
found  some  method  of  reproof,  or  at  least  of  warning.  But 
nothing  of  this  kind  ever  occurred.  No  suspicion  against  Judas 
arose  among  the  disciples  until  after  the  betrayal  of  Jesus. 

John  wrote  this  verdict  after  Judas  had  betrayed  Jesus.  The 
other  disciples  must  have  been  unspeakably  outraged.  It  was 
natural.  They  would  not  have  deserved  to  be  the  friends  of 
Jesus  if  they  had  not  felt  tlie  ntmost  horror  at  the  betrayal.  That 
would  naturally  lead  them  to  believe  any  evil  thing  of  the  be- 
trayer, and  as  Judas  certainly  did  receive  money  for  liis  services 
in  this  transaction,  it  was  most  natural  to  suppose  that  he  was  so 
avaricious  that  he  would  have  stolen,  that  he  who  would  "  sell  his 
Master,"  for  so  they  regarded  it,  for  thirty  shekels,  the  price  of  a 
slave,  would  not  hesitate  to  steal,  being  at  heart  a  thief ;  and  that 
he  who  had  not  tenderness  enough  for  such  a  Master  as  Jesus  as 
to  make  the  earth,  even  if  it  were  a  solid  chrysolite,  no  tempta- 
tion as  a  bribe  for  1;etrayal,  conld  not  have  had  any  care  for  the 
poor.  This  is  all  that  the  M'ords  of  John  do  really  prove,  namely, 
that  his  fellow- Apostles  regarded  the  act  of  Judas  as  so  horrible 
as  to  put  him  beyond  the  pale  of  Christian  charity  j  in  which 


608  THE   LAST    WEEK. 

they  might  have  been  as  much  mistaken  as  John  was  wlien  he 

wanted  fire  from  heaven  to  burn  up  the  Samaritan  village, 

Judas  had  the  "  worldly  "  part  of  the  work  of  the  Apostles  to 

attend  to.     lie  made  the  little  purchases,  and  thus,  as  De  Quincey 

suggests,  came  in  contact  with  the  "  petty  shop  ■ 

Judas'a  office.       ,  „  t     i       i  i  •      i    j       -^i     ^i     ^ 

keepers,    or,  as  i  slum  Id  say,  mingled  with  that 

class  from  whom  he  gathered  the  popular  opinion  of  men  and 
measures.  lie  was  not  confined  to  the  spiritual  influence  of  the 
inner  circle  of  the  friends  of  Jesus.  lie  went  out  frequently 
into  "  the  world,"  and  coming  back  Judas  believed,  as  they  all 
did,  that  Jesus  was  going  to  establish  a  temporal  kingdom.  The 
difference  between  the  eleven  and  Judas,  as  it  seems  to  me,  was 
simply  this,  that  their's  was  a  vague  belief  and  expectation,  influ- 
encing them  more  as  a  dream  than  as  a  vital  power  shaping  their 
lives.  Judas  was  no  fanatic  and  no  poet.  I  think  Mr.  Story  not 
quite  right  when  he  speaks  of  him  as  a  man  "  who  took  his 
dreams  for  firm  realities."  He  studied  all  the  phenomena  of  the 
case  as  a  man  of  affairs,  as  an  astute  politician.  lie  had  more 
knowledge  of  the  world  and  more  practical  sense  than  the  other 
Apostles,  lie  believed  in  the  desirableness  of  throwing  off  the 
Roman  yoke.  He  believed  the  time  liad  come  to  do  it.  The 
people  had  grown  into  an  impatience  that  was  passionate.  If 
a  proper  leader  could  be  found  and  a  proper  time  to  strike, 
the  work  could  be  accomplished,  lie  found  that  leader  in 
Jesus, 

It  would  seem  probable  that  more  than  the  other  Apostles  he 
believed  in  the  Messiahship  of  Jesus,  and  in  a  loftier  and  at  the 
same  time  more  practical  way.  Let  us  suppose  that  he  brooded 
over  this  thought  for  three  yeai-s,  not  as  a  dreamer,  but  as  a  prac- 
tical working  man.  He  would  naturally  come  to  see  it  in  a  light 
in  which  the  other  Apostles  could  not  study  it.  The  capacities  of 
Jesus  for  such  a  leadership  would  be  a  question  of  profound  in- 
terest. He  saw  in  him  prodigious  power,  power  t(j  Mork  mira- 
cles, to  csca])e  througli  the  heart  of  a  mob  as  if  he  l)ore  a  charmed 
life.  He  was  capal)le  of  overawing  men,  A  crowd  of  nicrcbanta 
had  rushed  out  of  the  Temjde  before  liis  eyes  of  rebuke.  There 
was  a  majestic  angustness  al)out  him  which  made  Judas  feel  that 
this  was  a  King  of  Men,  Devils  bowed  before  him,  while  children 
were  attracted  to  his  side  and  were  petted  when  they  came,  and 
women  absolutely  adored  him  to  the  very  kissing  of  his  feet,     tie 


THE   FOUKTII    DAY.  609 

could  raise  the  dead  with  a  word  ;  could  he  not  slay  the  wicked 
with  a  look  ? 

Jesus  had  all  the  personal  dignities  and  graces  for  a  king  of 
kings ;  but  there  was  one  defect :  he  had  no  policy  and  no 
"  push."  So  it  must  have  seemed  to  Judas, 
Jesus  never  took  advantage  of  his  personal  pop-  f  j  ^^  ^  opmioa 
ularity  to  consolidate  a  party.  lie  fed  thousands 
of  people  and  got  nothing  back.  He  confounded  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal leaders,  and  yet  would  not  found  a  church,  and  now,  when  his 
affairs  seemed  to  be  reaching  a  crisis,  he  was  making  no  move- 
ments ecclesiastical  or  political.  This  behavior,  in  the  eyes  of  a 
politician,  was  simply  absurd.  Judas,  no  more  than  the  other 
Apostles,  recognized  the  interiorness  and  throughness  of  the 
kingdom  which  Jesus  was  preaching  and  trying  to  make  them 
understand,  how  that  it  was  like  that  ether  which  pervades  the 
atmosphere,  and  glass,  and  all  ti-ansparent  suljstances,  and  is  where 
there  is  neither  air  nor  glass, — a  kingdom  which  did  not  need  to 
displace  any  existing  kingdom  or  church, — a  kingdom  which 
could  as  well  subsist  in  political  anarchies  as  in  empires,  in  re- 
publics as  in  despotisms,  a  kingdom  which  had  no  need  of  any 
outward  and  visible  State,  or  any  outward  and  visible  Church,  but 
could  and  would  subsist  in  all  forms  of  States  and  all  forms  of 
Church,  and  without  all  States  and  all  Churches,  a  kingdom  which 
did  not  exist,  but  subsist  and  jpersist,  that  did  not  stand  out  but 
fill  through,  that  was  not  &  ^phenomenon  but  a  noumenon. 

Eooted  and  grounded  in  the  belief  that  a  temporal,  sensuous, 
visible,  Hebrew  kingdom  was  to  cover  the  earth  and  subdue  the 
nations,  nothing  else  would  satisfy  Judas.  And 
he  must  have  believed  that  Jesus  expected  such  a  ^®  ^°°^®<^  ^^^  * 
kingdom,  and  expected  to  reign  over  it,  but  that  ^3'"''^^  ^'''^' 
he  had  not  the  promptness  at  the  right  moment 
to  make  the  stroke,  the  requisite  coup  d'etat.  In  De  Quincey's 
language,  he  seemed  to  Judas  to  be  "  sublimely  over-gifted  for 
pui-poses  of  speculation,  but  not  commensurately  endowed  for  the 
business  of  action  and  the  sudden  emergencies  of  life."  And  to 
Judas  the  conduct  of  his  brother  Apostles,  and  of  all  the  follow- 
ers of  Jesus,  was  most  unwise  and  unprofitable.  They  needed  all 
their  funds,  and  yet  were  wasting  it  on  ointment.  The  Apostles 
and  the  other  fi-iends  of  Jesus  were  doing  nothing  for  him,  sim- 
ply enjoying  his  society,  walking  about  with  him,  behaving  like 


010  THE   LAST   WEEK- 

cliildren.  It  must  have  chafed  Judas ;  and  although  he  made  no 
special  profession  of  attachment  to  Jesus,  and  received  no  dis- 
criminating attention  from  him,  Judas  may  have  felt  at  heart  that 
he  was  doing  more  for  "  the  cause"  than  they  all,  or  at  least  had 
the  most  earnest  desire  to  do. 

Over  these  things  he  had  been  brooding  for  months,  if  not  years. 
Now  the  crisis  was  coming.  Jesus  himself  seemed  to  be  aban- 
.^,.  doning  the  Messianic  work  on  which  he  had  en- 

tered. It  behooves  us  to  consider  every  element 
which  may  have  entered  into  the  calculations  of  Judas.  At  this 
juncture  of  affairs  he  may  have  reviewed  his  reasonings  and  seen 
things  in  this  position :  he  had  been  right  as  to  the  claims  of 
Jesus  to  the  Messiahship,  or  he  had  been  wrong;  the  Established 
Church  and  Government  had  some  claims  upon  Judas ;  the 
Church  was  the  enemy  of  Jesus ;  the  Church  desired  to  suppress 
Jesus  privately;  Judas  could  agree  with  the  clergy  to  point  out 
Jesus  at  night  quietly;  then  one  of  two  things  would  occur — 
Jesus  would  raise  the  populace  and  proceed  to  carry  the  revolu- 
tion forward  with  vigor,  or  else  he  was  an  impostor,  and  it  was 
right  that  he  should  be  surrendered.  This  last  thought  I  think 
could  have  been  at  most  only  a  side-light  on  the  mind  of  Judas. 
He  could  hardly  have  suspected  Jesus  of  being  an  impostor.  But 
in  such  a  case  as  this  a  man  is  actuated  by  many,  and  sometimes 
contradictory,  motives.  But  I  agree  with  Neander,  that  avarice 
could  scarcely  have  been  a  leading  motive  in  the  case  of  Judas. 
If  he  was  avaricious  and  treacherous  at  lieart,  why,  after  receiv- 
ing the  money  from  the  priests,  did  he  point  out  Jesus  ?  There 
was  nothing  more  to  be  gained,  and  it  was  not  so  offensive  a  thing 
to  cheat  the  malignant  priests  as  to  betray  his  good  Master.  lie 
kept  his  contract,  showing  that  he  was  not  treacherous ;  and  he 
returned  the  money  when  he  saw  that  he  was  wrong. 

All  that  he  did,  ^;^  act,  was  to  designate  Jesus  in  a  crowd  at 
night.     Let  us  consider  the  circumstances  of   his  remorse  and 

dcatli,  not  forgetting  the  truth  of  Neander's  re- 
Remorse    and  1        u  A  1    *i  •  *i        • 
death  of  Jndaa      '''^''^' '       ^^   ^  general   thing,   the    impressions 

made  upon  a  man  by  the  results  of  his  action 
testify  but  little  as  to  his  character  and  motives;  none  can  tell 
how  an  evil  deed,  even  when  deliberately  planned  and  pcr|>e- 
trated,  will  react  upon  the  conscience."  Mark,  Luke,  and  John 
are  silent.     Matthew  and  the  writer  of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles 


THE   FOURTH   DAT.  611 

are  our  only  authorities.  The  former  says  (xxvii.  3)  that  when 
Judas  saw  that  Jesus  was  condemned  he  returned  the  money  to 
the  priests  and  acknowledged  that  he  had  betrayed  innocent 
blood;  and  then  went  out  and  hanged  himself.  In  the  Acts 
(i.  16)  Peter,  who  had  acted  very  basely  at  the  betrayal  of  Jesus, 
is  represented  as  saying  that  Judas  had  purchased  a  field  with  the 
wages  of  iniquity,  "  and  falling  on  liis  face  he  burst  asunder  and 
all  his  bowels  gushed  forth."  It  is  plain  that  both  these  accounts 
cannot  be  accurate.  If  he  returned  the  money,  then  he  did  not 
buy  a  field  with  it.  If  he  hanged  himself,  he  did  not  meet  with 
the  horrible  end  depicted  by  Peter.  Casaubon  suggests  that, 
according  to  Matthew,  Judas  hauged  himself,  and  tliat  he  did 
this  over  the  Valley  of  Gehinnon  ;  the  branch  broke  or  the  rope 
was  torn,  and  Judas,  according  to  Peter,  fell  headlong  and  burst 
asunder !  This  seems  ridiculous ;  and  yet  there  does  not  seem 
to  be  any  better  theory.  If  taken  literally,  the  accounts  are  con- 
tradictory, and  one  or  the  other  was  mistaken.  Peter's  speech 
is  evidently  loosely  rhetorical.  There  must  have  been  other  facts 
of  which  we  have  no  knowledge,  and  which  might  reconcile  these 
statements. 

We  are  to  remember  the  rooted  belief  among  the  Apostles  and 
their  countrymen  that  every  marked  physical  evil  was  retributive 
of  the  individual's  sins.  It  must  needs  be  that  they  should  sup- 
pose that  Judas  should  have  something  horrible  in  his  death.  It 
is  quite  clear  that  he  did  come  to  some  tragic  end.  When  he  saw 
what  he  had  done,  when  he  beheld  Jesus  with  such  placidity  sub- 
mitting himself  to  the  hands  of  the  church  and  the  state  for  ex- 
ecution, all  at  once  there  rolled  back  upon  him  the  tide  of  his 
earliest  affection  for  Jesus,  the  ]-emembrance  of  all  the  beautiful 
and  beneficent  life  of  Jesus,  a  perception  of  his  own  huge  and 
irremediable  blunder,  and  he  rushed  to  the  hierarchy  and  flung 
their  money  back  to  them,  and  went  out  appalled,  horror-stricken, 
heart-broken,  strangling  with  his  emotions,  and  fell  down  dead. 
This  figurative  rendering  seems  to  be  the  only  reasonable  method 
of  harmonizing  the  two  accounts. 

We  are  not  to  apologize  for  Judas,  nor  add  unwarrantably  to 

his  badness,  but  strive  to  find  out  what  he  was. 

He  was  an  averao^e  politician.     He  was  audacious  I^f'^  ^ 

°     ^  case  of  Judas. 

rather  than  treacherous.     He  believed  that  the 

cause  of  Jesus  needed  the  hand  of  policy  to  steady  it  and  push  it 


612 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


forward.    He  dared  to  take  out  of  the  hand  of  the  Master  what  was 

the  work  of  tlie  Master,  and  he  perished  in  the  attempt.     Ilis  ruin 

was  caused  by  the  impatience  and  pride  of  his  utter  workliiness. 

But  for  his  impatient  policy  he  never  would  have  consulted  with 

tlie  church  party.     But  for  his  impatient  pride  he  would  have  led 

a  life  of  })enitence  which  would  have  restored  him.    It  was  through 

his  worldliness  and  not  thrc^ugh  his  sagacity  that  the  devil  entered 

into  him.    Peter  did  quite  as  basely  as  he ;  but  Peter  repented  and 

lived  to  recover  himself.     If  social  damage  had  not  seemed  to 

the  worldliness  of  Judas  the  greatest   of   all   evils,   repentance 

might  have  brought  recovery  to  him  as  it  did  to  Peter. 

The  fourth  day  of  the  week  began  on  Tuesday  evening  and 

closed  on  Wednesday  evening.     On  Tuesday  evening  Judas  prob- 

^  ,     .       . ,   '^^^^y  had  his  interview  with  the  church  autho- 
Wednesday,  5th     ./         _,         _  _        .,1.1.., 

April,  A.D.  30.         nties.     ihen  Jesus   went   with  hie   disciples    to 

Bethany.  The  temporary  absence  of  Judas  would 
scarcely  have  been  noticed  by  the  other  disciples,  as  he  must 
have  been  accustomed  to  be  absent  in  his  attendance  on  the 
"  temporalities  "  of  the  body.  History  is  silent  on  this  "Wednesday. 
There  is  not  an  intimation  of  any  movement  upon  the  part  of  the 
authorities  or  of  Jesus.  He  seems  to  have  gone  into  profound 
retirement.  There  is  no  notice  of  any  communication  even  with 
his  disciples.  It  is  a  strange  calm  stealing  in  between  the  commo- 
tion of  the  preceding  and  the  storm  of  the  succeeding  days. 
Jesus  evidently  felt  his  position,  and  knew  all  that  was  going  for- 
ward. "We  may  fancy  tlie  thoughts  and  feelings  of  such  a  head 
and  such  a  heart  as  his,  but  there  is  no  history. 


HAUr  BHEKEL. 


CHAPTER   V. 

I 

THE   FIFTH    DAY — FROM  WEDNESDAY  EVENING  TO  THUKSDAY  EVENING. 

The:  fifth  day  of  the  week  began  on  Wednesday  evening,  and 

closed  on  Thursday  evening.     It  was  the  first  day  of  unleavened 

-,.  ^  ^      ,         bread,  wlien  the  Passover  must  be  killed.     The 

First  day  of  un-     ,. 
leavened  bread.       ^  assover  was   the   least  commemorative  of   the 

delixcrance  of  the  nation  from  the  Egyptian 
bondage.  The  history  of  its  ai)pointment  and  method  of  observ- 
ance arc  given  in  Exod.  xii.  The  feast  was  celebrated  by  compa- 
nies, numbering  not  less  than  ten  nor  more  than  twenty.  In  be- 
lialf  t>f  the  whole  company,  one,  as  a  representative,  presented  the 
laml)  in  the  Temj)le  to  be  sacrificed  by  the  Levites.  It  was  then 
carried  to  the  house  where  the  party  was  assembled,  and  eaten ; 
and  if  they  could  not  consume  it  before  daylight  they  were  to 
burn  the  remainder.  Jesus  was  approached  by  his  disciples,  to 
know  where  he  would  have  them  prepare  for  his  eating  of  the 
l*assover. 

There  is  no  ])oiiit  in  the  chronology  of  the  career  of  Jesus  which 
has  elicited  more  controversy  than  the  question  on  what  evemn» 
Jesus  ate  the  Passover.  To  repeat  all  that  has  been  written  on  this 
subject  would  be  to  produce  another  volume  larger  than  this,  and, 
after  all,  the  discrepancy  between  the  statements  of  John  and 
those  of  the  other  biographers  seems  to  be  as  far  from  being  har- 
m<»nized  as  ever.*  There  is  no  space  to  give  even  a  synopsis  of 
the  arguments,  which  would  require  many  pages.  The  result  of 
all  seems  to  be  that  the  most  rational  conclusion  is  that  all  the 
Evangelists  spoke  of  one  feast;  that  it  was  a  Paschal  supper;  that 
Jesus  ate  that  supper  with  his  disciples  on  Thursday  night,  the 
cvem'ng  following  the  14th  Nisan,  April  6,  a.u.  783,  a.d.  30,  beino- 
tlie  evening  from  which,  according  to  Jewish  calculation,  began 
the  sixth  day,  Friday,  15th  Nisan, 


•  Readers  who  have  abundance  of 
time  may  find  this  question  amply  dis- 
cussed in  Andrews's  Life  of  our  Ix)rd, 


Smith's  Dictmiary  of  the  Bible,  Gvesa- 
well's  Dissertations,  and  a  note  in  Cros- 
by's Jesm,  p.  429. 


614  THE   LAST   -WEEK. 

During  the  day,  before  the  evening,  in  reply  to  his  disciples, 
Jesus  sent  Peter  and  John  to  prepare  for  the  eating  of  the  Pass- 
over Supper.     He  said,  "  On  your  entering  the 

Preparation  for  ^jj^  ^  j^^.^^^  gj^^^U  ^^^^^  bearing  a  pitcher :  fol- 
the     Supper,     ,     "    ,  .        .  ,       ,  .    ,  i  •  i      i 

Thursday  6th  ^^^  ^'"^  "'^*^  ^^  house  luto  whicn  he  entere, 
April,  A.D.  30.  And  you  shall  s{)eak  to  the  Master  of  the  house, 
saying,  '  The  Teacher  says  to  you.  My  time  is  at 
hand.  Where  is  the  guest-chamber,  where  I  may  eat  the  Pass- 
over with  my  disciples  ? '  And  he  shall  show  you  a  large  upper 
room,  cushioned ;  and  there  make  ready."  There  need  be  very 
little  speculation  upon  the  mysteriousness  of  this  message.  Those 
who  are  so  materialistic  that  any  narrative  not  totally  common- 
place bears  internal  evidence  of  its  untruth,  will  reject  this  por- 
tion of  the  history,  as  they  will  that  of  the  sending  for  the  ass's 
colt  in  Bethphage.  Those  who  accept  it  are  able  to  belie\e  in 
the  psychology  of  the  New  Testament,  and  will  have  no  difficul- 
ties. Men's  powers  of  inspection,  circumspection,  and  transpec- 
tion  differ.  Jesus  had  them  all  in  an  extraordinary  measure.  He 
knew  what  was  working  in  Judas.  He  knew  that  he  had  pledged 
himself  to  indicate  his  IMaster  in  such  a  way  that  the  authorities 
might  take  him  without  raising  a  multitude.  That  was  all  the 
priests  desired.  That  was  all  Judas  was  to  do.  But  Jesus,  while 
marching  forward  in  the  line  on  which  his  fate  lay,  would  not 
precipitate  himself  thereupon.  lie  would  not  put  in  the  hands 
of  Judas,  who  M'as  watching,  such  information  as  might  be  used 
to  break  up  the  Paschal  Supper.  Jesus  determined  to  eat  that 
with  his  disciples.  His  clear  spiritual  sight  enabled  him  to  talk 
of  the  man  with  the  pitcher  of  water,  and  the  house  he  should  en- 
ter, and  the  owner  thereof,  as  if  all,  down  to  the  cushions  in  the 
guest-chamber,  were  present  before  his  eyes,  as  in  some  sense  they 
certainly  must  have  been.  The  disciples  found  all  as  he  had 
described. 

It  is  not  known  who  was  this  citizen  of  Jerusalem  in  whose 
house  Jesus  ate  this  Supper.   He  was  some  secret  friend  of  Jesus. 

There  is  no  sign  of  bargain  in  adviiiice.     It  was 
At  whose  house  ?  x  i  ..         ^     r        •  i 

not  necessary.    It  was  the  custom  to  rurnisn  room 

for  the  Passover  gratis.     The  rule  was  to  leave  the  earthen  jugs 

and  the  skins  of  the  sacriliccd  animals  for  the  host,  but  he  t(x)k 

no  jiay.     The  trouble  in  the  mind  of  the  disciples  seems  to  have 

been  that  they  had  postponed  finding  a  place  until  it  might  bo 


THE   FIFTH   DAT. 


615 


exceedingly  difficult  to  do  so.  But  the  calm  Jesus  knew  just 
where  to  send  them.  Thronged  and  crowded  as  the  city  was,  he 
knew  a  secret  adlierent,  a  friend  to  "  The  Master,"  who  would 
gladly  open  his  house  for  him,  and  who,  strangely,  had  a  v^acant 
chamber  ready.  All  this  displays  more  than  even  extraordinary 
sagacity  on  the  part  of  Jesus. 

The  disciples  made  ready.  The  law  was  that  the  Paschal  lamb 
was  to  be  slain  "  between  the  evenings."  This  phrase  has  had  a 
variety  of  meanings  assigned  by  the  Jewish  writ- 
ers. In  the  times  of  Josephus  {Bell.  Jud.,  vi.  9,  3), 
the  Pharisees  held  that  the  first  evenino^  began 
when  the  sun  declined  towards  the  horizon,  the  second  at  sunset 
Some,  however,  taught  that  the  phrase  included  the  time  from  a 
little  before  to  a  little  after  sunset.  The  Samaritans  and  Karaites 
interpreted  it  to  mean  from  sunset  to  dark.  It  was  probably  about 
three  o'clock  that  the  lamb  was  slain,  and  before  six  that  the  sup- 
per ^\'as  eaten. 


"  Between  the 
evenings." 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    SIXTH    DAY — FROM   THURSDAY   EVENING   TO   FRIDAY   EVENINO. 

Section  1. — The  Supjper. 

At  the  appointed  hour  they  entered  the  chamber,  and  Jesus 

said  to  them,  "  With  desire  I  have  desired  to  eat  this  Passover 

with  you  before  I  suffer ;  iox  I  say  to  you  that  I 

Thursday  even-    ^^-^  ^^^  ^^^  thereof  until  the  time  when  it  shall 

ing,    6th    April,         i^x^^^^  i^  the  kingdom  of  God."     This  was 

A.D.  oO.     Jesus  8  o  , 

opening  speech.       Said,  perhaps,  while  they  were  standing,  as  the 

ceremony  of  the  Passover  was  to  remind  them  of 
their  flight  out  of  Egypt.  They  were  about  to  recline  at  the  ta- 
ble, and  then  arose  the  old  question  of  precedence,  who  should  be 
first.  It  might  have  been  the  attraction  of  love.  Jesus  was  so 
melancholy,  yet  so  serene.  He  was  growing  sublimely  beautiful. 
Who  should  sit  next  him  ?  But  they  waxed  warm,  and  the  feel- 
ing was  not  generous.  It  ran  rather  in  the  channel  of  Oriental 
etiquette,  the  position  at  the  table  being  important. 

It  was  somehow  settled  at  last,  John  being  next  to  him  on  one 

side,  and  most  probably  Judas  on  the  other.     It  was  customary  at 

this  feast  to  have  four  cups  of  wine  mixed  with 

He  gives  them    ^^^ter.     And  Jesus  took  one  of  these  cups,  and 
the  wine  and  the    ,.  .  ,iii  •.    .i'J''i» 

^j.gjj^  having  given  thanks,  he  gave  it  to  his  disciples, 

saying,  "  Take  and  divide  this  among  yourselves, 

for  I  say  to  you,  that  I  will  not  drink  henceforth  of  the  fruit  of  the 

vine  until  the  kingdom  of  God  shall  come."   After  they  had  been 

eating  some  time,  he  took  bread,  and  having  given  thanks,  he  broke 

it,  and  gave  it  to  them,  saying,  "  This  is  my  body,  which  is  about 

to  be  given  in  behalf  of  you :  this  do  in  remembrance  of  me." 

Then,  after  they  had  eaten,  he  took  the  cup,  and  gave  it  to  them, 

saying,  "  This  cup  is  the  New  Testament  in  my  blood,  now  to  be 

poured  forth  in  behalf  of  youl  " 

This  seemed  designed    to   appropriate   to   himself    what  was 


THE   SIXTH    DAY.  617 

typical  in  the  unleavened  bread,  and  in  the  mingled  wine  and 
water  of  the  Paschal  feast.  Wlienever  they  celebrated  the  Pass- 
over they  were  to  remember  him.  lie  seems  to  intimate  that  a 
thought  of  him  was  wrapped  up  in  the  Passover  idea.  Might  it 
not  also  mean  that,  whenever  they  should  eat  bread  and  di-ink 
wine,  under  any  circumstances,  they  should  have  remembrance  oi 
him  ?  It  was  tliis  tender  injunction  which  led  his  followers  to  in- 
stitute what  is  so  appropriately  called  "  The  Lord's  Supper." 

Jesus  then  rose  from  the  table,  laid  aside  his  outer  garment, 
took  a  basin  of  water  and  a  towel,  and  proceeded  to  wash  the  feet 

of  his  disciples,  and  to  wipe  them  with  the  towel. 

■«Tn  £c      '  -i.  i.1,  i.  He  washes  their 

When  men  came  on  a  journey  it  was  the  custom    , 

for  the  host  to  have  their  feet  washed,  and  this 
service  was  ordinarily  performed  by  a  slave.  It  has  been  sug- 
gested that  in  the  hurry  and  crowd  of  the  festival,  and  in  prepar- 
ing his  own  Passover,  the  host  had  on  this  occasion  omitted  this 
attention,  and  that  the  dispute  as  to  who  should  be  greatest  arose 
among  the  disciples  on  the  point  of  the  feet  washing.  But  as  the 
Passover  was  to  be  eaten  with  staves  in  their  hands  and  all  the 
preparations  for  a  journey,  it  would  scarcely  seem  necessaiy  that 
the  feet  should  have  been  washed  on  this  occasion.  At  any  rate 
Jesus  found  reason  in  their  disputings  to  teach  them  an  impres- 
sive lesson  of  love's  humility. 

AVTien  he  came  to  Simon  Peter,  that  vehement  disciple  broke 
fortli,  "  Do  you  wash  my  feet  ? "  Jesus  said,  "  Wliat  I  am  doing 
you  do  not  perceive  now,  but  you  shall  understand 
hereafter."  He  was  not  to  be  put  off  so.  The 
old  impetuous  self-will  broke  forth,  "  You  shall  never  wash  7)iy 
feet."  It  was  "  the  pride  that  apes  humility."  He  would  have 
it  his  own  way.  He  had  better  ideas  of  propriety  than  his  Mas- 
ter !  Jesus  brought  him  to  terms  by  the  calm  statement,  "  If  I 
do  not  wash  you,  you  have  no  part  with  me."  Suddenly  the  im- 
petuous self-will  of  Peter  flew  to  the  opposite  extreme.  If  that 
was  the  case  nothing  would  satisfy  him  but  a  regular  bath.  He 
exclaimed,  "  Not  my  feet  only,  but  also  the  hands  and  the  head !  " 
There  was  no  need  of  any  such  immersion,  and  Jesus  said, "  He  that 
is  bathed  needs  not  to  wash,  but  is  wholly  clean."  And  turning  to 
his  disciples  he  said,  "And  you  are  clean — but  not  all."  The  re- 
ply to  Peter  seems  to  signify  that  this  feet  washing  was  not  a 
sacrament,  not  a  "  means  of  grace,"  as  such  things  are  called,  not 


618  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

a  cleansing  ceremonial.  If  the  disciples  were  not  pure  in  heart 
his  washing  of  their  feet  would  not  cleanse  them.  It  did  n(.>t 
cleanse  Judas  and  Peter,  who  sliortlj  after  outraged  all  truth  and 
decency  in  his  betrayal  and  denial. 

AVhen  this  was  done  he  resumed  his  garments  and  his  seat  at 
the  table,  and  said,  " Do  you  know  what  I  have  done  to  you? 
You  call  me  'The  Teacher,'  and  'The  Lord;' 
and  you  speak  gracefully :  for  I  am.  If  then  I, 
the  Lord  and  Teacher,  have  washed  your  feet,  you  ought  also  to 
wash  one  another's  feet ;  for  I  have  given  you  an  example  that  as 
I  have  done  for  you,  you  also  should  do.  I  most  assuredly  say  t(j 
you  that  the  slave  is  not  greater  than  his  Lord,  nor  the  [Apostle] 
sent  greater  than  he  who  has  sent  him.  If  you  know  these  things, 
you  are  happy  if  you  do  them.  I  do  not  speak  of  you  all :  I 
know  whom  I  have  chosen ;  but  the  Scripture  may  be  fulfilled  : 
'  He  who  eats  bread  with  me  has  lifted  up  his  heel  against  me.'  * 
Now  I  tell  you,  before  it  come  to  pass,  that  when  it  is  come  to 
pass  you  may  know  that  I  am.  Most  assuredly  I  say  to  you.  He 
who  receives  whomsoever  I  send  receives  me;  and  he  who  re- 
ceives me  receives  Ilim  who  sent  me." 

It  seems  impossible  to  read  this  whole  history  without  feeling 

that  Jesus  knew  all  his  circumstances  and  read  the  spirits  of  all 

about  him.     He  knew  that  Judas  would  secretly 

betray  him,  so  that  tlie  church  i^arty  mifrlit  quiet- 
position.  J  J  1        J         o        i. 

ly  take  him  without  aro\ising  a  pDpular  demon- 
stration in  his  favor.  Whatever  might  be  his  knowledge  of  the 
case,  if  he  should  seem  to  have  as  implicitly  trusted  Judas  as  the 
othere,  and  if  his  betrayal  should  afterwards  seem  to  his  disciples 
to  have  been  as  unexpected  to  him  as  it  certainly  was  to  them, 
their  faith  would  be  shaken.  But  to  indicate  the  betrayer  would 
be  to  exasperate  tlie  disciples  against  him,  to  precipitate  matters, 
and  to  surrender  his  own  dignity.  Not  a  moment  of  petty  pas- 
sion or  of  towerin<r  wi'ath  liroke  on  the  skv-like  loftiness  and 
purity  of  this  wonderful  soul.  He  went  just  far  enough  to  save 
their  faith  from  a  prodigious  shock. 

As  they  sat  and  did  eat  he  was  sad  and  tr()u])led  in  spirit.  He 
had  spoken  of  the  mission  of  his  disciples,  and  the  blessedness  of 
those  who  received  his  friends.  But  he  could  not  bear  that  the 
benediction  should  go  to  Judas,  and  so  he  made  a  Scriptural  quo 

♦  Psalm  xli.  9. 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  619 

tation  which  should  show  that  he  discriminated.  He  added,  "  I 
most  assuredly  say  to  you  that  one  of  you,  now  eating  with  me, 
shall  betray  me."  This  fearful  speech  lilled  them 
with  terrible  suspicions.  They  looked  at  one  an-  ^^^  ^^  P'^^'^^' 
other,  perhaps  running  over  in  memory  the  inci- 
dents of  their  companionship  to  ascertain  who  might  have  shown 
signs  of  a  baseness  capable  of  committing  so  hideous  an  act. 
There  was  nothing.  No  suspicion  pointed  to  Judas.  He  was  aa 
little  likely  as  any  to  perform  an  act  so  execrable. 

Then  they  began  self-inspection.     Each  man  searched  his  own 
heart  to  see  what  root  there  was  in  him  that  might  so  suddenly 
spring  up  and  bear  such  a  poisonous  fruit.     But 
no  one  would  allow  such  a  dire  possibility  to  him-     .  The  eeif-mspec- 
self.     Then  one  after  another  they  began  to  mur-    ^^g  ^°^* 

mur,  "  Lord,  is  it  I  ?     Lord,  is  it  I  ? "     He  re- 
plied, "  He  who  dips  the  hand  with  me  in  the  dish,  he  shall 
betray  me.     The  Son  of  Man  indeed  is  going,  as  it  is  written  of 
him,  but  woe  to  that  man  through  whom  the  Son  of  Man  is  be- 
trayed !     It  were  good  for  that  man  if  he  had  not  been  born ! " 

Next  to  Jesus  sat  John,  who  is  fond  of  desimiating;  himself  as 
"  the  disciple  whom  Jesus  loved,"  although  none  of  the  other  histo- 
rians show  any  partiality  on  the  part  of  Jesus. 
Peter  was  at  some  distance.  He  signed  to  John  to  -^ni  I  lie  ? 
ask  Jesus  who  it  was  that  should  betray  him.  He  did  ask  him,  and 
Jesus  answered,  but  perhaps  in  a  tone  that  the  others  could  not  hear, 
"  He  it  is,  to  whom,  having  dipped  the  sop,  I  shall  give  it."  He 
dipped  the  "  sop"  and  gave  it  to  Judas,  who  seems  to  have  been  sitting 
on  his  other  side.    Then  he  faltered  out,  "  Rabbi,  what,  am  I  he  ?  " 

It  would  seem  that  Judas  did  not  intend  to  betray  him  that  night. 
Nor  is  it  probable  that  his  plan  was  to  do  this  until  after  the  close 
of  the  feast.     But  the  proceedings  at  this  supper  hastened  him. 

Jesus  replied,  "  You  have  said  it.  What  you  do,  do  quickly." 
No  man  at  the  table  knew  for  what  intent  this  had  been  spoken 
to  Judas.  Evidently  if  Peter  had  known  which  one  it  was  he 
would  have  slain  him  on  the  spot,  for  he  was  a  choleric  man,  and 
had  a  sword  with  him  ;  and  although  he  himself  was  about  to  be 
most  base,  and  violate  all  the  sanctity  of  his  friendship  for  Jesus 
quite  as  much  as  Judas,  yet  he  did  not  know  that,  and  he  was  a 
rash  man,  although  destitute  of  moral  courage.  So  none  of  the 
company  knew  the  intent  of  the   communication  which   Jesua 


620  THE  LAST  WEEK. 

made  to  Judas,  and  when  he  arose  and  left  them  may  they  not 
have  supposed  that  the  Master  had  sent  him  out  on  some  errand  ? 

"  It  was  night,"  sajs  John.  In  every  sense  it  was  night.  The 
daylight  had  gone  away  from  the  tops  of  "  the  mountains  round 
about  Jerusalem,"  and  darkness  was  settling 
deeply  on  the  ravines  and  gardens  around  the 
city.  The  little  band  of  followere  were  groping  in  a  perplexity 
like  midnight.  It  was  night  in  the  soul  of  Judas ;  such  dark 
night  as  utterly  bewildered  him.  He  had  laid  his  plans  in  utter 
worldliness.  lie  was  being  hurried  up  and  disconcerted.  The 
men  he  had  left  in  the  upper  chamljer  were  simple,  unworldly 
souls,  and  he  was  sagacious.  He  had  at  least  a  plan  ;  they  none. 
lie  had  gone  thus  far  with  it.  Should  he  go  forward  ?  Should 
he  go  back  ?  AVas  there  any  reason  to  recede  from  the  position  he 
had  taken  ?  Wliy  should  he  go  back  ?  Did  Jesus  mean  to  urge  him 
on  by  what  he  said  ?  It  may  have  flashed  upon  his  mind  that  perhaps 
Jesus  did.  "Wlien  men  have  set  themselves  to  a  theory  everything 
favoi-s  it.  Judas  had  forgotten  the  fearful  "  woe  "  just  uttered.  He 
must  have  felt  himself  out  of  sympathy  with  the  other  disciples. 
The  very  looks  and  tones  of  Jesus  must  have  perturbed  him.  But 
going  forward  might  be  failure  and  ruin.  lie  was  in  a  storm  of 
conflicting  emotions  and  motives.    Satan  had  him.    "  It  was  night." 

After  Judas  had  left,  Jesus  said,  "  Now  the  Son  of  Man  is  glo- 
rified, and  God  is  glorified  in  him.  And  God  shall  glorify  him  in 
Himself,  and  shall  immediately  glorify  him.  Little  children,  yet 
a  short  time  I  am  with  you.  You  shall  seek  me  ;  and,  as  I  said 
to  the  Jews,  where  I  go  you  cannot  come ;  and  no\v  I  say  to  yon. 
A  new  commandment  I  give  to  you,  That  you  love  one  another ; 
as  I  have  loved  you,  you  also  shall  love  one  another.  By  this 
shall  all  men  know  that  you  are  my  disciples,  if  you  have  love  one 
for  another." 

Peter  said,  " Lord,  where  are  you  going?"     He  could  not  even 

apprehend  the  idea  that  Jesus  would  die.     The  whole  discoui-se 

^  ,      of  Jesus  alxnit  his  departure  was  a  perplexinf; 

Peter  puzzled.        .in      ,      i  .      ,.     .   ,  x  -i        .,.  / 

riddle  to  his  disciples.     Jt  seemed  as  if  he  were 

going  off  somewhere  to  have  a  terrible  conflict.  This  was  con- 
firmed when  Jesus  answered,  "  "Wliere  I  go  you  cannot  follow  me 
now,  but  you  shall  follow  me  afterwards."  Peter  persisted  : 
"Lord,  why  cannot  I  follow  you  now?  I  will  lay  down  my  life 
for  you ! "     Jesus  replied :  "  Will  you  lay  down  your  life  for  me? 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  621 

I  most  assuredly  say  to  yon,  The  cock  shall  not  crow  till  you  have 
thrice  denied  that  you  know  me." 

Then  he  said  to  his  disciples :  "  You  shall  all  be  offended  in  me 
this  night ;  for  it  is  written,  '  I  will  smite  the  Shepherd,  and  the 
sheep  of  the  flock  shall  be  scattered.'*  But  after  I  am  risen 
again  I  will  go  before  you  into  Galilee."  Peter  again  responded 
still  more  vehemently  :  "  If  all  shall  be  offended  in  you,  yet  will 
not  I.  Even  if  I  must  die  with  you,  I  will  not  deny  you  ! "  And 
Jesus  said  to  him,  "  Simon,  Satan  has  acquired  you,t  to  sift  you 
as  wheat :  but  I  have  prayed  for  you  that  your  faith  fail  not. 
And  when  you  have  turned  strengthen  your  brethren."  Then  to 
all  the  disciples,  "  When  I  sent  you  without  purse,  or  wallet,  or 
sandals,  did  you  want  anything  ?"  They  said,  "  Nothing."  "But 
now,"  said  he,  "  he  that  has  a  purse,  let  him  take  it,  and  likewise 
his  wallet :  and  he  who  has  no  knife,  let  him  sell  his  garment  and 
buy  one.  F(jr  I  say  to  you,  that  that  which  is  written  must  be  ac- 
complished in  me,  '  And  he  was  numbered  with  the  law-break- 
ers.' X     Also  that  concerning  me  has  an  end."  § 

His  disciples  informed  him  that  there  were  two  swords  in  the 
chamber.  Jesus  said,  "  Enough  is,"  as  perhaps  we  should  say, 
"  Enough  of  this." 

He  was  simply  striving  to  impress  upon  their  minds  that  there 

was  to  be  a  change ;  that  whereas  they  went  out  formerly  with 

perfect  safety,  and  the  assurance  that  his  name       ,    , 

-,  ,  ,  ,  11  A  change   pre- 

would  be  a  passport  to  them  everywhere,  because    ^ig^-g^ 

it  was  in  the  palmy  days  of  his  great  popularity, 

a  change  was  to  come  because  he  was  going  away,  and  his  name 

was  to  be  coupled  with  ignominy.     The  stupidity  of  these  simple 

men  is  annoying  to  us ;  but  we  are  to  remember  that  we  carry 

back  to  the  inspection  of  their  words  and  acts  the  light  which 

*  Zechariah  xiii.  7.  1  quired  you  Apostles  to  sift  you  ;  but  I 

f  The  force  of  the  Greek  middle  in   have  prayed  for  thee,  Peter,  that  thy 


this  passage  is  noticed  by  Gresswell.  It 
signifies  not  merely  that  Satan  desired 
to  have,  but  had  actually  got  possession 
of  the  Apostles,  that  they  had  been 
given  up  to  him  to  sift.  He  had  got 
out  Judas,  and  was  like  to  get  out  Peter ; 
but  Jesus  was  praying  for  him.  In  the 
original  the  pronoun  is  in  the  plural  in 
the  first,  and  singular  in  the  second  sec- 
tion of  the  sentence.     "  Satan  has  re- 


faith,"  etc.  It  was  too  late  for  Judas, 
and  the  other  Apostles  were  not  in  so 
much  peril  as  Peter,  whose  tempera- 
ment particularly  exposed  him. 

I  Isaiah  liii.  12. 

§  Olshausen's  interpretation  of  thip 
seems  good  :  ' '  What  stands  written  ol 
me,  as  regards  this  earthly  life,  with 
all  which  it  involves,  is  being  fulfilled.' 


622 


TirE   LAST   "VVEEK. 


subsequent  events  have  afforded,  and  that  we  lack  the  deep  im- 
[n-Gssion  on  their  minds  made  by  personally  witnessing  repeated 
miracles  which  had  made  Jesus  seem  to  them  to  be  invulnerable 
to  human  attacks.  If  he  was  going  to  have  trouble,  they  were 
ready  to  fight ;  and  when  he  went  into  details  of  pui-se  and  wallet 
and  traveller's-knife,  the  last  seemed  to  them  to  indicate  a  con- 
flict. It  was  customary  for  the  Galilieans  to  travel  armed.  Peter 
wore  his  sword ;  and  it  seems  that  another  disciple  also  had  come 
in  with  his.  But  two  swords  against  the  combined  forces  of  the 
Jewish  hierarchy  and  the  Roman  power  seemed  so  preposterous 
to  Jesus  that  he  said,  "  Enough  of  this  ! " 

The  perturbation  of  the  disciples  must  have  been  very  great. 
To  soothe  them,  Jesus  in  most  artless,  charming,  and  affectionate 
words  said,  "Let  not  your  hearts  be  "disturbed. 
Believe :  in  God  and  in  me  believe.*  In  the 
house  of  my  Father  the  mansions  are  many.  But  if  not,  I  would 
have  told  yoxi  y  because  f  I  go  that  I  may  prepare  a  place  for  you. 
And  if  I  go  and  prepare  a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and 
will  receive  you  to  myself ;  that  where  I  am  there  you  may  be 
also ! "  Nothing  could  be  more  tender  between  men.  If  he 
paused  a  moment,  thinking  of  the  meeting  in  the  spiritual  world 
after  all  the  trials  and  conflicts  of  this,  he  added  very  soon,  "  And 
where  I  go  you  know  the  way."  Thomas,  the  honest  and  despon- 
dent skeptic,  said,  "  Lord,  we  do  not  know  where  you  are  going ; 
and  how  can  we  know  the  way  ? "  Jesus  answered  him,  "  I  am  the 
way,  and  the  truth,  and  the  life.  No  one  comes  to  the  Father  except 
thi-ough  me.  If  you  had  known  iTie  you  should  have  known  my 
Father  also  ;  and  henceforth  you  know  Ilim  and  have  seen  Ilim." 


*  For  the  benefit  of  readers  who  know 
nothing  of  Greek,  it  is  proper  to  say, 
what  scholars  know,  that  this  verb  in 
the  original  fpistenete)  is  the  same  in 
the  indicative  and  in  the  imperative, 
and  that  we  have  the  ancient  MSS.  with- 
out punctuation.  This  gives  us  choice 
of  many  readings.  1.  That  of  the  com- 
mon version,  "Ye  believe  in  God;  be- 
lieve also  in  me,"  where  it  is  rendered  as 
indicative  in  the  first  clause,  and  im- 
perative in  the  second.  2.  That  which 
I  have  chosen  above,  where  both  are 
imperative,  and  a  slight  difference  in 


punctuation  gives  a  great  difference  in 
sense.  3.  "  You  believe  in  God  and 
you  believe  in  me."  But  the  trouble 
was  that  their  faith  in  God  and  in  Jesus 
was  weakening.  4.  "Believe  in  God, 
then  you  will  believe  in  me."  In  the 
rendering  which  I  have  chosen  the  con- 
sistency of  tenses  is  maintained.  The 
first  iri(TT€u«Tf,  pisteuete,  is,  as  it  were 
the  text  of  this  consolatory  discourse. 

•|-  This  passage  might  bear  the  follow- 
ing translation  :  "  But  if  not,  I  would 
not  have  told  you  that  I  go  to  prepare 
a  place  for  you." 


THE   SIXTH   DAT. 


623 


Philip,  leaning  towards  materialism  and  demanding  evidences 
of  which  his  senses  might  take  cognizance,  now  says,  "  Lord,  show 
lis  the  Father  and  it  is  sufficient  for  us."  Jesus 
answered,  "  Am  I  so  long  time  with  you,  and  yet  ^.-^g^g^ 
liave  you  not  known  me,  Philip  ?  He  who  has 
seen  me  has  seen  the  Father,  *  and  how  then  do  you  say,  '  Show 
us  the  Father?'  Do  you  not  believe  that  I  am  in  the  Father,  and 
the  Father  is  in  me  ?  The  words  which  I  speak  to  you,  I  speak  not 
of  myself ;  but  the  Father  who  dwells  in  me  does  his  works. f 
Believe  me  that  I  am  in  the  Father,  and  the  Father  in  me.  But  if 
not,  believe  the  works  themselves.  I  most  assuredly  say  to  you, 
He  who  believes  on  me,  the  works  that  I  do,  shall  he  do  also,  and 
greater  than  these  shall  he  do,  because  I  go  unto  the  Father.:}: 
And  whatsoever  you  shall  ask  in  my  name  that  will  I  do,  that  the 
Father  may  be  glorified  in  the  Son.  If  you  shall  ask  me  anything 
in  my  name,  I  will  do  it.  If  you  love  me,  keep  my  command- 
ments, and  I  will  ask  the  Father,  and  He  will  give  you  another 
Advocate,§  that  he  may  abide  with  you  forever,  the  Spirit  of  Truth, 
which  the  world  is  not  able  to  receive,  because  it  does  not  see  it  nor 
know  it.     You  know  it,  for  it  dwells  with  you  and  shall  be  in  you." 

"  I  will  not  leave  you  orphans.  I  am  coming  to  you.  Yet  a 
little  while  and  the  world  sees  me  no  more ;  but  you  see  me. 
Because  I  live,  you  shall  live  also.  In  that  day  you  shall  know 
that  I  am  in  my  Father,  and  you  in  me,  and  I  in  you.  He  who 
has  my  commandments  and  keeps  them,  he  it  is  who  loves  me ; 
and  he  who  loves  me  shall  be  loved  of  my  Father,  and  I  will  love 
him  and  will  manifest  myself  to  him." 

Here  occurred  another  interruption,  showing  how  deeply  planted 


*  If  this  reply  does  not  make  a  dis- 
tinct and  explicit  claim  to  divinity  on 
the  part  of  Jesus,  it  would  seem  ex- 
ceedingly difficult  to  frame  a  proposi- 
tion in  Greek  or  English,  which  could. 
TMiether  the  claim  be  well  founded  is 
a  question  for  another  department ;  but 
the  historian  is  obliged  to  record  that 
Jesus  claimed  to  be  The  Fathek  of 
the  Universe,  the  unoriginated  God. 

f  Not  as  a  human  being,  but  as  a 
God,  he  claims  to  speak  his  marvellous 
words  and  do  his  miraculous  acts. 

X  Which   simply  means   that   moral 


works  are  greater  than  miracles,  being 
an  imperishable  plane  concerned  with 
spirit  and  not  with  matter,  always  bene- 
ficent, and  involving  not  simply  di\-ine 
autocratic  volition,  but  such  di^^ne 
power  of  truth  as  moves  the  free-will 
of  men. 

§  A  legal  term.  Jesus  had  been  the 
assistant  of  his  disciples,  standing  up 
for  them  and  defending  him  ;  after  his 
departure,  the  Spirit  of  Truth  which 
should  dwell  in  them,  and  in  every 
emergency  assist  them,  should  be  theil 
Advocate. 


624 


THE   LAST   \\'EEK. 


in  the  minds  of  the  Apostles  was  the  idea  of  a  splendid  temporal 
reign  of  the  Messiah.     Judas  Thaddens  (Matt.  x.  3),  "  not  Iscariot," 

was  puzzled  at  the  thought  of  a  Messiah  who  should 
^jg^  limit  the  display  of  his  glory  to  the  small  circle 

of  his  immediate  followei-s.  lie  asked,  "  Lord,  and 
how  is  it  that  you  are  about  to  manifest  yourself  to  us  and  not  to  the 
world  ? " — meaning  the  whole  world.  To  make  him  comprehend 
in  some  measure  the  spirituality  of  his  teachings,  Jesus  replied, — 

"If  any  one  love  me,  he  will  keep  my  Tvord,  and  my  Father  will  love  him, 
and  we  will  come  to  him  and  make  our  abode  with  liim.  He  who  does  not 
love  me,  does  not  keep  my  commandments.  And  the  word  which  you  hear 
is  not  mine,  but  the  Father's,  who  sent  me.  But  the  Advocate,  the  Holy 
Spirit,  whom  the  Father  will  send  in  my  name,  he  shall  teach  you  all  things, 
and  remind  you  of  all  things  that  I  have  said  to  you. 

"  Peace  I  leave  with  you.  My  peace  I  give  to  you ;  not  as  the  world  gives, 
do  I  give  to  you.  Let  not  your  heart  l)e  troubled,  neither  let  it  l)e  afraid. 
You  have  heard  that  I  said  to  you,  that  I  am  going  away  and  am  coming  to 
you.  If  you  loved  me,  you  would  rejoice  because  I  go  to  the  Father ;  for  my 
Father  is  greater  than  I.*  And  now  I  have  told  you  before  it  come  to  pass, 
that,  when  it  has  come  to  pass,  you  might  believe.  No  longer  will  I  talk 
much  -nith  you,  for  the  ruler  of  the  world  is  coming,  and  in  me  he  has 
nothing,  t  But  that  the  world  may  know  that  I  love  the  Father,  and  as  the 
Father  has  commanded  me  so  I  do,  arise,  let  us  go  hence." 

Section  2. —  Valedictory  and  Last  Prayer. 

It  was  probably  at  this  point  that  they  sang  some  portion  or 
the  whole  of  the  Great  Ilallel,  which  comprised  the  cxv.,  cxvi., 
cxvii.,  and  cxviii.  Psalms.  Maimonides  {De  Sa- 
crif.  Pasch.,  \\\\.  14)  says  that  it  was  sung  while 
the  Paschal  lamb  was  being  eaten.  But  it  does  not  appear  to 
have  been  confined  so  strictly  to  any  particular  portion  of  the 
feast.  A  part  may  have  been  sung  now  and  a  part  then.  Jesus 
resumed  his  discourse  in  the  chamber,  after  the  Ilallel,  or  else 
when  they  had  passed  the  city  walls,  and  before  they  had  crossed 


The  Hallel. 


*  In  this  he  seems  to  draw  a  distinc- 
tion  between  the  merely  human  soul 
which  made  him  a  man  and  the  eternal 
Godhead  which  he  beHeved  to  exist  in 
his  nature,  which  was  the  ^eater  part  of 
hira,  and  which  was  that  that  spoke  the 
words  and  wrought  the  miracles  which 
he  represented  as  done  by  the  Father. 

f  Simply  meaning  that  all  the  power 


in  the  world  could  avail  nothing  against 
him,  if  he  did  not  freely  and  voluntari- 
ly surrender  himself.  The  God  that 
was  in  hira  marked  out  a  course  for  the 
Man  that  was  in  him,  and  he  intended 
to  follow  it.  But  the  world,  and  the 
prince  or  ruler  of  the  world,  must  never 
for  a  moment  fancy  that  it  or  he  had 
conquered  Jesus. 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  625 

the  Kedron.  He  did  not  hurry.  He  had  lingered  in  the  cham- 
ber delivering  a  consolatory  discourse  to  his  disciples,  and  now  he 
walked  slowly,  or  paused  and  stood,  and  talked  with  them.  lie  knew 
what  Judas  was  doing,  and  he  neither  hastened  nor  retarded  events. 
It  is  not  kno^vn  what  suggested  the  opening  of  the  out-door  dis- 
courses, if  the  remainder  of  this  discourse  was  delivered  in  the 
open  air.  They  may  have  been  passing  vineyards  ;  Nature  was 
perpetually  inspiring  the  speeches  of  Jesus.     lie  resumed  : — 

"  I  am  the  vine,  the  true  one,  and  my  Father  is  the  husbandman.     Every 

branch  in  me  not  bearing  fruit,  He  removes  it,  and  every  ]>ranch  bearing  fi-uit 

He  prunes  it  that  it  may  bear  more  fruit.     Already  ye  are 
1  ,,  iji  ii'iT-i  1  .  An  crat-door  discourse. 

Clean  through  the  word  which  I  have  spoken  to  you. 
Abide  in  me  and  I  in  you.  As  the  branch  is  not  able  to  bear  fruit  of  itself, 
except  it  abide  in  the  vine,  so  cannot  you,  except  you  abide  in  me.  I  am  the 
vine,  you  the  branches.  He  who  abides  in  me  and  I  in  him,  the  same  bears 
much  fruit ;  for  without  me  you  can  do  nothing.  If  any  one  do  not  abide  in 
me,  he  is  cast  forth  as  a  branch,  and  is  vrithered ;  and  they  gather  it  and  cast 
it  into  the  fire,  and  it  is  burned.  If  you  abide  in  me,  and  my  words  abide  in 
you,  whatsoever  things  you  wish,  seek,  and  it  shall  be  done  to  you.  In  this  is 
my  Father  glorified  that  you  bear  much  fruit,  and  become  my  disciples.  As 
the  Father  has  loved  me,  I  also  have  loved  you.  Abide  in  my  love.  If  you 
keep  my  commandments  you  shall  abide  in  my  love  ;  even  as  I  also  have  kept 
my  Father's  commandments  and  abide  in  His  love. 

"  These  things  have  I  spoken  to  you  that  my  joy  might  abide  in  you,  and 
your  joy  might  be  made  full.  This  is  my  commandment,  That  you  love  one 
another  as  I  have  loved  you.  Greater  love  than  this  has  no  man,  that  he  lay 
down  his  life  for  his  friend.  You  are  my  fi-iends,  if  you  do  whatever  I  com- 
mand you. 

"  No  longer  do  I  call  you  slaves,  for  the  slave  does  not  know  what  his  lord 
is  doing.  But  I  have  called  you  friends,  for  all  things  that  I  have  heard 
from  my  Father  I  have  made  known  to  you.  You  have  not  chosen  me,  but  I 
have  chosen  you,  and  appointed  you,  that  you  shall  go  and  bear  fruit,  and  that 
your  fruit  shall  remain  ;  that  whatever  you  shall  ask  of  the  Father  in  my  name 
He  may  give  it  to  you. 

"  These  things  I  command  you,  that  you  love  one  another.  If  the  world 
hate  you,  you  know  that  it  hated  me  fii-st.  If  you  were  of  the  world,  the 
world  would  love  its  own  ;  but  because  you  are  not  of  the  world,  but  I  have 
chosen  you  out  of  the  world,  on  tliis  account  the  world  hates  you.  Remem- 
ber the  word  which  I  have  spoken  to  you.  The  slave  is  not  greater  than  his 
lord.  If  they  persecuted  me  they  will  also  persecute  you.  If  they  have  kept 
my  word  they  will  keep  yours  also.  But  all  these  things  they  will  do  to  you, 
on  account  of  my  name,  because  they  do  not  know  Him  who  sent  me. 

"  If  I  had  not  come  and  spoken  to  them  they  would  not  have  sin  ;  but  now 
they  have  no  excuse  for  their  sin.     He  who  hates  me  hates  my  Father  also.   If 
I  had  not  done  among  them  works  which  no  other  man  has  done,  they  would 
40 


626  TITE   LAST   WEEK. 

not  have  sin.  But  now  have  they  both  seen  and  hated  both  me  and  my 
Father.  But  that  it  might  be  fulfilled,  the  word  which  in  their  law  is  written 
of  them,  'They  hated  me  causelessly.'*  But  when  the  Advocate  is  come, 
whom  I  will  send  to  you  from  the  Father,  the  Spirit  of  Truth  which  proceeds 
from  the  Father,  he  shall  testify  concerning  me.  And  you  also  shall  bear  wit- 
ness, Ijecause  you  have  been  vrith  me  from  the  beginning. 

"  Tlu'se  things  have  I  spoken  to  you  that  you  should  not  be  offended.  For 
they  shall  make  you  excommunicated ;  more,  the  hour  is  coming  that  who- 
ever kills  you  will  think  that  he  offers  a  service  to  God,  And  these  things 
will  they  do  to  you,  because  they  have  not  known  the  Father  nor  me.  But 
these  tilings  have  I  told  you  that  when  the  hour  shall  come  you  may  remem- 
ber that  I  spoke  of  them;  and  these  things  I  did  not  say  to  you  at  the  begin- 
ning, because  I  was  with  you. 

"  But  now  I  am  going  away  to  Ilim  who  sent  me,  and  none  of  you  asks  me 
'  Whither  are  you  going  ? '  But  because  I  have  said  those  things  to  you,  sor- 
row has  filled  your  heart.  Nevertheless,  I  tell  you  the  truth.  It  is  profitable 
to  you  that  I  go  away.  For  if  I  go  not  away  the  Advocate  will  not  come. 
But  if  I  depart  I  will  send  him  to  you.  And  when  he  is  come  he  wiU  convict 
the  world  of  sin,  and  of  righteousness,  and  of  judgment :  of  sin,  because 
they  do  not  believe  in  me  ;  of  righteousness,  because  I  go  to  my  Father,  and 
you  see  me  no  more ;  and  of  judgment,  because  the  ruler  of  this  world  is 
judged. 

"  ^lany  things  yet  have  I  to  say  to  you,  but  you  cannot  bear  them  ;  but  when 
he  tlie  Spirit  of  Truth  is  come  he  will  guide  you  in  the  truth,  for  he  shall  not 
speak  from  out  of  liimsclf,  but  whatever  he  hears  he  shall  speak ;  and  he 
will  tell  you  things  to  come.  He  shall  glorify  me,  for  he  shall  receive  of 
mine  and  announce  to  you.  All  things  that  the  Father  has  are  mine.  There- 
fore I  said  that  he  takes  of  mine  and  shall  aim  ounce  to  you. 

"  A  little  while  and  you  shall  not  see  me ;  and  again  a  little  while  and  you 
shall  see  me." 

Then  said  some  of  his  disciples  among  themselves  :  "  What  is 
this  that  he  is  saying  to  ns,  '  A  little  while  and  ye  shall  see  me  no 
more,  and  again  a  little  while  and  ye  shall  see 
me  :  and,  Because  I  go  to  the  Father  f  '  ■  what  is 
this  'little  while?'  "We  do  not  understand  what  he  is  saying." 
Jesus  knew  that  they  were  about  to  ask  him,  and  anticipated  tliem 
by  resuming : — 

"Do  you  inquire  among  yourselves  because  I  said,  A  little  while  and  you 

shall  not  see  me,  and  again  a  little  while  and  you  shall  see  me  ?     I  most 

assuredly  say  to  you,  Tliat  you  shall  weep  and  lament,  but 

The  dlflooane  resumed.    ^,  ,-.,,,..  -^  ,     i,  ,  ,   i    ,     ^ 

the  world  shall  rejoice.  You  shall  Ije  sorrowful,  Imt  your 
sorrow  shall  uc  turned  into  joy.  A  woman  when  she  is  about  to  bring  forth 
hath  sorrow,  Ixcausc  her  hour  is  come  ;  but  when  she  has  given  birtli  to  tlie 

*  See  Psalm  xxxv.  19,  and  Ixix.  4. 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  627 

child  she  remembers  the  anguish  no  more,  for  joy  that  a  man  is  born  into  the 
world.  And  ye,  therefore,  now  indeed  have  sorrow,  but  I  will  see  you  again, 
and  your  heart  shall  rejoice,  and  youi-  joy  no  one  takes  from  you. 

"And  in  that  day  you  shall  ask  me  nothing.  I  most  assuredly  say  to  you, 
Whatever  you  shall  ask  the  Father  in  my  name.  He  shall  give  it  to  you.' 
Hitherto  you  have  asked  nothing  in  my  name.  Ask  and  you  shall  receive, 
that  your  joy  may  be  made  full.  These  things  have  I  spoken  to  you  in  pro- 
verbs :  the  hour  is  coming  when  I  shall  no  longer  speak  to  you  in  proverbs, 
but  I  shall  teU  you  plainly  concerning  the  Father.  In  tliat  day  you  shaU  ask 
in  my  name ;  and  I  do  not  say  to  you  that  I  will  pray  the  Father  for  you,  for 
the  Fatlier  himself  loves  you,  because  you  have  loved  me,  and  have  believed 
that  I  came  from  God.  I  came  forth  from  the  Father,  and  have  come  into 
the  world:  again  I  leave  the  world  and  go  to  the  Father." 

Some  one  of  his  disciples  said  to  him :  "  Now  you  are  speaking 
in  frankness,  and  not  speaking  a  proverb.  Now  we  know  tliat 
you  know  all  things,  and  have  no  need  that  any 
one  should  ask  you.  By  this  we  believe  that  you  ^^^Jj^^^Ples  express 
came  forth  from  God."  Jesus  answered  :  "  Do 
you  now  believe  ?  Behold,  the  hour  is  coming,  and  the  hour  has 
come,  that  you  shall  be  scattered,  every  one  to  his  own,  and  shall 
leave  me  alone.  And  I  am  not  alone,  because  the  Father  is  with 
me.  These  things  have  I  spoken  to  you,  that  in  me  you  might 
have  peace.  In  the  world  you  have  anguish  ;  but  be  couragemis, 
I  have  conquered  the  world  ! " 

^  Then  Jesus  lifted  up  his  eyes  and  prayed  audibly,  while  the  dis- 
ciples must  have  listened  in  perplexity  and  awe.  And  this  is  the 
prayer  as  John  records  it : — 

"  O  Father,  the  hour  has  come.     Glorify  Thy  Son  that  Thy  Son  may  glorify 
Thee.     As  Thou  hast  given  him  power  over  all  flesh,  that  he  should  give  per- 
petual life  to  every  one  whom  Thou  hast  given  him.     And 
this  is  the  perpetual  life,  that  they  might  know  Thee  tlie   ^^^  ^^^"  °'  •''^^*- 
only  true  God,  and  Jesus  Christ,  whom  Thou  hast  sent.     I  have  glorified  Thee 
on  the  earth.     I  have  finished  the  work  which  Thou  gavest  me  to  do. 

"  And  now  glorify  Tliou  me,  O  Father,  mth  Thvself  by  the  gloiy  which  I  had 
with  Thee  before  the  world  was.  I  have  shown  Thy  name  to  the  men  whom 
Thou  gavest  me  out  of  the  world.  They  were  Thine,  and  Tliou  gavest  them 
to  me.  And  they  have  kept  Thy  word.  Now  they  know  that  all  thin-s  wliat- 
ever  Thou  hast  given  me,  are  from  Thee,  for  I  have  given  tliem  the  word's  Tliou 
gavest  me,  and  they  have  received  them,  and  have  kno^m  surely  that  I  came 
out  from  Thee  ;  and  they  have  believed  that  Thou  didst  send  me.  I  pray  for 
them.  For  the  world  I  pray  not,  but  for  those  whom  Tliou  hast  given  me  • 
for  they  are  thine.    And  Thou  hast  given  them  to  me,  and  I  am  glorified  i^ 


628  TIIE   LAST   WEEK. 

them.  And  I  am  no  longer  in  the  world,  and  these  are  in  the  world,  and  I  am 
coming  to  Tlice. 

"  O  Holy  Father,  keep  them  in  Thy  name,  whom  Thou  hast  given  me,  that 
they  may  be  one  as  we.  When  I  was  with  them  I  kept  them  in  Thy  name 
and  guarded  them,  and  not  one  of  them  is  lost,  except  the  son  of  perdition, 
that  the  Scripture  might  ])e  fulfilled.  And  now  I  am  coming  to  Tliee,  and 
these  things  I  am  speaking  in  the  world,  that  they  may  have  my  joy  fulfilled 
in  themselves.  I  have  given  them  Thy  word,  and  the  world  has  hated  them 
because  they  are  not  of  the  world,  even  as  I  am  not  of  the  world.  I  do  not 
pray  that  Tliou  wouldst  take  them  out  of  the  world,  but  that  Thou  wouldst 
keep  them  from  eviL  They  are  not  of  the  world,  even  as  I  am  not  of  the 
world.  3Iake  them  holy  in  the  truth:  Thy  word  is  truth.  As  Thou  hast 
sent  me  into  the  world,  I  also  have  sent  them  into  the  world,  and  for  their 
sakes  I  make  myself  holy  that  they  also  may  be  made  holy  in  the  truth. 

"  But  not  for  these  alone  do  I  pray,  but  for  those  also  who  believe  on  me 
through  their  word,  that  they  all  may  be  one,  even  as  Thou  art  in  me  and 
I  in  Thee,  that  they  also  may  be  one  in  us,  that  the  world  may  believe  that 
Tliou  has  sent  me.  And  the  glory  which  Tliou  hast  given  me  I  have  given 
them,  that  they  may  be  one,  even  as  we :  I  in  them,  and  Tliou  in  me,  that 
they  may  be  made  perfect  in  one ;  and  tliat  the  world  may  know  tliat  Thou 
didst  send  me,  and  hast  loved  them,  as  Thou  hast  loved  me. 

"  O  Father,  that  which  Thou  hast  given  me  I  vnU.  that  where  I  am  they 
also  may  be  with  me,  that  they  may  behold  my  glory,  which  Tliou  hast  given 
me ;  for  Thou  lovedst  me  before  the  foundation  of  the  world. 

"  O  righteous  Father,  the  world  also  has  not  known  Thee,  but  I  have 
known  Thee,  and  these  have  known  that  Thou  didst  send  me.  Thy  name 
I  both  have  made  known  to  them,  and  will  make  it  known,  that  the  love 
wherewith  Thou  hast  loved  them  may  be  in  them,  and  I  in  them ! " 


Section  3. — Gethsemane. 

Perhaps  at  the  close  of  this  prayer  tliey  sang  another  portion  of 

the  Great  Ilallel.     Then  they  went  to  the  Mount  of  Olives,  cross- 

inff  the  brook  Kedron,  the  name  siijnif  ying  "  Mud- 
TheKedronval-     ,^„       ,   „      y.  i    i  i      .1  i        i    .    • 

.  dy   Isrook.       it  was  probably  through  what   is 

called   St.    Stephen's   Gate   that   Jesus   and   his 

band  passed  down  and  crossed  the  Kedron,  which  runs  about  200 

feet  fi-om  the  city  walls.     On  the  slope  of  the  Mount  of  Olives, 

which  rises  herefrom,  and  near  the  road  leading  on  to  Bethany, 

was  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane,  meaning  an  "  oil-press," — the 

garden  having  derived  its  name  most  probably  from  an  oil-press 

which  belonged  to  the  estate.     Whetlicr  we  now  know  the  precise 

spot  where  Jesus  was  in  agony,  and  where  he  was  betrayed,  is 


^^^^  ^(iffifc  ^^^^ 


THE   SIXTH   DAT. 


629 


BOinewliat  uncertain ;  but  it  is  quite  certain  that  it  could  not  have 
been  far  from  the  plot  which  the  Latin  Church  has  recently 
bought  and  enclosed.  "We  cannot  say  that  the  eight  venerable 
trees,  which  are  so  impressive  to  all  travellers,  were  standing  in 
the  days  of  Jesus.  It  is  probable  that  they  were  not,  as  Josephus 
informs  us  that  Titus  cut  down  all  the  trees  round  about  Jerusa- 
lem {B.  J.,  vi.  1, 1),  and  that  the  Tenth  Legion  were  posted  about 


KIDRON  VALLEY.  FROM  AKELDAMA. 


the  Mount  of  Olives  (v.  2,  3,  and  vi.  2,  8).  But  these  trees  must 
have  been  planted  very  early  by  the  hands  of  those  who,  cherish- 
ing the  memory  of  Jesus,  desired  to  mark  the  traditionary  spot. 
Dr.  Thomson  is  inclined  to  place  the  garden  in  the  secluded  vale 
several  hundred  yards  to  the  north-east  of  the  present  Gethsemane. 
In  any  case  it  was  near  the  city,  and  Judas  and  the  other  disci- 
ples knew  that  Jesus  was  accustomed  to  frequent  it  for  private  de- 
votion. 


630  THE   LAST   •VNT.F.K. 

Having  entered  Gethsemane  a  great  heaviness  fell  on  him,  and 
lie  said  to  his  disciples :  "  Sit  down  and  pray  that  you  do  not  en- 
ter into  temptation,  while  I  go  and  pray  yonder." 
In  the  garden.       __      ,      ,         .  ,     ,  .        -r>  11 

lie  took  with  mm  i  eter  and  the  two  sons  of 

Zebedee,  James  and  John.  They  walked  farther  into  the  garden. 
He  began  to  be  sorrowful,  and  terrified,  and  depressed.  They 
must  have  perceived  it,  but  he  opened  his  heart  to  these  friends 
and  said :  "  My  soul  is  exceeding  sorrowful,  even  unto  death ; 
remain  here  and  watch  with  me."  It  seemed  to  be  a  sense  of 
abandonment  coming  upon  him.  "Xameless  contrarieties  of 
sensation  overwhelmed  him,  and  choked  and  straitened  his  heart, 
as  if  they  would  have  stifled  and  killed  him."  Ilis  appeal  to  his 
three  friends  is  very  pathetic. 

lie  went  a  little  farther  from  the  three  disciples,  about  a  stone's 
throw.  lie  had  probably,  as  Dean  Alford  conjectures,  gone  with 
his  three  friends  into  a  portion  of  the  garden  from  which  the 
moonlight  would  be  excluded  by  the  rocks  and  buildings  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  gorge.  It  was  the  vernal  equinox,  and  this 
must  have  been  near  midnight,  so  the  moon,  being  two  days  from 
its  full,  would  be  able  to  cast  shadows  thus.  As  his  anguish 
deepened  he  went  into  the  deepest  gloom  of  the  garden. 

He  kneeled  down,  he  fell  upon  his  face,  he  prayed.     His  prayer 

was :  "  O  my  Father,  if  it  be  possible,  let  this  cup  pass  from  me ; 

yet,  not  as  I  will,  but  as  Thou  wilt."     IIow  long 

Solitary  prayer.    ,        ,  .      ,  ^ 

he  thus  agonized  we  cannot  know.     But  he  must 

have  had  some  comfort  from  his  prayer,  for  after  some  time  he 
returned  to  the  three  disciples  and  found  them  all  asleep.  The 
travel  and  excitement  of  the  day  had  proved  too  much  for  them. 
They  certainly  did  not  comprehend  the  crisis  which  had  come  in  the 
affaire  of  Jesus.  lie  addressed  Peter  with  the  intensely  pathetic 
appeal,  ""Wliat,  could  you  not  watch  with  me  one  hour?  Rise, 
watch  and  pray,  that  you  do  not  enter  into  temptation.  The  spirit 
indeed  is  willing,  but  the  flesh  is  weak."  He  left  his  poor,  heavy- 
eyed,  and  exhausted  friends,  and  went  back  and  prayed,  saying: 
"  O  my  Father,  if  this  may  not  pass  away  except  I  drink  it.  Thy 
will  be  done." 
He  came  the  second  time  to  his  disciples  and  found  thera  all 

.  ,  asleei).     Down  on  his  soul  fell  a  ccreat  horror  of 

A  horror.  i  •  t 

desertion.     It  was  past  the  midnight.     Over  the 

hill  in  Bethany,  Lazarus  and  Martha  and  Mary,  and  perhaps  hia 


THE   SIXTH    DAY.  Q^l 

own  mother,  for  she  was  at  the  feast,  were  sleeping.  In  front 
lay  Jerusalem,  the  moon  sailing  on  above  and  beyond  the  city, 
whose  walls  on  this  side  grew  darker  from  top  to  bottom ;  and 
within  those  walls  they  were  plotting  to  destroy  him  without  fair 
trial.  Judas  had  left  him  on  an  errand  that  was  to  be  disastrous. 
Here  lay  Peter,  James,  and  John,  asleep,  near  his  scene  of  un- 
speakable anguish.  There  lay  the  other  eight,  asleep  also.  His 
country  was  under  the  Eoman,  whose  garrison  filled  yonder 
tower  of  Antonia.  The  church  was  arrayed  against  him.  His 
mother  was  away,  and  Mary  Magdalen,  his  true  fi-iend.  He 
was  alone, 

^  He  staggered  back  and  fell  upon  the  groimd,  and  the  third 
thne  he  prayed  this  prayer  of  exquisite  pain  and  perfect  submis- 
sion. The  horror  of  his  position  lay  heavy  on 
him.  In  his  agony  he  prayed  more  earnestly ;  ^j^^^®  ^^^""^  *"* 
and  his  sweat  was  as  it  were  clots  of  blood  falling 
down  to  the  ground.  His  friends  afterward  believed  that  an 
angel  appeared  to  him  and  gave  him  succor.  That  he  was 
strengthened,  and  his  serenity  in  some  measure  restored,  appears 
from  the  tone  of  his  address  to  his  disciples,  and  by  his  whole 
bearing  in  what  immediately  followed.  He  said  :  "  Do  you  sleep 
on  now  and  rest."  Then  he  suddenly  said :  "It  is  enough.  Be- 
hold, the  hour  is  here,  and  the  Son  of  Man  is  betrayed'^into  the 
hands  of  sinners,  Kise ;  let  us  go.  See,  he  that  betrays  me  is 
here ! " 

And  while  he  was  speaking  these  words,  Judas,  who  knew  the 
place,  and  knew  that  it  was  a  resort  of  Jesus  and  his  disciples, 
probably  having  sought  him  in  vain  in  the  cham- 
ber where  he  had  left  him,  came  upon  the  party.  '^^^  Betrayal. 
He  was  accompanied  by  a  band  of  men  whom  he  had  received 
from  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees.  They  were  not  all  Eoman 
soldiers,  but  some  were  servants  of  the  priests  and  some  were 
membei-s  of  the  Sanhedrim.  They  had  no  official  authority  to  do 
as  they  did.     They  were  the  minions  of  the  church  party. 

This  brings  us  to  an  examination  of  what  a  learned  Jewish 
physician,  M.  Salvador,  of  Paris,  pronounces  "  the  most  memo- 
rable trial  in  all  history."  This  writer  produced  a  work,  entitled 
T/te  Institutiom  of  Moses  aiid  the  Hehrew  People.  At  his  own 
request,  M.  Dupin  the  elder,  a  French  lawyer  of  distinction, 
reviewed  the  chapter  on  the  "  Trial  and  Condemnation  of  Jesus." 


632  THE   LAST   ^VEEK. 

We  shall  be  indebted  to  both  works,  and  we  make  this  general  ac 
knowledgment  to  save  specific  references.  Candor  ought  to  com- 
pel any  Christian  writer  to  admit  that  it  was  not  a  question  of 
"  deicide,"  a  name  invented  to  represent  an  imj)0ssible  sin,  as  the 
church  party  did  not  believe  that  Jesus  was  a  God  in  any  sense. 
The  simple  question  is.  Did  he  receive  justice  as  a  Hebrew  citizen 
imder  Hebrew  law  ? 

The  Mosaic  law  provided  three  securities  for  justice  in  a  crim- 
inal proceeding,  namely,  publicity  of  the  trial,  entire  liberty  of 
defence  for  the  accused,  and  safeguards  against 

,     ^  false  testimony.     For  the  latter  there  must  be  at 

law.  •' 

least  two  witnesses.  According  to  the  Hebrew 
text,  "  One  witness  is  no  witness."  Testimony  was  rendered  un- 
der oath.  If  a  witness  against  the  accused  perjured  himself,  he 
was  compelled  to  undergo  the  punishment  which  would  have  be- 
fallen the  accused  if  he  had  been  convicted.  If  the  accused  were 
convicted,  the  witnesses  by  whose  evidence  he  perished  dealt  the 
first  blow,  in  proof  of  the  truth  of  their  testimony.  A  woman 
could  not  be  a  witness,  because  she  might  not  have  the  corn-age 
to  deal  such  a  blow.  No  man  could  testify  against  himself.  The 
testimony  was  required  to  be  exceedingly  specific.  The  very 
hour,  as  well  as  day,  place,  and  circumstances  must  be  mentioned. 
There  were  twenty-three  judges.  Those  who  believed  the  accused 
to  be  innocent  spoke  first,  those  who  believed  him  guilty  spoke 
afterwards,  "  and  with  the  greatest  moderation."  The  most  pro- 
found attention  was  given  to  the  accused  when  he  wished  to 
speak.  Of  the  twenty-three  votes  eleven  would  acquit,  while  it 
required  thirteen  to  condemn.  If  acquitted,  the  accused  was  dis- 
charged instantly;  if  condemned,  the  sentence  was  not  pro- 
nounced until  the  third  day.  On  the  third  day  any  judge  who 
had  been  in  favor  of  condemning  might  change  his  vote,  so  as  to 
acquit,  but  one  who  had  once  voted  for  acquittal  could  not  change 
his  vote  so  I  as  to  condemn.  If,  then,  at  least  thirteen  judges 
voted  for  condenmation,  the  prisoner  was  led  forth  slowly.  The 
judges  remained  on  the  bench.  An  officer  was  stationed  at  the 
door  with  a  flag,  while  another,  on  horseback,  accompanied  the 
prisoner,  l(X)kiug  back  constantly,  as  he  would  be  recalled  by  the 
waving  of  the  flag  if  any  testimony  in  favor  had  been  brought 
before  the  judges.  On  his  own  declaration  that  he  recalled  some 
reasons  which  had  escaped  him,  the  prisoner  could  be  brought 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  633 

back  to  the  judges  as  often  as  five  times.  As  the  procession  ad- 
vanced slowly,  a  herald  with  a  loud  voice  proclaimed,  "  This  man 
[stating  his  name  and  surname]  is  led  to  punishment  for  [here 
the  crime  was  named].  The  witnesses  who  have  swoi-n  against 
him  are  [here  their  names  were  recited].  If  any  one  has  evi- 
dence in  his  favor  let  him  come  forth  and  give  it  quickly." 

This  is  an  epitome  of  M.  Salvador's  representation  of  the  ad- 
ministration of  criminal  law  among  the  Hebrews.  "We  shall  now 
see  whether  Jesus  had  a  fair  trial. 

We  may  recall  that,  before  tampering  with  Judas,  the  church 
party  had  detei-mined  that  Jesus  should  die,  thus  pronouncing 
sentence  upon  him  before  any  beginning  of  even 
a  show  of  trial.  Then  they  had  appointed  emis-  P  3^  &™ 
saries,  employing  evil  men,  for  none  but  wicked  men,  feigning 
themselves  to  be  good,  could  be  engaged  in  such  work,  to  dog  the 
Bteps  of  Jesus  and  entangle  him  in  his  talk.  There  was  nothing 
done  by  Jesus  which  any  one  was  willing  to  lay  voluntarily  be- 
fore the  authorities  and  denounce  as  a  crime  against  God  or  social 
order.  So  far  from  this,  they  arrested  him  before  any  allegation 
was  made,  and  they  did  this  craftily  and  stealthily,  so  that  "  the 
people "  might  not  know.  They  desired  to  postpone  the  arrest 
until  the  termination  of  the  Passover  should  have  emptied  the 
city  of  the  multitudes  from  all  parts  of  the  country  who  had 
heard  and  seen  Jesus,  not  one  of  whom  had  accused  him  of  any 
crime,  and  many  of  M'hom  might  have  given  testimony  in  his  favor. 
When  circumstances  hurried  up  the  operations  of  Judas  they 
seized  Jesus,  rushed  him  through  a  mock  trial,  and  crucified  him 
in  the  space  of  less  than  ten  hours.  We  shall  examine  each  point 
in  the  progress  of  this  affair  in  the  light  of  the  Hebrew  law  as 
stated  by  M.  Salvador,  a  learned  defender  of  his  ancestors  and 
their  action  in  the  case  of  Jesus. 

In  the  first  place  it  was  unjust  to  begin  to  prosecute,  not  to  say 
persecute,  him  before  any  charges  had  been  laid  before  the  Grand 
Council.  In  the  next  place  it  was  a  gross  irregu- 
larity to  attempt  to  take  liim  privately,  and  not  ®S^^^  ^ 
give  him  the  benefit  of  all  the  publicity  of  a  most  open  trial 
in  clear  daylight,  and  not  in  the  night.  This  was  enhanced  by 
employing  a  spy,  and  bribing  him  to  assist  in  their  unlawful  proce- 
dure. They  go  about  to  take  him  without  any  regular  and  legal 
Roman  or  Jewish  order  for  his  arrest.     The  Sanhedrim  had  had 


634  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

a  cjonclave,  but  not  a  regular  sitting,  and  did  not  proceed  as  a 
court  of  law,  but  rather  as  a  band  of  conspirators.  They  took 
counsel  how  they  might  slay  him,  as  John  says  (xi,  53),  not  how 
they  might  administer  justice  iu  his  case.  And  I  think  we  shall 
see  how  the  whole  procedure  was  the  execution  of  a  foregone 
conclusion,  and  was  the  condemnation  of  a  man  before  trial. 

The  signal  of  Judas  was  a  kiss.  lie  was  not  to  lay  hands 
on  his  Master,  nor  join  this  mob  in  their  attack.  He  was  simply 
to  designate  Jesus,  and  this  was  the  preconcerted 
^^  '  sign,  the  selection  of  which  perhaps  intimates 
that  Jesus  was  accustomed  to  receive  this  affectionate  mode  of 
salutation  from  his  apostles,  when  they  had  been  separated  for 
a  season.  Judas  approached  him  and  said,  so  as  to  be  heard  by 
the  band,  "  Hail,  Rabbi,"  and  kissed  him.  The  reply  of  Jesus 
was  most  mild,  and  to  Judas  must  have  been  painfully  cutting. 
Matthew  repeats  it  as,  "  Friend,  for  what  are  you  here  ? "  Luke 
says  that  Jesus  said,  "Do  you  betray  the  Son  of  Man  with 
a  kiss  ? " — and  his  manner  of  narrating  it  might  imply  that 
Jesus  prevented  the  kiss  by  the  question ;  but  Matthew  and 
Mark  distinctly  affirm  that  Judas  actually  kissed  Jesus;  all 
the  historians  showing  that  Jesus  knew  the  intent  of  this  salu- 
tation. 

Upon   this    Jesus  stepped    forward  to  the  crowd  and  said, 

"  'Whom  do  you  seek  ?  "     They  replied,  "  Jesus  the  Nazarene." 

He  answered,  "I  am  he."     "Wliat  there  was  of 

The  arrest.  .     ,        .  j         •   -j.      i  •       i  •„ 

majesty,  mnocence,  and  spiritual  power  in  Ins 

presence  and  reply  we  may  conjecture  from  the  fact  that  though 
tliey  were  all  armed,  and  were  many,  coming  out  against  a  man 
whose  friends  were  few  and  unprepared  fc)r  conflict,  they  stag- 
gered backwards  and  fell  to  the  ground.  Here  was  a  man 
capable  of  inspiring  such  awe,  and  yet  never  voluntarily,  so  far 
as  we  can  perceive,  putting  forth  any  influences  to  serve  or 
save  himself.  He  stood  alone  in  that  garden,  in  the  broad 
light  of  the  full  paschal  moon,  and  tlie  band  of  conspiratoi-a 
and  ruffians  who  had  come  to  take  him  lay  prone  on  the  ground. 
He  recalls  them  by  asking  a  second  time,  "  Wliom  seek  ye  ? " 
And  they  made  the  same  reply  as  before,  "  Jesus  the  ISTazarene." 
He  said  to  them,  "  I  have  told  you  that  I  am  he ;  if,  therefore, 
you  seek  me,  let  these  go  away,"  so  that  his  disciples  might  not 
suffer  with  him. 


THE    SIXTH    DAY.  635 

They  then  advanced  to  seize  him,  and  his  disciples,  perceiving 

what  would  follow,  said,  "Lord,  shall  we  smite  with  the  sword?" 

The  impetuous  Peter  did  not  wait  for  a  reply,  but 

Peter's  zeal 
inniiediately  made  a  blow  at  the  nearest  man, 

who  happened  to  be  one  Malchus,  a  servant  of  the  high-priest, 
and  cut  ofE  his  right  ear,  M,  Dupin  argues  that  the  fact  that 
Peter  was  not  arrested,  either  at  this  moment  or  afterwards,  when 
he  was  recognized  by  a  relative  of  Malchus  at  the  house  of  the 
high-priest,  is  proof  that  this  was  an  illegal  seizure,  otherwise 
Peter's  resistance  would  have  been  "  an  act  of  rebellion  by  an 
armed  force  against  a  judicial  order."  Jesus  healed  the  priest's 
servant  with  a  touch.  He  also  restrained  his  disciples,  who, 
under  the  awe  which  the  presence  of  Jesus  inspired  in  his  per- 
secutors, might  have  perhaps  delivered  him.  He  said  to  Peter, 
"  Eeturn  your  sword  into  its  place ;  for  all  who  take  the  sword 
shall  perish  by  the  sword.  Do  you  think  that  I  am  not  able 
to  pray  unto  my  Father,  and  He  shall  forthwith  give  me  more 
than  twelve  legions  of  angels  ?  But  how  then  should  the  Scrip- 
ture be  fulfilled,  that  thus  it  must  be?  The  cup  which  my 
Father  has  given  me,  shall  I  not  drink  it? " 

He  did  not,  however,  forbear  to  let  the  multitude  understand 
that  he  knew  the  illegality  of  what  they  were  doing.  "Have 
you  come  out  as  against  a  thief,  with  swords  and 
clubs,  to  take  me?  I  sat  daily  teaching  in  the 
Temple,  and  ye  laid  no  hold  upon  me.  But  this  is  the  hour, 
and  the  power  of  darkness.  All  this  has  come  to  pass  that 
the  writings  of  the  prophets  might  be  fiilfilled."  It  was  a  dis- 
tinct intimation  to  the  mob  that  he  .was  suffering  voluntarily, 
and  quite  as  distinct  an  intimation  to  his  disciples  that  he  wag 
going  to  suffer  certainly.  So  they  understood  it,  and  forsook 
him  and  fled. 


636 


THE   LAST   WEEK.. 


Section  4. — The  Tnal. 

Then  the  band  and  the  captain  and  ofhcers  of  the  Jews  laid 
hands  on  Jesus,  and  bound  him  and  led  him  away.  This  was 
another  outrage.  He  was  alone  and  unarmed, 
lie  offered  no  resistance  to  his  captors,  but  had 
come  forward  and  surrendered  himself  volun- 
tarily, and  yet  they  treated  him  as  a  condemned 
malefactor  or  resisting  culprit. 


Friday  morn- 
ing, April  6,  A.D. 
30.  A  fresh  out- 
rage. 


US^.^  ■ 


MAP   OF  JKRU8ALEM. 


Tliey  took  Jesus  to  the  house  of  Annas.  Annas  had  been 
high-priest.  lie  was  first  ap]K)inted  to  that  office  about  a.d.  7, 
by  Quirinius,  Proconsul  of  Syria,  but  was  de- 
posed by  Valerius  Grattis,  Procurator  of  Judiua, 
about   seven   years   later,  who  gave  the   office  to   Ismael,  and 


Annoa. 


m. 


636 


THZ   A^ 


Thai  Ae  bsnd  and  i^e  cptain  and  officers  of  Ae  Jews  laid 
han^  on  Jesos,  md  bound  lim  and  led  him  awaj.  ThiB  wag 
allodia-  OQtrge^  He  was  akne  and  nnanned. 
Be  offered  d  leaetanoe  to  his  capton^  but  had 
oome  fcM'wai  and  sarroidered  hingelf  volim- 
taiihr,  and  vt  dier  treated  him  as  a  etmdoniied 
malefactor  o  roasting  culprit. 


m 


msr  April6,AJX 


Ji""' 


L^ 


ri.f7  tooki 
high^riest. 


ren  y« 


khehouse 
rs*  ppointed , 
iiiis.  Procoi 
.:-ri^  Gi 
f-.   rave  th( 


'■  ,%  '-^  ■^.  4}  ^J>  #  *!■ 


«*  Mi 


3^isciples 

to  Annas, 

Tward  to 

0-  one  of  the 

There  was  an 

If   Annas  had 

13  into  his  honse, 

1  the  daylight,     llis 

ii  the  high-priest  (who 

o  Sanhedrim,  would  have 

hich  he  aided  and  abetted 

lion  of  Jesus.     lie  sent  him 

'  'jiiaphas. 

^r  tlie  chamber  in  which  the 

>e  night  was  wearing  away.     It 

;he  Sanhedrim 

for  it  could  ^"^^P^^^- 
fath,  they  made  a  fire.  Until 
!aiaphas  seems  to  have  taken 
JesuB,  which  he  had  no  right 
place  as  President  of  the  San- 
ioctrines  and  his  discijDles,  with 
:ate  the  prisoner  and  inculpate 

spoke  openly  to  the  world.     T 


m\  Ml  *i-   A*- 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  639 

Whoever  that  other  disciple  was,  he  was  "known  to  the  high- 
priest."  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  John  was ;  while 
we  know  that  that  very  week  Judas  had  been  with  this  digni- 
tary making  arrangements  for  the  betrayal  of  Jesus.  This  Avill 
also  account  for  the  freedom  with  which  he  entered  the  palace  of 
the  high-priest,  and  the  interest  he  could  make  for  the  admission 
of  Peter.  John  would  have  been  in  almost  as  much  danger 
as  Peter,  as  he  was  generally  as  prominent  in  the  group  about  the 
Teacher.  On  the  supposition  that  this  other  disciple  was  Judas 
the  whole  history  becomes  easy.  Peter  might  have  been  ad- 
mitted on  the  supposition  that  he  was  an  accomplice  with  Judas 
in  the  delivery  of  Jesus.  On  any  of  the  theories  which  have 
been  advanced  on  his  character  and  motives  it  was  natural  that 
Judas  in  his  excitement  should  follow  Jesus  into  the  palace  of 
the  high-priest  to  see  the  result,  and  would  be  relieved  by  the 
presence  of  another  disciple. 

However  that  may  have  been,  Peter  entered.  In  the  court 
of  the  palace  the  slaves  and  officers  had  made  a  fire,  and  stood 
warming  themselves.  Peter  went  up  to  the 
fire  and  warmed  himself  with  them.  It  may  be 
that  the  maid  who  kept  the  door  began  to  fear  that  she  was 
admitting  strangei*s  too  freely,  or  she  may  have  seen  the  look 
of  concern  on  the  face  of  Peter.  She  went  up  to  him  and  said, 
"  And  are  you  not  one  of  this  man's  disciples  ? "  He  denied  it 
before  them  all,  saying,  "  I  am  not ;  I  do  not  know  him,  nor  do  I 
undei*stand  what  you  are  saying." 

This  peremptory  challenge  disconcerted  Peter,  and  he  walked 

out  into  the  comi;.     Perhaps  he  put  on  the  air  of  a  man  insulted 

before  a  company.     But  an  excitement  had  been 
■,  1       1  •  A      i.1  •  1  i.         His  second  de- 

begun   by  his  presence.     Another  maid-sei'vant,     .  . 

probably  passing  him  in  the  court  and  coming  up 

to  the  fire,  stated  her  belief  that  the  uneasy  man  out  there  was  a 

disciple  of  Jesus.     While  Peter  was  out  in  the  court-yard  the 

cock  crew.     But  it  does  not  seem  to  have  recalled  the  prediction 

of  Jesus.     Upon  his  return  to  the  fire  the  whisper  went  round  : 

"  This  fellow  was  also  with  Jesus  the  Nazarene,"  until  one  boldly 

blurted  out  the  charge,  and  still  another  directly  put  the  question 

to  him  :  "  Are  you  not  one  of  his  disciples  ? "     He  made  a  second 

distinct  denial,  backing  it  up  with  some  profane  expression,  and 

asserting  that  he  did  "  not  know  the  man." 


640  THE   LAST    WEEK. 

These  denials  seem  to  have  occurred  while  the  high-priest  waa 
examining  Jesus.  There  was  an  interval  of  an  hour,  which  was 
spent  in  assembling  the  Sanhedrim  and  in  inducing  men  to  be- 
come witnesses.  It  was  cold.  Jesus  was  in  the  hall  inside,  which 
opened  probably  on  the  court  where  Peter  and  tlie  servants  and 
officers  were.  The  embarrassing  examinations  to  which  Peter 
had  been  subjected  began  to  be  painful.  lie  must  have  re- 
collected the  prominent  part  he  had  taken  in  the  affair  of  Geth- 
semane.  He  endeavored  to  throw  suspicion  from  himself  by 
engaging  in  free  conversation  with  the  others,  as  being  no  more 
personally  interested  in  what  was  going  forward  than  they  were. 
But  it  did  not  succeed.  His  very  garrulousness  aroused  suspi- 
cion. One  said,  "  Of  a  truth  this  man  was  with  him ;  for  he  is  a 
Galila3an :  his  speech  betrays  him."  Jesus  was  of  Galilee.  The 
Galileans  were  a  turbulent  race.  Most  of  the  disciples  of  Jesus 
were  known  to  be  Galilaeans.  Their  dialect  was  not  that  of  cul- 
tivated Jews,  nor  of  even  the  uncultivated  inhabitants  of  the  me- 
tropolis. So  they  made  his  accentuation  a  proof  against  him. 
This  called  special  and  unfriendly  attention  to  him.  A  slave  of 
the  high-priest  and  brother  of  that  Malchus  whose  ear  Peter  had 
hacked  with  his  sword,  regarding  him  carefully,  brought  the 
charge  home  upon  him,  saying,  "  Did  1  not  see  you  in  the  garden 
with  him  ? " 

This  was  too  much  for  Peter.  He  could  not  retreat  from  his 
former  denials.  He  was  at  the  point  to  be  discovered.  His  im- 
petuous sword-thrust  in  the  garden  was  about  to 
^  ■  be  turned  upon  him.  He  was  in  mortal  peril  and 
in  mortal  fear.  There  was  nothing  to  be  done  but  to  plunge  for- 
ward. He  broke  into  cursing  and  swearing,  and,  amid  dreadful 
imprecations,  denied  that  he  ever  had  any  knowledge  of  "  this 
man  "  of  whom  they  were  speaking.  Amid  his  ungrateful  deniab 
and  horrid  blasphemies  the  cock  crew  a  second  time.  And  Jesus, 
whose  smiting  Peter  had  witnessed,  turned  and  looked  upon 
him.  It  was  the  last  look  Peter  received  from  the  eyes  of  his 
Master  before  his  death.  The  look  and  the  crowing  of  the  cock 
came  togetlier,  and  Peter  saw  how  truly  had  come  to  pass  what 
Jesus  had  so  pathetically  prcdicte<l,  that  before  the  cock  should 
crow  twice  he  should  deny  his  Master  thrice.  Covering  his  head 
with  his  mantle  he  flung  himself  out  of  the  company  and  went  off 
weeping  bitterly. 


4 

THE    SIXTH    DAT.  641 

"We  now  return  to  the  examination  of  Jesns.  Tlie  night  had 
been  spent  in  a  fruitless  search  for  witnesses  willing  to  render 
such  testimony  as  the  persecutors  of  Jesus  sup- 
posed sufficient  to  convict  him.  Only  two  were 
necessary,  but  these  could  not  be  obtained.  The  bribes  they  were 
able  to  offer,  of  security  and  gain,  could  not  move  Judas  and 
another  to  testify  against  him.  The  day  began  to  break  over 
Olivet.  The  Sanhedrim  was  assembled.  "  The  priests,  the 
elders,  and  the  scribes "  were  there,  three  classes  of  men  having 
special  enmity  against  Jesus.  They  led  the  prisoner,  perhaps  in 
solemn  procession,  from  the  palace  of  the  high-priest  into  the 
council-chamber  on  the  Temple  mount. 

In  the  examination  which  followed  there  finally  came  forward 
two  witnesses.  The  testimony  of  the  first  was  :  "  He  said  'I  will 
destroy  this  temple  made  with  hands,  and  in  three 
days  I  will  build  another  made  without  hands.'  " 
The  testimony  of  the  second  was :  "  This  man  said,  '  I  am  able  to 
destroy  the  temple  of  God,  and  to  build  it  in  three  days.'  "  The 
friends  and  biographers  of  Jesus  asserted  that  both  statements 
were  false,  both  in  form  and  in  intention.  The  nearest  that  the 
words  of  Jesus  approached  any  formula  that  could  have  been 
even  wrested  into  either  of  these  statements  is  when  he  said,  "  De- 
stroy this  temple,  and  in  three  days  I  will  raise  it  up,"  pointitig 
probably  to  his  body,  at  least  his  friends  say  that  he  signified  that 
(John  ii.  19),  and  that  he  spoke  in  this  evasive  way  as  being  a 
proper  reply  to  his  enemies  under  the  circumstances.  But  the 
first  of  these  witnesses  made  the  impression  that  he  had  threat- 
ened to  destroy  the  Temple,  and  the  second  that  he  merely  asserted 
his  power  to  do  so.  Their  testimony  did  not  agree,  and  "  one 
witness  is  no  witness." 

Then  the  high-priest  rose  up  and  said  to  Jesus,  "  Do  you  answer 
nothing  to  what  these  witness  against  you  ? "  But  Jesus  held 
his  peace.  The  testimony  refuted  itself.  Then  they  asked  him, 
"  If  you  are  the  Christ,  tell  us."  He  replied,  "  If  I  tell  you,  you 
will  not  believe  ;  and  if  I  shall  question,  you  will  not  answer." 

It  will  be  perceived  that  his  persecutors  desired  to  obtain  evi- 
dence against  him  on  two  counts, — first,  blasphemy;   secondly, 
sedition  :  on  the  first  they  could  condemn  him  to 
death  as  lords  spiritual,  and  on  the  second  the  Ro- 
man power  could  execute  bim.     If  they  could  prove  only  the 


642  THE   LAST   WEEK, 

foi-mer,  as  it  was  a  mere  question  of  religion,  the  secular  ami 
would  not  destroy  him,  and  the  right  to  inflict  capital  punishment 
had  been  taken  away  from  the  Jews.  If  they  proved  only  the 
latter,  they  would  leave  to  him  all  his  moral  influence  over  the 
people,  in  whose  eyes  any  rebellion  against  Rome  was  a  high  vir- 
tue. If  both  together  could  be  made  out,  the  prisoner  would 
j^erish.  They  could  have  found  ample  proof  that  Jesus  had  vio- 
lated the  Sal)l)ath,  according  to  their  law  of  observance ;  but  the 
testimony  would  have  shown  that  he  had  always  therewith  con- 
nected the  performance  of  a  miracle.  They  could  have  proved 
that  he  had  denounced  the  clergy  and  the  church,  and  set  the 
traditions  and  ceremonials  of  Pharisaism  at  naught ;  but  that  would 
have  excited  in  his  behalf  the  friendly  feeling  of  the  Sadducees, 
who,  as  well,  despised  churchism.  There  was  a  narrow  path  to 
tread,  and  they  persistently  kept  in  it.  They  could  not  prove  the 
necessary  allegations,  and  they  attempted  illegally  to  extort  con- 
fessions from  the  prisoner  which  they  might  use  to  his  damage. 

Then  Caiaphas  solemnly  said  to  him,  "I  adjure  you  by  the  liv- 
ing God,  that  you  tell  us  if  you  are  the  Christ  [the  Messiah]  the 

Son  of  God."     He  calls  upon  the  prisoner  on 
,,  oath  to  testify  in  regard  to  himself  while  he  is  on 

trial  on  a  criminal  and  capital  charge,  "  a  gross 
infraction  of  that  rule  of  morals  and  jurisprudence,"  says  Dupin, 
"  which  forbids  our  placing  an  accused  person  between  the  dan- 
ger of  perjury  and  the  fear  of  inculpating  himself,  and  thus  mak- 
ing his  situation  more  hazardous."  But  when  the  high-priest  per- 
sisted, Jesus  replied,  "You  have  said  it;  moreover  I  say  to  you, 
From  this  time  you  shall  see  the  Son  of  Man  sitting  on  the  right 
hand  of  power,  and  coming  on  the  clouds  of  heaven." 

Among  the  ancients  the  deity  was  represented,  hieroglyphically, 
as  being  in  the  clouds,  to  signify  his  celestial  habitation.     Traces 

of  the  reduction  of  that  picture  to  lanjruaffe  are 

' '  The  clouds  "  inn 

found   through  the  sacred   books   of   the   Jews. 

"  Jehovah  rideth  upon  a  swift  cloud,"  Isa.  xix.  1 ;  "  The  clouds 
are  the  dust  of  His  feet,"  Nahum  i.  3 ;  "I  saw  in  the  night  vi- 
sions, and  behold,  one  like  the  Son  of  Man  came  with  the  clouds 
of  heaven,"  Daniel  vii.  13.  It  is  very  probable  that  Jesus  had 
special  reference  to  this  vision  of  Daniel,  as  well  as  general  refer- 
ence to  the  idea  contained  in  this  pictorial  representation,  which, 
reduced  to  our  language,  would  mean  a  claim  upon  tlie  part  of 


THE    SIXTH   DAT.  643 

Jesus  to  have  a  divine  relation  to  the  world  and  to  be  about  to  be 
acknowledged  as  a  divine  person.  It  is  not  for  a  moment  to  be 
supposed  that  he  intended  his  words  to  be  taken  literally,  or  that 
the  Sanliedrim  so  took  them.  Literally  they  amount  to  nothing, 
unless  one  should  take  them  as  the  harmless  exaggeration  of  a 
weak  head.  But  Jesus  was  no  such  man,  and  the  hour  was  too 
solemn  for  an^'thing  of  the  kind.  lie  was  on  trial  for  his  life  ; 
he  obviously  believed  that  his  hour  had  come ;  and  he  was  speak- 
ing from  the  depths  of  his  nature.  He  did  not  mean  that  he  was 
coming  on  the  clouds  of  heaven  literally.  It  were  a  ridiculous 
thing  ;  and  thus  far  we  have  found  nothing  ridiculous,  surely,  in 
the  character  and  words  of  Jesus,  how  many  soever  inexplicable 
things  we  may  have  discovered.  The  high-priest  did  not  so  un- 
derstand him,  else  he  would  have  burst  into  laughter  instead  of 
exhibiting  horror.  Jesus  meant  to  claim  divinity.  So  Caiaphas 
understood  him,  and  so  the  Sanhedrim.  Therein  was  the  blas- 
phemy. If  this  be  not  the  meaning  of  Jesus,  this  part  of  his  his- 
tory seems  to  me  wholly  unintelligible. 

"\Ylien  the  high-priest  heard  the  reply  of  Jesus  he  "  rent  hi? 
clothes."  The  sacerdotal  robe  was  worn  only  in  the  Temple.  It 
was  his  Simla,  or  upper  garment,  which  Caiaphas 

tore.     This  expression  of  pain  and  e-rief  and  hor-  ^  ""^  ^®  ™  ^ 

^  1  fc)  rage. 

ror  would  at  first  burst  forth  naturally,  afterward 
it  came  to  be  enacted  theatrically,  as  we  frequently  see  grief 
"  performed,"  at  some  of  our  modern  funerals.  It  became  so  ex- 
cessive that  it  was  moderated  by  ecclesiastical  law,  among  the 
regulations  of  which  was  one  (Levit.  xxi.  10)  forbidding  the  high- 
priest  to  rend  his  clothes.  We  learn,  however,  from  1  Macca- 
bees xi.  71,  and  from  Josephus,  B.J.,  ii.  15,  §  2,  4,  that  this  rending 
was  allowable  to  the  high-priest  in  cases  of  blasphemy.  To  this 
violent  gesture  Caiaphas  added  the  exclamation,  "  See !  he  has 
uttered  blasphemy !  "NYliat  further  need  have  we  of  witnesses  ? 
See,  now,  tjou  have  heard  the  blasphemy  !  What  is  your  opin- 
ion ? "  Here  is  one  who  is  at  once  accuser  and  judge,  and  he 
presents  the  disgraceful  spectacle  of  a  judge  in  a  rage.  lie  de- 
mands a  verdict  of  condemnation  based  upon  the  words  of  the 
prisoner,  as  those  words  are  interpreted  by  himself.  All  this  was 
contrary  to  well-established  Hebrew  law. 

The  whole  council  caught  the  temper  of  this  violent  man.  The 
judges  excitedly  asked  him  again,  "Are  you  then  the  Son  of 


644  THE    LAST    AVEEK. 

God  ? " — "  I  am,"  said  Jesns.     They  cried  out,  "  He  deserves  to 
die."      The   oflicei*s,  the  slaves,  the  bystanders  generally  broke 
into  furious  revilings,  taunts,  and  insults.     AVliilc 
^g^^.  still  on  his  trial,  before  condemnation,  the  high- 

pi'iest  and  the  councnl  gave  him  over  to  the  bru- 
talities of  the  unofficial  people.  They  spat  in  his  face,  slaves 
slapped  him  with  the  palms  of  their  hands,  they  blindfolded  him, 
and  said,  "  Prophesy  to  us,  O  Messiah,  who  is  he  that  struck  you." 
And  the  judge  and  the  jury  allowed  all  this.  Indeed  these  men 
pro])ably  did  it  that  they  might  obtain  the  favor  of  their  mastei-s. 
And  yet  it  is  maintained  by  such  learned  and  liberal  modern 
Jews  as  M.  Salvador  that  as  a  Hebrew  citizen  Jesus  was  fairly 
tried. 

"While  suffering  these  things  Jesus  heard  Peter  cursing  and 
swearing,  and  avowing  that  he  never  knew  him.  From  his  inf  uri 
ated  judges  he  turned  and  looked  upon  his  faithless  disciple. 
Jesus  was  most  completely  abandoned. 

Section  5. — Pilate. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that  Palestine  was  a  conquered  pro- 
vince, regularly  governed  by  the  conquerors.     Six  years  after  the 

birth   of   Jesus,  Archelaus,  son   of  Herod,   had 

The  Procurator.     ,  ■,  i  t    t    i  to  •  i 

been  deposed,  and  J  udsea  and  Samaria  annexed 

to  the  province  of  Syria,  the  Prceses  or  governor  of  which  was 

the  highest  representative  of  Roman  imperialism.     Nevertheless 

a  special  procurator  was  appointed  for  Judtea,  and  the  office  at 

this  time  was  held  by  Pontius  Pilate.     The  procurator  ordinarily 

resided  at  Csesarea,  by  the  seaside,  but  usually  came  up  with 

troops  to  attend  the  great  festivals,  partly  for  the  enjoyment  he 

might  have  amid  the  excitements,  and  partly  because  it  was  his 

duty  to  keep  the  Roman  authority  before  the  eyes  of  the  Jews, 

and  to  1)6  ready  to  repress  any  popular  outbreak  which  would  be 

likely  to  occur  when  so  many  people  were  assembled  at  the  me- 

tiopolis.     During  the  six  years  in  which  he  had  held  the  office 

Pilate  had  incensed  the  Jews  by  his  violence  and  oppression. 

The  Sanhedrim  had  no  right  to  inflict   capital   punishment. 

Wlierever  Rome  extended  its  dominion  the  jus  ghidii,  the  right 

of  the  sword,  the  power  over  life  and  death,  was 

Qjuag     II.     t^aken  from  the  conquered.     In  the  case  of  the 

Jews  all  minor  mattei*s  were  left  in  the  hands  of  their  council, 


THE    SIXTH   DAT.  645 

especially  the  settlement  of  all  religious  questions,  but  civil  cases 
were  tried  by  the  procurator,  and  capital  cases  by  the  Praeses.  Ir. 
this  case  it  seems  to  have  been  deputed  to  the  proclirator.  He 
^vas  present  in  the  city.  It  was  the  beginning  of  Friday.  The 
Passover  was  to  commence  on  the  evening  of  that  day.  They 
had  only  that  morning  to  secure  the  condemnation  and  execution 
of  Jesus.  If  delayed  until  the  festival  had  passed,  the  whole  coun- 
try might  be  aroused  and  a  great  reaction  in  his  favor  might  set  in. 
It  was,  therefore,  determined  to  keep  him  bound  and  guarded,  and 
to  assemble  at  daybreak  and  push  their  plans  to  a  consummation. 

All  the  night  long  was  Jesus  buffeted,  tortured,  insulted.  They 
would  have  killed  him  if  they  had  dared ;  but  Eome  looked  down 
on  them  from  the  tower  of  Antonia  and  kept  even  churchly  rage 
in  check. 

Day  began  to  dawn.  The  light  was  breaking  over  Olivet.  The 
earliest  movements  must  be  made.  The  procurator  must  be  seen 
as  early  as  practicable.    There  was  a  reassemblins: 

O  fTI         T>'1      J. 

of  the  Sanhedrim.     In  the  night  session  they  had  ^  ' 

condemned  him :  but  beyond  that  they  were  powerless ;  they 
could  not  execute  him,  and  they  could  not  se^  Pilate  at  that  hour. 
The  object  of  the  morning  meeting  was  to  concoct  plans  to  have 
him  put  to  death,  according  to  their  verdict.  This  could  be  done 
only  through  Pilate.  They  pre-arranged  their  methods.  They 
took  Jesus  bound,  making  as  imposing  a  procession  as  possible  ; 
thus,  as  far  as  in  them  lay,  prejudicing  his  case.  The  palace 
of  Pilate  had  been  desecrated  in  their  eyes  by  having  been  the 
residence  of  a  Gentile.  These  scrupulous  officials,  intent  on  a 
crime,  compassing  the  destruction  of  a  man  against  whom  they 
could  prove  nothing,  although  he  had  led  a  public  life  by  the 
space  of  three  years,  were  so  cautious  that  they  would  not  defile 
themselves  by  entering  a  Gentile's  house,  because  the  Passover 
was  at  hand.  They  forgot  that  the  members  of  the  Sanhedrim 
were  bound  to  spend  the  day  fasting  in  which  they  had  con- 
demned a  man  to  death.     Churchism  is  the  same  in  all  ages. 

They  sent  in  to  Pilate,  and  he  came  out,  as  his  custom  was. 
Then  commenced  a  play  of  passions  on  both  sides,  which  consti- 
tutes a  profoundly  interesting  study.     He   saw 
the  crowd,  the  council,  the  prisoner.     It  was  an      ^^  °  passions, 
unusual  hour.     It  must  be  an  unusual  case.      His   quick  eye 
intei-preted  the  general  meaning  of  the  scene.     Turning  to  Caia- 


646 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


phas  and  the  Sanhedrim,  he  said,  "  "Wliat  accusation  do  you 
bring  against  this  man  ?  " 

It  is  not  poetry,  it  is  criticism,  to  strive  to  know  what  looks  and 
gestures  accompanied  any  speech  of  any  historical  character.  It 
is  well  known  how  greatly  these  vary  the  sense  of  the  mere 
words.  If  we  could  know  precisely  the  motions  of  the  person, 
the  play  of  the  lips,  the  glance  of  the  eye  of  Jesus,  how  much 
more  intelligible  would  his  words  be,  and  how  our  interpretation 
of  them  might  be  changed.  And  still  more  how  we  should  be 
helped  by  a  knowledge  of  the  precise  tone  and  emphasis  he  em- 
ployed. The  same  is  true  of  others,  and  here  of  Pilate.  He  may 
have  looked  at  Jesus  and  seen  him  pale  and  worn,  yet  calm  as  tlie 
morning  in  whose  light  he  stood.  He  may  have  contrasted  the 
face  of  the  prisoner,  so  free  from  passion,  with  the  heated  and 
fierce  glare  in  the  countenances  of  Caiaphas  and  the  Sanhedrim, 
whose  excitement  and  anger  through  the  night  must  have  left 
their  traces  ;  and  Pilate  may  have  uttered  unfeigned  surprise  by 
the  exclamatory  question,  "  AVliat  accusation  do  you  bring  against 
him  ?  "  as  if  intimating  that  if  either  party  should  be  plaintiff  it 
was  Jesus. 

But,  read  with'  any  emphasis,  the  question  gave  the  churchmen 

plainly  to  understand  that  in  this  case  Pilate  did  not  intend  to 

pronounce  a  confirmation  of  any  sentence  thev 

A  halt.  ^        ,  1        ,     .        .         '^        .  .  ,      •' 

may  nave  passed,  ordering  its  execution  without 

examination  and  perfunctorily.  Unfortunately  for  him  he  had  in 
haste  done  such  things  before,  and  thus  emboldened  these  men  to 
venture  in  this  case  a  presumption  upon  his  judicial  carelessness. 
lie  gave  them  to  understand  that  he  intended  to  take  cognizance 
of  this  case.  His  question  assumed,  what  the  Sanhedrim  knew 
to  be  true,  that  he  had  the  right  of  original  jurisdiction,  as  repre- 
sentative of  the  Roman  Emperor.  This  took  them  aback.  They 
had  not  expected  from  Pilate  such  assertion  of  his  rights.  They 
expected  of  him  simply  the  secular  sanction  to  their  ecclesiastical 
verdict.  They  expected  to  be  acknowledged  as  judges.  But  Pi- 
late took  the  bench,  and  })ut  them  on  the  stand  of  the  witnesses. 
This  touched  their  pride  to  the  quick,  while  it  seemed  to  inti- 

„.,  .         mate  a  miscarriaire  of  their  whole  i)lan.     Their 

Pnde    against  .  ,   tp  i 

pride  arrogant  reply  was,  "  It  he  were  not  a  malefactor 

we  would  not  have  delivered  him    up   to   you." 

As  if  they  resented  the  insult  which  was  implied  in  his  words, 


THE    SIXTH   DAY.  Q4/J 

that  tliej  could  have  condemned  an  innocent  man.  But  Pilate 
was  as  proud  as  Caiaphas.  In  reply  to  their  claim  to  be  judges, 
he  said,  "  Take  him,  and  judge  him  according  to  your  law."  "as 
if  he  had  ironically  said,  "  Oh,  that  is  it !  Yon  do  not  vouchsafe 
to  inform  me  even  of  the  accusation  against  this  man.  You  claim 
to  be  judges.  You  know  your  limit.  I  am  sure  that  I  am  will- 
ing that  you  should  try  him  according  to  your  law,  and  condemn 
him,  and  punish  him  as  far  as  the  law  will  permit.  If  you  be 
judges,  take  the  case  away,  and  do  not  trouble  me  with  it."  This 
irony  was  stinging ;  but  the  Roman  might  become  obstinate,  and 
insist  that  the  case  remain  with  them,  and  they  could  not  put 
Jesus  to  death  ;  and  so  the  whole  scheme  was  like  to  miscarry. 

This  brought  them  to  terms.     They  were  obliged  to  submit  the 
indictment.     If  they  had  had  all  power  in  their  hands  they  would 
have  stoned  him  for  blasi^hejny.     It  is  noticeable 
that  Jesus  had  predicted  that  his  career  would     ^^'"^^^^    o^ 
end  in  crucifixion,  the  Roman— rather   than  in    ^''*^'''''^" 
stoning,  the  Hebrew— mode  of  execution.     The  pi-obabihties  had 
all  been  in  favor  of  the  latter.     It   was  this  sudden  and  unex- 
pected obstinacy  of  Pilate  which  changed  the  curi-ent  of  affairs. 
For  a  moment  they  were  in  perplexity.     To  tell  Pilate  that  Jesus 
had  committed  blasphemy,  by  claiming  to  be  the  Son  of  God, 
would  go  for  nothing.     He  had  no  interest  m  their  religious 
questions :  he  was  utterly  a  pagan.      They  changed  their  ground, 
and  said,  "  We  found  this  one  perverting  our  nation,  and  forbid- 
dmg  to  give  tribute  to  Ciesar,  saying  that  he  himself  is  Christ,  a 
King."     There  are  three  counts  in  this  allegation ;  the  first  two 
being  to  the  nation  notoriously  false,  and  the  third  being  to  Pilate  " 
merely  ridiculous.     Jesus   had  explicitly  taught  the ''people   to 
"  render  unto  Ciesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's  ;  »  but  the  bare 
fact  that  such  a  question  should  have  been  brought  to  him  is  an  in- 
dication of  the  unsettled  state  of  the  public  mind,  and  how  ready 
the  people  were  to  listen  to  any  suggestions  of  rebellion.     Caia- 
phas and  his  fellow-conspirators  knew  that,  in  the  sense  in  which 
Pdate  must  have  understood  it,  the  third  count  was  false.      Jesus 
had  aspired  to  no  temporal  rule,  and  had  done  nothing  to  make 
Inmself  a  rival  of  Caesar,  but  had  simply  claimed  to  be  the  Mes- 
siah, a  claim  in  which  the  representative  of  the  Roman  Emperor 
could  have  no  ofiicial,  and  scarcely  any  personal,  interest. 
When  Pilate,  from  the  portico  of  his  palace,  looked  down  upon 


648  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

the  meek  face  of  the  prophet  from  Galilee  and  saw  his  hands 
bound,  and  the  spittle  of  the  slaves  on  his  beard, 
charge.  ^^^^    ^^^  general  friendlessness,  and  how  thor- 

oughly he  was  in  the  hands  of  his  enemies,  it 
must  have  seemed  the  most  absurd  thing  to  him  that  Caiaphas 
should  bring  such  a  man,  under  such  circumstances,  and  charge 
him  with  the  loftiest  political  ambition  and  the  most  innnense 
political  enterprise.  And  then  a  suspicicm  must  have  come  to  him 
that  there  was  something  behind  all  this  ;  that  if  Jesus  really  had 
entertained  ideas  of  revolt,  these  priests  were  the  very  first  men 
to  foster  any  opposition  and  trouble  to  Rome,  and  the  very  last 
men  to  oppose  or  even  embarrass  the  movements  of  any  real 
rebel. 

But  as  the  allegation  had  been  made,  the  investigation  must  be 
had.  Pilate  went  into  the  pra^torium,  so  as  to  take  his  official 
position.  The  Roman  trial  was  public.  Any  could  enter.  Jesus 
had  no  scruples,  and  when  he  was  called  went  in  at  once.  There 
were  the  representatives  of  the  scrupulous  churchmen  present.  If 
they  could  not  go  in,  they  could  send  in  those  who  should  watch 
and  in  some  measure  infiuence  proceedings.  Friends  of  Jesus 
might  also  enter  and  report  to  those  outside. 

Pilate  said  to  Jesus,  "  Are  you  the  King  of  the  Jews  ? "   "Whether 

Pilate  intended  it  or  not,  there  was  a  trap  in  the  question.     It 

could  not  have  a  categorical  answer.     If  Jesus 

In    the    prseto-         .  ,    ,.  __      „  _.,        °  pi,. 

j-ium.  said  "  Yes,"  to  Pilate  s  manner   of   thought    it 

might  seem  an  acknowledgment  of  the  charge  of 
sedition  they  were  making  against  him.  If  he  said  "No,"  it 
would  seem  an  abandonment  of  the  Messianic  claims  he  had  al- 
ready advanced,  Ilis  reply  to  Pilate  was  a  question,  "  Do  you 
say  this  of  yourself,  or  did  others  tell  it  you  of  me  ? "  To  a  man 
of  the  world  like  Pilate  it  should  have  showed  that  the  person  be- 
fore him  was  not  a  crazy  adventurer  from  the  rural  districts, 
whose  claim  to  be  Tiberius  himself,  if  he  had  made  it,  would  have 
been  as  harailess  as  any  other  utterance  of  wild  insanity.  It 
meant,  "  Do  you  put  that  question  to  me  in  the  Roman  or  the 
Jewish,  in  the  political  or  the  ecclesiastical  sense  ? " — "  Am  I  a 
Jew  ? "  Pilate  replied  rather  petulantly.  "  Your  own  nation  and 
the  high-priest  have  delivered  you  to  me !  "What  ha\e  you  done  ?" 
Jesus  had  done  nothing.  His  abstinence  from  all  p<jlitics  was 
remarkable.     His  enemies  could  bring  nothing  against  him.     The 


THE    SIXTH   DAY. 


649 


charge  of  sedition  was  an  unfounded  calumny,  and  they  had  not 
been  able  to  find  a  solitary  man  in  the  crowded  city  to  bear  wit- 
ness thereto. 

But  now  he  can  approach  an  answer  to  Pilate  which  shall  be 
consistent  at  once  with  his  innocence  and  his  claims.  He  said : 
"  My  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world.  If  my  king-  ^^^^^  ^^^^.^^  ^^ 
dom  were  of  this  world,  then  would  my  servants  p^ate. 
fight,  that  I  should  not  be  delivered  to  the  Jews. 
My  kingdom  is  not  from  hence."  Here  was  a  statement  which 
implied  that  there  was  a  kingdom  whose  defenders  were  not  the 
Roman  eagles.  To  an  imperial  ofiicial  there  seemed  no  kingdom 
that  was  not  Eoman.  Or,  if  any  other  kingdom,  it  would  draw 
sword  but  in  vain,  for  it  should  soon  succumb  to  Roman  power. 
But  the  kingdom  of  Jesus  was  totally  disengaged  from  secular 
governments,  reigning  under  and  over  and  through  them,  and 
would  survive  them,  and  did  not  need  the  defence  of  the  sword. 
But  a  kingdom  implied  a  king,  and  yet  such  a  kingdom  as  Jesus 
had  been  describing  seemed  a  mere  vague  idea ;  so  Pilate  asked, 
"  Are  you  not  a  king  then  ? " 

Now  Jesus  had  placed  his  judge  in  such  a  posture  that  the  an- 
swer about  to  be  given  should  not  be  deceptive :  "  Thou  sayest 
that  I  am  a  kino;.     To  this  end  was  I  born,  and 

A  SGCOHQ.  rG'DlV 

for  this  purpose  came  I  into  the  world,  that  I 
should  bear  witness  concerning  the  truth.  Every  one  who  is  of 
the  truth  hears  my  voice."  It  was  the  Idngdom  of  truth,  and  not 
of  physical  power,  in  which  he  claimed  to  be  supreme.  Such  a 
claim  threatened  no  danger  to  the  Emperor :  why,  then,  should 
Pilate  care  for  it?  He  had  heard  such  things  before.  There 
were  Greek  and  Roman  philosophers  who  taught  that  those  who 
lived  by  the  truth  were  kings  among  men.  And  it  seemed  to 
Pilate  that  it  was  the  same  proposition  he  had  heard  often,  now 
pronounced  by  a  Jew.  He  did  not  believe  that  men  could  reach 
the  ultimate  and  absolute  truth.  It  was  a  pretty  fancy  for  poetic 
dreamers,  a  fine  theory  for  recluses  and  philosophers,  but  there 
was  nothing  practical  in  it,  nor  useful  to  a  man  of  affairs.  It  may 
have  been  with  some  bitterness  of  regret  that  such  a  search  should 
be,  as  he  believed,  fruitless,  that  Pilate  exclaimed  with  a  sigh, 
"  What  is  truth « "  as  he  passed  out  to  the  portico  to  announce  the 
acquittal  of  Jesus  to  the  priests,  which  he  did  by  saying,  "  I  find 
no  fault  in  him." 


650 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 


Then  the  vehement  Sanhedrim  repeated  their  accusations.  Jesus 

said  not  a  word.     The  contrast  between  the  raging  churchmen 

^     ^        and  the  meek  lieretic  struck  Pilate  so  forcibly 
A  contrast.  ,  ,  i    i  i  .  -r^ 

that   lie   appealed    to    lain:    "Do    you    answer 

nothing  ?  See  how  many  things  they  witness  against  you."  Jesus 
kept  his  silence.  In  the  ecclesiastical  and  in  the  civil  courts 
Jesus  paid  no  attention  to  anything  that  did  not  touch  his  claims 
to  Messiahship.  'When  that  was  invcjhed  he  was  perfectly  ex- 
plicit, giving  his  persecutors  and  his  judges  ample  ground.  On 
all  else  he  was  silent.  He  seemed  determined,  when  put  to  death, 
to  perish  in  his  claim  to  be  the  Son  (>f  God  in  a  sense  signifying 
that  he  was  God's  equal.  This  self-control  seemed  marvellous  to 
Pilate,  who  reiterated  his  judgment,  saying,  "I  find  no  fault  in 
this  man."  But  the  crowd  about  the  portico  was  fierce.  How- 
ever innocent  Jesus  might  be,  he  had  manifestly  rendered  himself 
odious  to  the  ecclesiastical  rulers.  It  placed  Pilate  in  a  trying 
position.  For  all  that  appeared,  he  should  have  set  Jesus  free : 
but  to  do  so  peremptorily,  before  he  had  allayed  the  passionate 
excitement  of  the  church  party,  would  be  to  peril  all  parties.  Ilis 
parley  with  the  priests  was  in  the  interests  of  Jesus  and  justice. 

But  the  ]-abid  mob  shouted,  "  He  stirs  up  the  multitude  through- 
out all  Juda3a,  even  beginning  from  Galilee  to  this  place."  Here 
was  a  distinct  charge  of  sedition :  but  the  naming  of  Galilee  was 
an  outlet  for  the  perplexed  Pilate.  They  mentioned  it  as  a 
sinister  circumstance  that  this  man's  ministry  had  begun  among 
the  turbulent  Galilaeans,  in  a  country  belonging  to  his  political 
adversary.  The  shrewd  Pilate  saw  in  it  a  solution  of  his  diffi- 
culty. 

Section  6. — ITerod. 

The  part  which  Herod  Antipas  had  taken  in  the  murder  of 

John  the  Baptist  has  been  narrated.     This  king,  Roman  in  office, 

Hebrew   in  faith,   licentious   in   life,   had   been 
Herod  and  Jesus.    i  i    ,  .  .  .  , 

haunted   by  superstitious  terror  ever   since   the 

assassination  of  John  in  prison.     "Wlien  he  heard  that  another 

prophet  was  travelling  through  the  country,  preaching  with  a  skill 

the  effects  of  which  sur])assed  those  of  the  vehement  eloquence  of 

John,  and  to  such  preaching  adding  the  wonder  of  miracles,  until 

tlie  whole  land  was  full  of  his  fame,  and  when  it  was  whispered 


THE   SIXTH    DAY.  651 

that  this  new  preacher  was  Elias,  or  one  of  the  old  prophets,  or 
perhaps  John  the  Baptist,  the  guilty  soul  of  Herod  adopted  the 
last  of  these  suppositions  and  said,  "  It  is  John."  At  iirst  he  en 
deavored  to  induce  Jesus  to  leave  the  country  by  conveying  to  him 
the  warning  that  if  he  remained  in  the  territory  of  Herod  that 
prince  would  kill  him.  But  as  time  wore  away,  and  his  conscience 
hardened,  and  his  feelings  of  terror  were  allayed,  he  conceived  a 
curiosity  to  see  the  great  things  which  Jesus  did. 

There  had  come  a  cloud  between  Herod  and  Pilate.     Some  of 
the  turbulent  subjects  of  the  former  had  visited  Jerusalem  on  a  fes- 
tival occasion,  and  created  an  insurrection  which 
Pilate  had  suppressed  by  indiscriminate  slaughter,    w  ^^° 
not  stopping  to  send  them  for  trial  to  the  courts  in 
the  dominion  of  Herod.     This  had  made  an  estrangement  between 
the  rulers.     Now  the  Galilneun  king  had  come  up  to  Jerusalem  to 
celebrate  the  Passover.     It  would  be  a  graceful  recognition  of 
Herod's  jurisdiction,  and  a  compliment,  to  send  this  distinguished 
prisoner  to  him  for  trial,  and  it  would  free  Pilate  from  further 
proceedings.     Therefore  he  sent  him  to  Herod.     It  did  heal  the 
quarrel ;  but  it  did  not  relieve  Pilate  of  the  case. 

When  the  frivolous  Herod  saw  Jesus  he  was  glad.     There  was 
not  manliness  enough  in  him  to  see  that  this  was  a  most  perplex- 
ing affair,  in  which  the  empire,  his  own  tetrarchy, 
the  weal  of  the  Jewish  people,  and  the  interests    rr^^T  '^''*   ^'^ 

n  -,  .  ,.    .        -t      r     5  Herod. 

or  his  ancestral  religion,  as  well  as  the  fate  of  a 
great  and  good  man  might  be  involved.  It  was  an  opportunity  to 
have  an  exhibition  of  legerdemain  or  necromancy,  and  this  in- 
cestuous assassin  had  no  such  weight  on  his  seared  conscience  that 
he  could  not  enjoy  any  species  of  entertainment.  He  catechised 
Jesus  in  many  ways,  endeavoring  to  draw  him  at  least  into  con- 
versation. Jesus  looked  at  him  with  that  broad  look  which  inno- 
cent manliness  gives  to  crime.  He  could  have  spoken  what 
would  have  riven  Herod,  but  he  was  silent.  The  church  party 
stood  near,  and  were  vehement  and  violent  in  their  accusations ; 
but  not  a  word  could  be  extorted  from  Jesus.  He  had  never  be- 
fore met  any  man  or  woman  or  child  to  whom  he  would  not 
speak.  There  never  was  so  great  a  sinner  that,  with  any  expres- 
sion of  contrition,  could  not  have  a  word  fi-om  Jesus.  But  Herod 
lived  and  died,  probably  the  only  man  who,  having  seen  Jesus, 
never  heard  the  tones  of  his  voice  nor  a  syllable  from  his  hps. 


652  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

There  was  no  point  of  contact  between  Jesus  and  Herod.  If 
he  had  addressed  Jesus  with  any  proper  desire  to  know  any 
proper  thing,  Ilerod  would  doubtless  have  had  a 
word  from  the  great  Teacher.  Pilate  was  a  time- 
serving coward,  and  Caiaphas  a  hypocritical  bigot,  but  Jesus 
talked  with  them.  Herod's  frivolous  licentiousness  had  eaten  his 
whole  manhood  out.  Fretted  by  the  profound,  the  majestic,  the 
awful  silence  of  Jesus,  Herod  and  his  military  guard  set  him  at 
naught,  and  mocked  him,  and  arrayed  him  in  a  gorgeous  robe,  and 
sent  him  back  to  Pilate.  If  we  were  writing  a  poem  instead  of  a 
history,  we  might  indulge  in  descriptions  of  the  probable  reflec- 
tions of  Herod  after  the  speechless  prophet  of  Galilee  had  gone 
out  of  his  presence.  Although  Herod  was  so  mean  that  he  could 
allow  an  uncondemned  man,  who  had  been  tortured  all  night,  to 
remain  bound  and  be  insulted  in  his  presence,  even  that  bad 
prince  did  nt)t  have  the  heart  to  say  that  there  was  in  him  any- 
thing worthy  of  death. 


Section  7. — Back  to  Pilate. 

Back  to  Pilate  is  Jesus  now  sent.  We  do  not  know  whether 
Pilate  was  in  the  tower  of  Antonia,  and  Herod  occupying  the 
palace  of  his  father,  which  is  said  to  have  exceeded  the  Temple  in 
splendor,  but  in  any  case  the  distance  was  not  great.  The  troul)led 
procurator  discovered  that  he  had  appeased  Herod,  but  had  not 
shifted  the  responsibility  of  this  most  perplexing  case.  When  he 
saw  Jesus  brought  back,  wearing  a  robe  of  mockery,  it  plainly 
confirmed  his  suspicion  that  the  accused  was  innocent.  The 
greater  part  of  his  puljlic  life  had  been  passed  in  the  territory  of 
Ilerod,  who  must  have  known  the  fact  if  Jesus  had  been  a  sedi- 
tious person.  His  treatment  of  the  piisoner  ])lainly  said  that 
Herod  regarded  his  kingly  pretension  as  a  harmless  vagary,  not  fit 
to  be  treated  seriously  by  any  ruler. 

Then  Pilate  called  the  Sanhedrim  to  him  and  addressed  thera 

thus :  "  You  have  brought  this  man  to  me  as  one  who  perverts  the 

people,  a  revolutionary  demagogue.     And  see,  I 

Pilate  and  the    \y^yQ  examined  him  in  vour  i)i-cscnce,  and  have 

found  no  fault  in  this  nuui  touching  those  thmgs 

whereof  you  accuse  him.   Neither  did  I  lerod,  for  he  sent  him  to  us ; 

and  see,  nothing  deserving  of  death  has  been  done  by  him.    I  will 


THE    SIXTH    BAY.  653 

scourge  and  release  him."  It  is  quite  evident  that  Pilate  had  no 
feelings  of  malignity  against  Jesus.  He  was  really  desirous  of 
releasing  him,  while  desirous  at  the  same  time  of  pleasing  the 
Sanhedrim  as  far  as  practicable.  He  appeals  to  the  fact  that  he 
had  taken  cognizance  of  the  case  ;  had  heard  the  indictment ;  had 
openly  conducted  the  trial  in  their  presence,  so  that  they  could  put 
in  any  proofs  they  thought  likely  to  convict,  and  he  had  been 
willing  to  convict,  and  had  shown  his  willingness  by  sending  the 
prisoner  to  Herod,  a  native  prince  and  a  co-religionist  of  theirs,  as 
the  ruler  in  whose  jurisdiction  the  most  of  the  life  of  Jesus  had 
been  spent,  and  where,  as  they  had  alleged,  Jesus  had  stirred  up  the 
people.  No  proof  of  seditious  behavior  had  appeared.  This  man 
might  be  a  wild  enthusiast,  but  he  was  not  a  dangerous  revolution- 
ist.    He  should  therefore  scourge  him  and  release  him. 

This  was  a  great  error,  and  most  un-Roman.  The  man  was 
innocent  or  guilty.  If  innocent,  his  release  was  imperative ;  if 
guilty,  the  judge  should  not  have  been  endeavor- 
ing to  protect  him.  But  Pilate  had  his  political  ^^^^  ^"^°^* 
difficulties,  and  office  was  sweet  to  him.  Moreover,  he  may  have 
hoped  to  satisfy  the  rancor  of  the  churchmen  by  the  scourging  of 
this  young  heretic,  and  thus  sj)are  the  young  man's  life. 

In  the  mean  time  the  ecclesiastical  party  were  busy  with  the 
multitude,  inciting  them  to  violent  demonstration.  They  had  been 
telling  the  people  that  Jesus  had  blasphemed  before  the  Sanhe- 
drim, the  high  council  of  the  nation,  claiming  to  be  Jehovah.  It  is 
always  to  be  remembered  that  the  people  expected  the  Messiah  to 
be  a  man,  and  not  a  God,  not  even  an  angel,  certainly  not  Jehovah. 
Blasphemy  was  the  supreme  crime  in  their  code  of  ethics.  It  was 
because  Jesus  was  a  good  man,  such  a  very  good  man,  and  exer- 
cised such  great  moral  power,  that  they  regarded  him  as  about  to 
be  their  Messiah.  If,  however,  he  had  blasphemed  in  the  presence 
of  the  elders  of  his  people,  he  could  be  nothing  to  them  but  a  de- 
ceiver. The  passions  of  the  mob  were  adroitly  plied  by  these 
wily  and  bitter  ecclesiastics,  and  they  were  prepared  to  show  an 
outbreak  of  passionate  reactionary  feeling  against  Jesus. 

Pilate  does  not  seem  to  have  calculated  on  this  state  of  affairs 

when  he  resolved  to  appeal  from  the  clergy  to  the 

laity,  from  the  priests  to  the  people.   He  must  have       "^.^^   people 
1  1.  p    ^  1  -,     .  n    against  Jesus, 

known  somethmg  oi  the  personal  popularity  of 

the  yoimg  prophet,  and  hoped  to  be  able  to  array  the  people 


654  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

against  tlicir  rulers.  For  that  purpose,  apparently,  he  gathered 
them  together,  and  when  they  were  assembled  they  reminded  him 
of  the  custom  which  had  added  to  the  festivity  of  the  Passover  by 
the  release  of  some  prisoner.  How  long  this  had  been  a  custom 
we  know  not,  nor  can  we  now  determine  whether  it  was  of  purely 
Jewish  or  purely  Roman  origin.  The  Romans  were  accustomed 
to  propitiate  conquered  peoples  by  acts  of  political  grace.  A 
parallel  between  a  malefactor  and.  the  goat  slain  on  atonement- 
day  may  have  inclined  the  Israelites  to  execute  great  criminals 
on  festivals,  and  their  disposition  to  release  a  prisoner  at  the  feast 
might  be  referred  to  the  goat  which  was  let  go  free  into  the  desert. 

At  any  rate  the  custom  existed,  and  when  Pilate  came  before 
the  mob  they  broke  into  a  demand  that  he  should  comply  with  the 
custom,  which  gave  them  anv  prisoner  they  might 
demand,  no  matter  what  his  crime.  It  seems  to 
have  flashed  upon  Pilate  as  a  bright  idea.  He  could  now  turn  this 
demand  to  the  account  of  Jesus.  He  agreed  that  it  was  the  custom, 
and  that  he  was  prepared  to  observe  it,  and  then,  that  they  might 
come  to  his  aid  against  the  priests,  he  fell  upon  another  expedient. 
There  lay  in  the  prison  at  that  moment  a  man  named  Barabbas, 
whose  general  notoriety  as  a  robber  had  culminated  in  an  act  of 
sedition  in  the  very  metropolis,  in  which  outbreak  it  was  well 
known  that  he  had  committed  murder.  As  the  ringleader  of  the 
insurrectionists,  who  also  lay  bound  with  him,  it  was  generally 
supposed  that  on  this  day  he  would  be  crucified.  He  had 
been  tried  and  convicted  for  the  very  crime  which  had  been 
charged  on  Jesus,  namely,  sedition.  No  one  doubted  the  guilt  of 
Barabbas,  while  no  one  could  bring  a  particle  of  proof  to  fasten 
the  charge  on  Jesus.  The  contrast  was  striking.  Agreeing  to 
observe  the  custom,  he  narrows  the  choice  to  a  selection  between 
Jesus  and  Barabbas,  not  having  apparently  the  shadow  of  a  doubt 
that  the  popular  voice  would  at  once  release  Jesus  from  his  peril 
and  Pilate  from  his  perplexity. 

To  his  utter  astonishment  the  people  preferred  Barabbas. 

His  trouble  was  increased  at  this  moment  by  another  circum- 
Btance.  It  had  formerly  been  forbidden  the  governors  of  con- 
quered provinces  to  carry  their  wives  with  them  to 
,  the  provincial  capitals.     This  rule  had  been  modi- 

fied  so  as  to  allow  the  ladies  to  accompany  their 
lords,  the  governors  being  held  responsible  for  any  intrigues  or 


THE   SIXTH    DAY.  g55 


derelictions  of  their  spouses.    Pilate's  wife —whose  name  as  Clau- 
dia Procla,  and  whose  fame  as  a  woman  of  devout  habits,  leaning 
kindly  to  the  religion  of  the  people  whom  her  husband  ruled,  tra- 
dition has  preseiwed,— moved  by  a  morning  dream,  sent  a  messenger 
to  her  husband  beseeching  him  to  have  nothing  to  do  against  Jests, 
who,  she  was  persuaded,  was  a  good  man.     The  message  came  to 
Pilate  while  he  was  on  the  judgment-seat,  and  while   he  was 
endeavoring  to  solve  the  problem  of  saving  Jesus  and  placatino- 
the  church  party,  bent  on  his  ruin.     Worldly  man  as  he  was,  there 
was  doubtless  a  tinge  of  superstition  in  his  heart.     He  may  have 
had  no  clear  theological  opinions,  no  fixed  religious  convictions 
but  all  the  peoples  among  whom  he  had  travelled  believed  in  gods' 
and  there  was  something  in  this  prisoner  which  strano-ely  influ- 
enced him  ;  perhaps  he  was  a  god,  and  perhaps  the  gods  gave  warn 
mg  m  dreams.   It  may  have  occurred  to  his  recollection  what  had 
been  nf e  in  Eome,  that  the  night  before  the  great  Caesar  was  assas- 
emated,  his  wife  Calphurnia  dreamed  that  her  husband's  bloodv 
body  fell  across  her  knees.     Thus  his  perplexity  was  increased.   ' 
He  could  scarcely  persuade  himself  that  the  people  had  made 
this  choice.     He  was  not  much  of  a  democrat.     He  could  not  have 
believed  that  most  monstrous  falsehood,  Voxj?opu- 
h  vox  Dei  est.    But  a  few  days  before,  the  multi-       '^^     unstable 
tude  had   come  trooping  into  Jerusalem,  shout-    ^'''^^'■ 
ing  pseans  to  this  extraordinarily  popular  prophet.     They  certainly 
could  not  now  prefer  Barabbas  to  him,  for  Barabbas  had  made 
the  highway  dangerous  and  had  been  a  common  villain      More- 
over, he  had  been  condemned  for  that  of  which  their  leaders  had 
accused  Jesus.     It  is  this  which  had  made  Pilate  all  along  sus- 
picious of  the  churchmen :  they  preferred  a  political  charge  against 
Jesus,  while  he  knew  that  in  their  hearts  they  did  not  love  the 
Roman  yoke.     But  Pilate  was  giving  way.     He   had  already 
agreed  to  scourge  an  innocent  man.     They  pushed  him      They 
cried  out  "  all  at  once."     It  was  the  roar  of  what  Burke  calls  the 
BeJlua  fopulus,  that  wild  beast  the  People.     It  was  becoming 
frightful.       A-ot  this  man !  "  "Away  with  this  fellow !  "  "  Release 
Barabbas  to  us !  "    Wbat  is  the  governor  to  do  in  this  case  ?    Jesus 
IS  charged  with  sedition,  and  the  Jews  are  proving  their  loyalty 
to  Rome  by  urging  his  destruction;  but  they  are  proving  their 
disloyalty  by  demanding  the  release  of  a  man  convicted  of  leading 
a  seditious  msuiTection.  ° 


656  TIIE   LAST   "WEEK. 

Standing  on  his  judgment-seat,  before  the  tessellated  pavement, 
Pilate  demanded :  "  What  shall  I  do,  then,  with  Jesus,  who  is 
called  Christ,  whom  ye  call  King  of  the  Jews  ? " 
j^.  "  Crucify  him,  crucify  him,"  they  exclaimed.    A 

third  time  the  governor  interposed  :  "  "What  evil 
has  he  done  ?  Prove  a  capital  crime.  I  have  found  no  cause  of 
death  in  him.  I  will  release  him,  after  having  scourged  him." 
But  that  proposition  did  not  pacify  them.  They  cried  out  the 
more  exceedingly,  saying,  with  loud  voices,  "  Let  him  be  cru- 
cified !  "  When  the  populace  united  with  the  priests  Pilate  gave 
way.  He  had  shown  a  weakness  of  which  the  priests,  who  hated 
him,  took  advantage.  Perhaps  he  reasoned  thus :  Things  have 
reached  such  a  pass  that  quiet  can  no  more  be  restored  without 
bloodshed.  To  release  Jesus  will  not  save  him  from  this  furious 
mob,  who  will  tear  him  in  pieces.  An  insurrection  will  be  raised. 
I  shall  be  compelled  to  call  out  the  troops.  Then  several  will 
perish.     I  shall  have  to  give  him  up ! 

The  weak  ruler  sent  for  a  ewer  of  water,  and  standing  in  his 
place  he  washed  his  hands  before  them  all,  and  again  declared 
the  innocence  of  Jesus,  but  by  this  symbolic  act 
his  hands  endeavored  to  throw  all  responsibility  from  him- 

self, saying  to  the  mob,  "  I  am  innocent  of  the 
blood  of  this  just  person  !  But  see  you  to  it !  "  The  infuriated 
multitude  answered  :  "  His  blood  be  on  us  and  on  our  children ! " 
Then,  deceiving  himself  and  drugging  his  conscience,  Pilate  con- 
sented to  their  demand,  and  released  Barabbas  to  them. 

Then  Pilate  caused  Jesus  to  be  scourged.  The  Poman  scourg- 
ing surpassed  the  Hebrew  in  all  the  particulars  of  severity.  In 
the  latter  only  the  shoulders  were  bared  ;  in  tho 

esus  Bconrge  .  £^j.jj^gj.  ^^iq  whole  person  :  in  the  latter  the  stripes 
were  limited  to  forty,  save  one  ;  in  the  former  there  was  no  limit. 
It  was  tlic  punishment  given  to  a  slave.  The  stripes  of  the  lash 
were  loaded  with  bones  or  metallic  fragments.  The  scourging 
of  those  who  were  to  be  crucified  was  so  frightful  that  the  con- 
demned frequently  escaped  the  cross  by  dying  under  tlie  thongs. 

Then  the  soldiers  of  Pilate  took  Jesus  away  into  the  common 

hall,  called  the  Pra.^torium,  probably  in  the  castle  of   Antonia, 

and  gathered  the  whole  company  of  the  guard, 

Jesus  mocked,     ^^j^.^j^  usually  numbered  about  400  men.      They 

stripped  him  again,  and  on  his  torn  and  bleeding  shoulders  put  a 


EOCE    HOMO    AJiCH. 


THE    SIXTH    DAT.  05  < 

scarlet  robe,  probably  some  old  military  coat  from  the  wardrobe 
of  tlie  guard-room.  Then  they  plaited  a  crown  from  the  twigs 
of  some  thorny  growth.  It  may  have  been  the  Syrian  acacia,  the 
thorns  of  which  are  as  long  as  an  ordinary  finger.  But  we  can- 
not know  what  particular  kind  of  thorns  were  used.  It  is  enough 
that  they  intended  to  mock  him,  and  that  they  were  not  wanting 
in  cruelty.  The  more  painful  as  well  as  humiliating  the  instru- 
ment of  their  mockery,  the  more  acceptable  it  would  be.  Then 
they  put  a  reed  in  his  hand  as  a  mock  sceptre.  Then  they  knelt 
before  him  and  ridiculed  him  and  his  nation,  saying:  "Hail! 
King  of  the  Jews."  And  they  spat  on  him.  He  was  bound. 
The  reed  was  laid  in  his  hands,  but  he  did  not  hold  it.  He  was 
perfectly  passive.  It  fell.  Some  of  the  guard  seized  it,  and  with 
it  drove  the  thorn-crown  down  upon  his  head.  They  smote  and 
mocked  him,  varying  their  indignities. 

Pilate  looked  on  this  wild  scene.      We  can   conjecture   his 
thoughts  from  his  actions.     He  must  have  regarded  this  whole 

affair  with  mingled  feelings  of  perplexity,  awe, 

1  1  •  TT      1     J  1-        Pilate  in  trouble, 

and  apprehension,     lie  had  never  seen  such  a 

sufferer.  Most  majestic  amid  ridicule,  most  serene  amid  tor- 
tures, here  was  a  man  fit  to  be  king  anywhere.  Yet  he  had  not 
sought  to  use  his  marvellous  personal  influence  for  personal  ad- 
vancement. There  was  Barabbas,  coaree  and  brutal,  being  the 
vilest  kind  of  person  and  doing  the  very  things  which  the  priests 
bad  charged  upon  Jesus.  If  being  seditious  was  such  a  heinous 
crime  in  their  eyes,  why  should  they  not  desire  the  destruction  of 
Barabbas,  who  had  been  convicted  of  repeated  acts  under  cir- 
cumstances of  great  aggravation,  and  why  should  they  desire  the 
destruction  of  Jesus,  who  was  charged  with  sedition,  but  against 
whom  there  was  proved  no  single  seditious  word  or  act  ?  It  was 
a  great  puzzle.  Some  other  basis  than  loyalty  to  Rome  lay  under 
this  extraordinary  zeal  of  the  priests.  Pilate  determined  to  make 
one  more  effort  to  save  the  life  of  this  wonderful  sufferer. 

Taking  Jesus,  thorn-crowned,  covered  about  with  the  old  robe 
that  burlesqued  royalty,  faint,  worn,  haggard,  as  he  must  have 
been  after  the  night  and  morning  of  agony  and 
torture,  he  placed  the  prisoner  once  more  before  ^^^  °™°' 
the  people,  reasserting  his  conviction  of  the  innocence  of  Jesus. 
He  pointed  to  this  weak  and  apparently  helpless  man.  He 
showed  how  lonely  and  friendless  and  powerless  he  seemed. 
42 


658  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

Jerusalem  should  be  too  magnanimous,  and  Rome  too  lofty,  to 
crush  out  this  poor  peasant-jDrophet  for  fear  he  should  become 
too  strong  for  Church  and  State.  He  said  to  them :  "  Ecce 
Homo !  Behold  the  man."  As  if  he  had  said :  "  Can  that  be  a 
dangerous  person?"  It  was  a  pathetic  appeal.  Even  Pilate's 
voice  may  have  been  unsteady  in  making  this  utterance.  But 
the  church  hate  was  not  to  be  touched.  Jesus  was  to  be  de- 
stroyed. "  Crucify  him  !  Crucify  him  !  Give  him  the  extreme 
punishment  of  a  slave,"  they  cried.  Pilate  said :  "  Take  you 
him  and  crucify  him  ;  for  I  find  no  fault  in  him." 

The  crafty  priests,  determined,  if  possible,  to  make  Pilate  a 

tool  in  their  hands  by  inducing  him  to  acknowledge  their  verdict, 

making  him  thus  not  a  judge  in  a  court  of  ori- 

1  a  e  grows      -^^  iurisdiction,  but  a  mere  recorder  of  their 
weak.  ri  J  •'  ^ 

authoritative  decisions,  said  to  Pilate :  "  We  have 

a  law,  and  according  to  the  law  he  ought  to  die,  because  he  made 
himself  the  Son  of  God."  Wliat  definite  idea  this  last  phrase 
conveyed  to  the  mind  of  pagan  Pilate  we  cannot  tell,  but  the 
whole  statement  made  his  soul  afraid,  lie  was  growing  weaker 
and  more  superstitious.  He  went  back  into  the  judgment-hall 
and  sent  for  Jesus  and  said  to  him :  "  Whence  are  you  ?  "  The 
wonderful  prisoner,  who  had  uttered  no  complaint,  and  showed 
no  nervousness,  and  seemed  to  take  less  interest  in  the  whole 
tragedy  than  any  spectator,  held  his  peace.  "  What ! "  said  Pi- 
late, "  do  you  not  speal^  to  me  ?  Do  you  not  know  that  I  have 
power  to  crucify  you,  and  power  to  release  you  ? "  Jesus  an- 
swered :  "You  could  have  no  power  against  me,  unless  it  were 
given  you  from  above  ;  on  this  account  he  who  has  delivered  me 
to  you  has  the  greater  sin."  In  the  judgment  of  Jesus,  Caiaphas 
is  worse  than  Pilate. 

All  this  increased  in  Pilate  a  desire  to  release  Jesus.     The  pris- 
oner was  guilty  of  no  crime,  was  apparently  capable  of  no  dis- 

tur])ance,   liad   no   marks   of  wickedness  in  his 
Seeks  to  release    i  .   .  i  .  i      i    i  i 

history  or  his  manners,  had  been  very  popular 

with  the  masses  in  tlie  rural  districts,  had  dis- 
played tlie  most  extra(n'diiiary  composure  during  a  period  of 
extraordinary  peril,  had  the  reputation  of  a  miracle-worker,  had 
excited  the  dreams  of  Claudia  Procla,  had  called  himself  the  Son 
of  God,  and  was  manifestly  the  object  of  intense  hatred  on  the 
part  of  the  priesthood.     Again  Pilate  sought  to  release  Jesus 


THE    SIXTH   DAT.  659 

But  the  cliurcliinen  had  kept  their  strongest  form  of  argument  for 
their  last.  They  return  to  the  political  aspect  of  the  affair,  and 
put  it  before  Pilate  thus :  "  If  j^ou  release  this  man  you  are  not  Cae- 
sar's friend  :  whoever  makes  himself  a  king  speaks  against  Csesar." 

The  phrase  "  Caesar's  friend,"  Atnious  Ccesaris,  had  not  only 
the  ordinary  signification  of  the  words,  but  was  a  title  of  honor 
which  the  Emperors  were  accustomed  to  bestow 
upon  their  representatives  ruhng  over  subjugated 
peoples.  It  was  a  most  ingenious  way  of  putting  the  case.  It 
struck  Pilate  on  his  weakest  side.  lie  was  a  lover  of  place,  an 
office-seeker,  who  considered  the  loss  of  his  political  position  the 
greatest  misfortune,  as  is  shown  in  the  fact  that  when  that  did 
befall  him  he  retired  to  Gaul  and  committed  suicide.  The  priests 
knew  their  man,  and  Pilate  knew  how  insecurely  already  he  held 
his  seat,  and  that  such  an  accusation,  if  pressed  with  show  of  evi- 
dence, would  be  his  ruin  at  Rome.  Tiberius  was  suspicious. 
Pilate  had  been  closeted  with  Jesus.  The  trial  had  been  infor- 
mal. They  now  had  much  to  show.  If  he  had  only  taken  the 
strong  and  dignified  position  which  became  an  Imperial  Procura- 
tor, and  released  Jesus  as  soon  as  he  was  convinced  that  he  was 
innocent,  and  began  to  feel  perhaps  that  he  was  divine,  Pilate 
would  have  saved  himself ;  but  he  had  vacillated  so  long  and 
grown  so  weak  that  this  last  push  toppled  him  from  all  his  intel- 
lectual and  moral  proprieties.     He  fell. 

Jesus  was  brought  forth  and  placed  in  the  judgment-seat,  in 

what  was  called  the  Pavement,  from  the  tessellated  pavement  in 

front  of  the  judge,  and  in  Hebrew  Gabbatha,  the 

etymology  of  which  is  not  quite  clear.     The  for-       ^"""T^ ^^^^^' 

-,  .  ■,         r  •   1  1      sumed. 

mal  ceremonials  or  a  triaJ  were  now  resumed. 

Pilate  was  going  to  condemn  Jesus  ;  but,  enraged  at  the  defeat  of 
his  efforts  to  release  him,  he  called  the  attention  of  the  Jewish 
leaders  to  the  pale  and  poor  prisoner  at  the  bar,  and  said  in  de- 
rision, "  Behold  your  king ! "  But  they  called  out,  "  Away, 
away,  crucify  him  ! "  Still  taunting  them,  knowing  that  by  pro- 
nouncing the  sentence  he  should  be  secure  at  Rome,  and  venting 
his  rage  on  them  he  said,  "  Shall  I  crucify  your  king  ?  "  They 
answered,  "  We  have  no  king  but  Csesar !  " 

It  was  the  shriek  of  a  dying  nationality.  Their  earliest  ances- 
tors had  lived  under  a  theocracy  whose  king  had  held  court  in  a 
pillar  of  flame  and  on  the  top  of  rocking  Sinai.     They  had  had 


660  .  THE   LAST    WEEK. 

no  king  but  Jehovah.  Their  descendants  had  had  such  kings  as 
the  great  Da'sad  and  the  super-splendid  Solomon.  This  very  gen- 
eration of  men,  who  were  howling  around  a  pagan 
y.^^^  ^^  court-house  to  secure  the  condemnation  of  Jesus, 
had  had  hopes  of  a  theocratic  Messiah.  But 
tlieir  tliirst  for  innocent  blood  was  uncontrollable.  They  throw 
up  all  hopes  of  the  future  as  they  did  all  traditions  of  the  past. 
They  lifted  the  casket  that  contained  the  treasure  of  tlieir  nation- 
ality and  flung  it  into  the  maelstrom  of  the  Roman  dominion. 
"  We  have  no  king  but  Cfesar."  The  nationality  of  Abraham  and 
David  and  Solomon  and  the  Maccabees  was  surrendered  in  spirit, 
as  it  had  been  captured  in  form,  to  an  imperialism  whose  repre- 
sentative was  the  dark,  suspicious,  cruel,  and  debased  Tiberius. 
"  We  have  no  king  but  Ca'sar  !  "  Judaism's  "loyalty"  was  Ju- 
daism's doom.  h\)  perishes  every  church  and  people  and  man 
that  will  "  have  no  king  but  Csesar." 

Then  Pilate  sealed  their  fate  and  his  own  by  delivering  Jesus 
to  be  crucified.     What  the  precise  form  of  sen- 
tence was  in  this  case  we  cannot  now  know.    The 
usual  formula  was,  "  Ibis  ad  crucem,"  "  Go  to  the  cross." 

Section  8. — The  Last  of  Judas. 

I  think  it  is  most  probable  that  this  is  the  point  at  which  Judas 
reappears.  The  condemnation  by  the  Sanhedrim  would  not  have 
aroused  him,  on  any  theory  of  his  motives.  If 
18  opes  an  j^^  expected  Jesus  to  display  superhuman  power 
and  deliver  himself  it  was  not  reasonable  to  sup- 
pose that  this  would  occur  until  he  was  placed  in  extremis^  after 
his  condemnation  by  the  Roman  authoi-ities.  The  verdict  of  the 
ecclesiastical  council  could  have  little  terror  for  any  disciple  of 
Jesus,  and  every  Jew  knew  that  it  could  not  issue  in  capital  i)un- 
ishment  without  the  sanction  of  the  procurator.  But  Judas,  who 
seems  to  have  been  with  Peter  in  the  palace  of  the  high-priest, 
most  probably  watched  every  movement  of  all  the  parties,  and  as 
Pilate  or  the  priest  had  seemed  to  have  the  better  of  the  argument 
the  hopes  or  fears  of  Judas  had  risen  or  fallen. 

But  now,  when  he  plainly  saw  that  Jesus  had  received  the  con- 
demnation of  the  church,  and  the  sentence  had  been  ratified  by 
tlie  State,  and  that  "  the  Master  "  did  not  pass  out  of  their  midst, 
but  had  submitted  to  scourging  and  mockery  and  insult,  and  waa 


THE    SIXTH    DAT.  661 

apparently  not  going  to  put  forth  any  effort  for  his  own  rescue 
Judas  felt  the  whole  ground  give  way  under  him.     The  one  huge 
dark  fact  fell  on  his  whole  superstructure  of  rea- 
sonings and  it  fell.     He  was    smitten  with  re-      .  gr   un 
°                                                                                                 gives  way. 

morse.  He  had  expected  no  such  issue  of  his 
conduct.  As  by  a  flash  of  lightning  in  a  tempestuous  midnight  a 
precipice  is  discovered  by  the  traveller  to  be  at  his  very  feet,  so 
Judas  now  suddenly  saw  the  abysses  of  horrible  meanings  which 
were  in  the  words  that  Jesus  had  spoken  at  the  Supper  concern- 
ing his  betrayer.  The  whole  of  the  beautiful,  beneficent  life  of 
Jesus  rose  up  before  him.  He  reviewed  all  the  personal  kindness 
and  forbearance  he  had  received  from  the  Galilsean  prophet. 
There  was  nothing  in  the  whole  character  or  life  of  Jesus  which 
Judas  could  recollect  as  being  any  mitigation  of  the  offence  of 
betraying  him.  If  Jesus  had  ever  done  a  wrong,  or  spoken  a 
word  which  could  warrant  the  suspicion  that  he  might  in  some 
way.be  injurious  to  the  people,  Judas  would  have  employed  it  as 
an  argument  to  justify  himself  to  himself.  But  the  life  of  Jesus 
was  faultless,  even  Judas  l^eing  judge.  He  probably  felt  that 
this  death  was  to  be  a  martyrdom  so  conspicuous  that  it  would  be 
seen  by  far-off  generations,  and  that  his  own  name  would  be 
taught  to  the  children  of  men  fi'om  age  to  age  as  the  synonym  of 
treachery. 

It  was  too  much  for  him.  He  had  had  two  days  and  nights  of 
intensest  anxiety.  He  gave  way  under  it  all.  He  rushed  into 
the  midst  of  the  cruel  churchmen,  now  ready  to 

despise  their  base  instrument,  seeiuij;  tliat  they    ^,        .    ^ 
i        _  ^  :»  o  J     the  priests. 

had  gained  their  end.  They  were  probably  ar- 
ranging for  the  crucifixion  in  the  same  chamber  in  which  he  had 
first  met  them,  when  the  plan  for  designating  and  arresting  Jesus 
was  concocted.  How  gladly  they  received  a  recreant  disciple  of 
Jesus  in  the  time  of  their  political  pei'plexity,  and  how  courteous 
they  were  to  him  so  long  as  they  hoped  to  get  anything  ou^  of 
him,  and  how  glumly  they  met  him  when  he  came  back  corroded 
with  remorse !  He  acknowledged  his  guilt,  hoping  somehow 
.vaguely  that  it  would  cover  the  case  and  avert  the  fate  of  Jesus. 
He  shrieked  in  their  hearing,  "  I  have  sinned,  in  that  I  have  be- 
trayed innocent  blood  !  "  He  seemed  to  think  that  his  confession 
might  convince  them  that  the  whole  proceeding  was  wrong,  and 
that  they  would  probably  take  measures  to  secure  a  reversal  oi 


662  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

the  sentence,  which  ho  perceived  Pilate  woiihl  be  most  ready  to 
grant.  But  he  did  not  understand  the  men  in  whose  service  he 
had  enlisted.  Their  cold  reply  was,  "What  is  that  to  us?  Do 
you  see  to  it."  It  was  couched  in  curter  words  than  the  English 
can  well  put  it :  "  What  to  us  ?     JTou  see !  " 

They  were  not  seeking  justice  and  judgment:  he  was  a  fool  if 

he  thought  so.     They  wanted  to  kill  a  man  who 
ey  r  g  ^^^^^  .^^  their  way  ;  that  was  all :  his  being  innocent 

or  guilty  was  nothing.  They  had  needed  Judas 
as  a  tool ;  that  was  all :  they  had  used  him,  and  now  flung  liim 
away. 

His  guilty  solitude  was  thus  manifested  to  Judas.  God  and 
man.  Church  and  State,  seemed  turning  against  him.  lie  went 
into  the  Temple,  which  was  now  deserted.  The  priests  were 
away,  and  the  worshippers.  The  fate  of  the  Galilaean  prophet 
kept  all  Jerusalem  intent  and  absorbed.  His  dread  loneliness 
came  down  on  the  betrayer  like  a  crushing  despair.  He  walked 
into  the  holy  place,  where  none  but  the  priests  should  go.  He 
was  alone  with  the  great  God,  but  lost  to  all  distinctions  between 
sacred  and  profane.  He  was  desolate,  darkened,  and  doomed. 
The  bag  with  the  tliirty  pieces  of  silver  was  in  his  hand.  He 
flung  it  down  in  the  sanctuary ;  flung  away  the  remembranc;er  of 

his   guilty  en-or;  flung  down,  for  the  priests  to 

^  •'aze  u])on,  the  proof  of  the  utter  uuijodliness  of 

money  away.  ... 

proscriptive  churchism.  Then  he  rushed  out  to 
some  desert  place,  and,  all  shattered,  the  wretched  man  met  a 
clouded  fate,  the  record  of  which  by  the  biographers  of  Jesus  only 
serves  to  confound  our  speculations  as  to  the  precise  mode  <>f  his 
death.  His  life  went  out  in  a  tumultuous,  nameless  anguish  and 
horror. 

In  the  gallery  of  tlie  Apostolic  portraits  a  rumpled  black  cloth 
falls  down  over  the  face  of  Judas. 

When  the  ecclesiastics  learned  that  the  money  was  in  the  Tem- 
ple, the  scrupulous  murderers  were  sorely  perplexed.  The  killing 
of  Jesus  was  not  so  nuich  matter  for  their  C(msciences ;  but  here 
was  a  question  for  careful  ritualists  to  study.  Here  was  money 
which  it  would  not  be  correct  to  waste,  and  which  by  certain 
interpretations  of  the  law  could  not  be  put  directly  to  the  pur- 
poses of  the  sanctuary.  They  devised  a  metliod.  There  was  a 
piece  of  ground — of  little  importance,  having  been  spoiled  foi 


THE    SIXTH    DAY.  663 

cultivation  by  the  potteries — adjoinino;  the  Hill  of  Evil  Counsel, 

on  which  Caiaphas  had  a  country-seat,  in  which  it  is  said  that  the 

death  of  Jesus  had  been  resolved   upon.      This    „  ,,   ,  „.  ,^ 

^  Potter  s  Field, 

they   bought   with   the   money   Judas   returned, 

and  named  it  Aceldama,  and  dedicated  it  to  the  interment  of 

strangers,  that  is,  of  such  pagans  as  became  proselytes  to  Judaism, 

for  they  were  too  scrupulous  to  mingle  the  dust  of  believers  who 

were  only  converts  with  that  of  the  sons  of  Abraham. 


Section  9. —  Going  to  Calvary. 

After  other  mockings  they  took  the  robe  from  Jesus,  and  re- 
placed his  own  garments,  and  led  him  away  to  crucify  him.  It 
was  a  part  of  the  punishment  that  the  convicted 
person  should  bear  his  own  cross.  Jesus  was  no  ®^™^S*  across, 
exception.  The  cross  was  not  that  huge  combination  of  timber 
usually  imagined  and  put  into  pictures.  A  man  of  ordinary 
strength  would  have  little  difficulty  in  carrying  it;  but  Jesus 
had  passed  tlirough  so  much  anguish  of  mind  and  torture  of  body 
that  his  strength  failed  him.  He  does  not  appear  to  have  been  a 
person  of  prodigious  powers  of  endurance,  but  rather  a  man  of 
delicate  organization.  \Vlien  he  fell  under  the  cross  the  proces- 
sion met  a  man  coming  from  the  country.  It  was  odd  that  he 
should  be  moving  in  a  contrary  way  when  all  the  people  had  been 
profoundl}'-  interested  in  this  tragic  affair,  and  were  pouring  along 
the  streets  to  see  what  might  be  its  issue.  He  happened  at  the 
juncture  needed.  Roman  and  Jew  equally  were  too  proud  to  do 
this  menial  and  des-rading  service. 

This  man,  whose  name  was  Simon,  came  from  Cyrene,  in  Afri- 
can Libya,  where  many  Jews  resided,  who  supported  a  synagogue 
in  Jerusalem.  "Whether  he  had  come  to  Jerusa- 
lem to  the  festival,  or  had  lately  resided  there,  we  ^^^  Cyenian. 
cannot  tell.  It  is  not  probable  that  he  was  a  disciple  of  Jesiis ; 
but  it  is  not  improbable  that,  coming  suddenly  upon  this  procession, 
and  seeing  three  men  bearing  their  own  crosses,  and  one — paler 
and  more  delicate  than  the  others — lying  prone  beneath  a  load  he 
had  not  strength  to  carry,  Simon  should  have  uttered  some  excla- 
mation of  natural  pity.  It  was  enough  to  suggest  and  ^varrant  a 
military  impressment.     They  made  him  bear  the  cross  of  Jesus. 

The  artists  have  generally  misled  us  as  to  the  appearance  of  one 


CG4-  THE  LAST  ^^^:EK. 

crucified  and  the  structure  of  tlie  cross.     It  is  not  knoA^ni  hew 
early  the  mode  of  capital  i)unishiuent  by  crucifixion  was  adopt- 
ed.    Traces  of  the  cross  liave  been  found  among 
^j.^gg  the   Scythians,  Persians,  Egyptians,  Cai-thagini- 

ans,  Greeks,  and  Romans.  It  was  not  alleljrew 
mode.  The  corpse  of  a  criminal  who  had  been  executed  might 
be  hung  upon  a  tree,  but  even  then  it  was  not  permitted  to  re- 
main all  night  (Deut.  xxi,  22,  23).  Jesus  suffered  the  extreme 
l)unishment  dealt  by  Romans  to  slaves  who  had  been  convicted  of 
a  capital  offence.  There  were  three  kinds  of  crosses :  the  antx 
decussataj  X  ;  the  crux  commissa^  T  j  ^•iid  the  crux  itnmissa,  y. 
The  cross  on  which  Jesus  died  is  represented  by  tradition  to  have 
been  the  crzix  h/imissa.  The  upright  piece  was  made  just  long 
enough  to  hold  the  body  a  few  inches  from  the  ground,  and  to  be 
sufficiently  in  the  gi-ound  to  support  itself  and  its  burden.  There 
was  no  support  for  the  feet,  as  the  painters  now  make  in  the  pic- 
tures, but  on  the  upright  part  was  a  projection,  or  seat,  on  which 
the  weight  of  the  bod}^  rested.  It  would  have  torn  the  hands  and 
feet  fearfully  if  the  whole  weight  of  the  body  had  depended,  as 
Jeremy  Taylor  says,  "  on  four  great  womids," 

After  Jesus  had  been  relieved  of  the  burden  of  the  cross  by 
Simon  the  Cyrcnian,  the  procession  moved  forward.  It  was  the 
custom  for  the  heralds  to  carry  the  accusation  of  each  convict 
before  him,  written  on  a  tablet  whitened  with  gypsum.  Some 
such  epigraph,  we  suppose,  was  carried  before  Jesus,  as  it  was 
afterwards  nailed  to  the  cross.  The  procession  grew  as  it  pro- 
ceeded. People  came  forth  of  their  houses.  A  great  company 
of  persons  had  gathered,  and  there  were  many  women  among 
them,  drawn  together  by  the  strange  curiosity 
.  T        1   "  which  is  felt  to  see  those  who  are  aliout  to  die. 

or  Jerusalem. 

These   women,   without   special   sympathy   with 

Jesus  as  a  religious  teacher,  but  having  their  womanly  compas- 
sions stirred  by  seeing  the  sufferings  of  a  man  whose  appearance 
contrasted  with  that  of  the  robl)ers,  who  were  also  carrying  their 
crosses  to  the  place  of  crucifixion,  broke  out  into  bewailing 
lamentations.  It  was  a  touch  of  nature.  The  men  were  all 
against  him.  The  temper  of  the  mob  was  opposed  to  any  pity  f«)r 
him.  These  women  did  not  love  him  as  tenderly  as  Mary  of 
Bethany,  as  passionately  as  Mary  of  IMagdala ;  but  they  were 
women,  and  women  instinctively  know  the  true  man ;  and  they 


THE    SIXTH    DAY. 


665 


wept.  It  mo\ed  Jesus.  It  was  the  only  incident  on  the  way  to 
the  crucilixion  which  seems  to  have  arrested  his  attention.  He 
said  nothing  when  lie  fell  beneath  the  cross.  He  said  nothing 
when  they  lifted  it  from  his  shoulder  and  gave  it  to  Simon.  But 
who  can  bear  a  woman's  tears?  Jesus  turned  and  said  to  them, 
"  Daughtei-s  of  Jerusalem,  weep  not  for  me,  but  weep  for  your- 
selves, and  for  your  children ;  for  see !  the  days  are  coming  in 
which  they  shall  say,  '  Happy  are  the  barren,  and  the  wombs  that 
bare  not,  and  the  breasts  that  suckled  not.'  Then  shall  they  begin 
to  say  to  the  mountains,  '  Fall  on  us ; '  and  to  the  hills,  '  Cover  us.' 
For  if  they  do  these  things  in  the  green  tree,  what  shall  be  done 
in  the  dry  ?  " 

The  spirit  of  prophecy  came  upon  him.  He  seemed  to  see 
what  would  occur  on  that  spot  forty  years  afterwards.  Touched 
l)y  the  womanly  tribute  of  tears,  he  did  not  reject  j^^^^  prophesies, 
the  proffered  sympathy,  but  seemed  to  feel  that 
he  was  gazing  into  the  eyes  of  now  happy  young  mothers  whose 
old  age  should  be  crushed  by  a  catastrophe  of  the  most  over- 
whelming character.  He  forgot  his  grief  in  theirs.  Beyond  his 
cross  and  sepulchre  he  saw  the  Roman  investment  of  the  holy 
city,  the  siege,  the  suffering,  the  horrors,  starving  mothers  snatch- 
ing food  out  of  the  mouths  of  their  own  children,  and  other  starv- 
ing mothers  killing  and  roasting  and  eating  their  own  offspring-; 
while  men  and  women  and  children  went  creeping  through  sub- 
terranean passages  and  foulest  sewers;  and  others,  fleeing,  hid 
themselves  in  crevices  of  mountain  rocks  from  the  storm  which 
was  sweeping  Jerusalem.  This  address  to  the  women  was  the  last 
utterance  of  pati'iotism  which  came  from  the  mouth  of  Jesus. 

He  was  then  brought  to  a  place  which  was  called  Golgotha  in 
the  Hebrew  tongue,  meaning  "  Skull."  *  The  site  of  the  true 
Calvary  has  of  late  years  been  a  subject  of  pro- 
found interest  to  topographers.  That  the  present 
Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  is  over  the  place  where  Jesus  died, 
as  it  is  professed,  cannot  be  believed  by  those  who  examine  the 


Golarotha. 


*  "  Golgotha  means  Skvill,  and  the 
place  is  not  called  Kpavlaiu  tottos,  i.  e., 
place  of  skulls,  but  Kpavlov,  i.  e. ,  skull. 
Luke  uses  Kpoiz/oi;. " — Lange. 

The  word  ' '  Calvary "  occurs  in  our 
authorized   version    only    once,    Luke 


xxiii.  33,  and  there  it  is  not  a  proper 
name  in  the  original,  but  was  adopted 
literally  by  our  translators.  The  He- 
brew GolfjotJia,  the  Greek  Krnnion,  and 
the  Latin  Calvarki  all  mean  the  same 
thing,  a  skull. 


THE   LAST   WEEK. 

history  and  the  spot  free  from  the  influence  of  tradition.  Too 
much  stress  has  been  laid  on  the  erection  of  a  hastlica  on  this  sp<  "t 
in  the  early  centui-ies.  Churches  may  have  been  built  to  com- 
memorate facts  when  there  was  no  intent  to  designate  sites,  as  we 
know  that  the  Church  of  the  Ascension,  built  by  the  Empress 
Helena,  is  n(it  within  sight  of  the  spot  from  which  Jesus  ascended. 
The  true  site  must  meet  all  the  conditit>ns  of  the  history.  These 
are  six,  namely  :  1.  It  was  without  the  then  existing  walls  of  Je- 
rusalem, Matt,  xxvii.  31,  2'2 ;  xxviii.  11 ;  and  Paul  in  Hebrews 
xiii.  12.  2.  It  was  near  the  city,  John  xix.  20.  3.  It  was  popu- 
larly known  as  "  The  Skull,"  Matt,  xxvii.  33 ;  Mark  xv.  22 ;  Luke 
xxiii.  33  ;  John  xix.  27.  4.  It  was  near  a  gate  to  a  leading  thor- 
oughfare, Matt,  xxvii.  39;  [Mark  xv.  20;  Luke  xxiii.  26.  5.  It  was 
a  conspicuous  spot.  Matt,  xxvii.  55;  Mark  xv.  40;  Luke  xxiii.  49. 
6.  It  was  near  sepulchres  and  gardens,  John  xix.  38-42.  Not  one 
of  these  pi-opositions  can  be  affirmed  of  the  spot  on  which  the 
Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre  stands,  which  is  a  low  place  in- 
side the  old  walls,  oif  the  thoroughfares,  and  where  no  tombs  would 
be  allowed.  All  these  six  particulars  meet  in  an  elevation  called 
the  Grotto  of  Jeremiah,  a  short  distance  north  of  the  Damasciis 
Gate,  It  is  outside  the  city.  It  is  near.  It  is  conspicuously 
shaped  like  a  skull,  and  from  almost  every  point  of  view  reminds 
the  beholders  of  a  skull.  It  is  near  what  is  still  the  entrance  to 
the  great  thoroughfare  from  the  north  of  Judiva  and  all  Upper 
Syria.  It  can  be  seen  from  almost  every  elevation  about  Jerusa- 
lem, and  looks  down  on  hills  that  look  down  on  the  modern  Chui-ch 
of  the  Sepulchre.  According  to  Josej^hus,  it  was  a  place  of  tombs 
and  c;ardens ;  and  even  now  "  the  number  of  rock  tombs  at  this 
place,  and  the  extent  and  beauty  of  some  of  them,  imjiress  the 
sti-anger  with  the  wealth  and  splendor  of  the  ancient  Jewish  capi- 
tal."    (Dr.  Porter's  IlamUooJc,  i.  93.)* 

"When  they  reached  the  spot,  before  proceeding  to  crucify  him, 
they  offered  him  a  driid<  composed  of  sour  wine,  in  which  myn-li 

had  been  dissolved.     There  seems  no  proof  that 
The  sour  wine.       ,  .  t-,  ,  j  •    \  ,.c     >.  ,.      c 

this  was  a  lioman  custom.    Liglitioot  quotes  irom 

the  Talmud  :  "  To  those  that  were  to  be  executed  they  gave  a 

grain  of  myrrh  infused  in  wine  to  drink,  that  their  senses  might 

*  See  Tru.e  Site  of  Cdliiary,  by  Mr.  '  treatise  on  this  whole  question,  contain- 
Fisher  Howe,  published  by  A.  D.  F.  ;  ing  much  authority  in  supp6rt  of  the 
Randolph  »fc  Co. ,  New  York,  a  capital    position  taken  in  the  text  above. 


THE    SIXTU    DAT.  667 

be  dulled  ;  as  it  is  said, '  Give  strong  drink  to  them  that  are  ready 
to  die,  and  wine  to  those  that  are  of  a  sorrowful  heart.' "     But 
this  narcotic  Jesus  refused.     He  would  have  nothing  to  dim  the 
clearness  of  his  vision  or  enfeeble  the  vigor  of  his  intellect. 
Then  they  crucified  him.  * 

Section  10, — From  Nine  o'clock  to  Noon. 

It  was  now  nine  o'clock  in   the  morning   of   Friday,  7tli  of 
April. 

On  each  side  of  him  was  a  thief  crucified.     It  does  not  appear 
that  Jesus  was  submitted  to  any  torture  beyond  that  which  was 
inseparable  from   crucifixion,  and  beyond   what 
the   two   thieves  endured.     His   being  crucified  ^^  tormentora. 
with  them  may  have  been  intended  as  an  indig- 
nity ;  but  perhaps  simply  came  to  pass  because  it  was  customary 
to  have  executions  at  this  feast.     His  disciples  declared  that  in 
that  fact  was  a  fulfilment  of  the  prophecy  in  Isaiah  (liii.  12), "  He 
was  numbered  with  the  transgressors."     While  his  executioners 
were  performing  their  work,  Jesus  prayed  for  them :  "  Father, 
forgive  them,  for  they  know  not  what  they  do."     It  was  touching 
and   characteristic.     He  does  not  say,  "  I  forgive  you."     That 
would  be  to  allude  too  distinctly  to  the  wrongs  he  was  suffering. 
He  thought  of  their  guilt,  not  his  own  sufferings.     It  was  a  prayer 
of  pure  unselfishness. 

^^^len  they  had  set  up  the  cross  they  sat  down  to  watch  it,  as 
their  duty  was.     The  usage  was  to  crucify  convicts  naked,  and 
the  clothing  fell  to  the  executioners  as  a  perqui- 
site.    In  the  case  of  Jesus  they  had  no  difticulty     varment 
with  his  outer  garments,  but  when  they  came  to 
his  inmost  article  of  dress  they  found  it  a  strange  fabric,  without 
a  seam,  woven  throughout.     It  may  have  been  the  product  of  ma- 
ternal love.     It  may  have  been  the  handiwork  of  the  tender  and 
loving  Mary  of  Bethany,  or  the  passionate  Mary  of  Magdala. 
llow  little  did  love  think,  as  love's  fingers  wove  it,  to  what  tor- 
ture the  precious  body  it  was  to  cover  should  finally  come.     There 
was  something  about  it  which  made  even  rude  Roman  soldiers 
pause.     They  determined  not  to  tear  it ;  and  so  cast  lots.     Again 
his  disciples  saw  a  prophecy  fulfilled.     In  Psalm  xxii.  16,  18,  it 
is  said,   "  The  assembly  of  the  wicked  have  enclosed  me ;  they 


C>QS  THE    LAST    WEEK. 

pierced  mj  hands  and  my  feet.  They  i)art  my  garments  among 
them,  and  east  lots  for  my  vesture."  This  their  loving  hearts  ap- 
plied to  Jesus. 

When  Pilate  felt  himself  compelled  to  sentence  Jesus  he  made 
out  the  accusation  on  wliich  he  had  condemned  him.     This  had 

-,,        .       V      probablv  been  carried  before  Jesus,  and  was  now 
The  epigraph.      i  ^  j 

attached  to  the  cross  over  his  head.  It  was  writ- 
ten in  Hebrew,  and  in  Greek,  and  in  Latin — in  the  language  of 
the  populace,  of  the  cultivated  foreignei^s,  and  of  the  Roman 
(rflicials.     It  was  this  : — 

"JESUS  OF  NAZARETH,  THE  KING  OF  THE  JEWS." 

The  rioman  judge  thus  decided  that  Jesus  had  no  guilt;  that 

nothing  had  been  substantiated  against  him  ;  for  this  is  no  crime 

„       ,        ,.  ^    that  his  name  should  be   Jesus,  tliat  he  should 
Caesars  verdict.  t       i  •      -v- 

either  have  been  born  or  have  lived  in  Nazareth, 

tliat  he  should  have  been  literally  or  somehow  figuratively  a  king 
of  the  Jews.  It  is  the  assertion  of  Ca?sar's  government  that  Jesus 
was  without  crime.  Personally  to  Pilate  it  was  more.  It  was  a 
gratification  to  be  able  to  fling  this  slur  in  the  faces  of  the  persis- 
tent ecclesiastics  who  had  coerced  him.  It  is  as  if  he  had  said, 
"  This  poor  forlorn  peasant,  hanging  on  this  cross,  is  good  enough 
king  for  these  Jews."  Or  it  might  mean,  "  They  said  they  would 
have  no  king  but  Caesar  :  I  crucify  Jesus :  if  he  be  their  king  he 
is  a  dead  king,  and  the  nails  by  which  I  fasten  liiin  to  the  cross 
bind  them  to  their  rejection  of  all  kings  but  Ca3sar." 

The  high-priests  were  not  slow  to  see  this.  They  chose,  not- 
withstanding their  averment  that  they  would  have  no  king  but 
Coesar,  to  leave  that  question  open.  They  were  very  loyal  eccle- 
siastics, and  the  history  of  the  world  shows  how  far  such  men  are 
to  be  trusted.  Pilate  had  no  faith  in  them.  They  rushed  back 
to  his  palace,  where  he  must  have  sat  moody  over  the  events  of 
the  day  in  which  he  had  played  so  conspicuous  and  disagreeable  a 
part.  Tliey  called  his  attention  to  the  character  of  tlie  epigrajili 
on  the  cross.  They  prayed  liim  to  change  it,  at  least  so  as  tosliow 
that  it  was  only  a  claim  set  up  by  Jesus.  Ilis  surly  answer  was, 
"AVlmt  I  liave  written,  I  liave  written."  "Witli  that  lie  dismissed 
them. 

Crucifixion  was  a  tedious  mode  of  execution.  The  soldiers 
took  out  their  implements  for  gaming  and  ?at  down  tt)  play  wliile 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  669 

they  keep  guard  over  the  crucified.  At  ahnost  every  public  exe- 
cution there  are  displays  of  bitter  feeling  and  outbreaks  of  grim 
humor.  It  is  not  a  means  of  grace  to  see  a  fellow- 
being  tortured,  however  guilty.  The  cross  was  set 
up  beside  a  thoroughfare.  Those  who  passed  by  saw  it.  Some  one 
of  these  recollected  what  had  been  testified  at  the  trial,  so  called, 
and  he  M-agged  his  head  and  taunted  Jesus,  saying,  "  You  who  de- 
stroy the  Temple,  and  build  it  in  three  days,  save  yourself,  if  you 
are  the  Son  of  God,  and  come  down  from  the  cross."  This  revil- 
ing was  not  confined  to  the  lower  populace.  The  chief  priests 
took  it  up,  and  probably  walking  in  front  of  the  cross,  or  stand- 
ing near  enough  for  Jesus  to  hear,  they  said  among  themselves, 
not  addressing  him,  "  He  saved  others ;  he  cannot  save  himself. 
If  he  be  the  Messiah,  let  him  save  himself.  lie  is  the  king  of  Is- 
rael! Let  him  now  come  down  from  the  cross,  and  we  will  be- 
lieve on  him.  lie  trusted  in  God;  let  Ilim  now  deliver  him,  if 
He  will ;  for  he  said,  '  I  am  Son  of  God.'  " 

The  spirit  of  reviling  spread  itself.  The  Roman  soldiers,  hav- 
ing no  ecclesiastical  bias  and  no  theological  views,  began  to  echo 
the  taunt  of  the  populace  and  the  priests.  They 
oft'ered  him  vinegar  to  drink.  They  mocked. 
They  also  said,  "  If  you  are  the  king  of  the  Jews,  save  youi-self .' ' 
That  apparently  forlorn  and  helpless  peasant-prophet  on  the  cross 
uuide  great  contrast  with  Caesar's  grandeur  on  the  Palatine  Ilill 
in  Rome,  and  with  the  barbaiic  splendor  of  some  of  the  kings 
these  soldiers  had  helped  to  conquer.  The  soldiei-s  said  to  him 
directlv,  "  If  you  are  the  king  of  the  Jews,  save  yourself."  They 
would  like  to  see  him  do  it.  It  would  be  a  marvel  to  see  a  man 
disengage  himself  from  the  cross.  If  he  should  attempt  it,  he 
would  find  Roman  valor  superior  to  any  legerdemain  or  terrify- 
ing magic.  If  the  Jews  around  these  soldiers  were  not  utterly 
obtuse,  they  must  have  felt  that  this  insult  reacted  upon  them  in 
their  civil  and  their  ecclesiastical  positions.  These  rude  warriors 
from  the  Tiber  were  stamping  out  their  State  and  their  Church 
in  Jesus. 

Even  one  of  the  thieves,  in  the  recklessness  which  often  befalls 
men  who  are  about  to  perish,  began  his  raillery. 
" If  you  are  the  Messiah."  said  he,  "  save  your-    , j.  . 
self  and  us,  my  comrade  and  myself,"     This  man 
is  a  perplexing  study.     Nature  calls  for  sympathy  in  behalf  of 


670  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

one  who  was  in  like  sufferings  with  himself.  lie  knew  nothing 
against  Jesus  pei-sonally.  If  they  had  not  been  friends  in  life 
they  might  have  been  friendly  in  death.  The  world  wa&  all 
against  them  both ;  why  should  they  not  make  common  cause,  and, 
as  far  as  possible,  sustain  each  other  in  this  last  dark  passage  of 
their  lives?  But  no;  he  turns  upon  him,  he  joins  the  mad  crowd 
of  persecutors.  Is  it  that  it  was  some  relief  to  this  man  to  have 
the  tide  of  the  public  hate  turned  away  from  himself  towards  Je- 
sus ?  Is  it  that  we  are  always  gratified  to  find  that  there  are 
others  more  obnoxious  than  ourselves?  Whatever  the  motive  or 
the  temper  of  the  man,  his  conduct  was  another  pain  inflicted  on 
Jesus. 

But  the  other  robber  was  not  so  obdurate.  He  rebuked  his 
comrade.     "  Do  you  not  fear  God,  seeing  that  you  are  in  the 

same    condemnation?     And   we   indeed   justly; 
The  penitent       -  •    •  ,i         i  -,       r 

^jj^gj  tor  we   are   receiving   the   due   rcNvai-d   oi   our 

deeds ;  but  this  man  has  done  nothing  amiss." 
He  then  turned  his  eyes  towards  Jesus  and  said,  "Jesus,  remem- 
ber me  when  you  shall  come  in  your  kingdom."  Here  was  a 
marvellous  confession.  What  this  man  could  have  known  of  Je- 
sus prior  to  this  time  we  have  now  no  means  of  learning.  He 
may  have  known  his  whole  history,  and  much  as  it  had  interested 
him,  he  had  not  until  this  moment  been  able  to  see  in  Jesus  the 
sign  of  his  being  Israel's  king.  He  may  have  been  of  that  class 
of  turbulent  Jews  who  restlessly  longed  for  the  coming  kingdom 
and  the  coming  king,  those  Chiliasts  who  l(X>ked  for  a  thousand 
years  of  temporal  glory  to  Israel,  and  were  not  unwilling  occa- 
sionally to  make  a  blow  at  the  Roman  power,  however  futile  that 
blow  might  be.  In  any  event,  he  had  seen  Jesus  coming  forth  to 
execution  ;  had  heard  his  prophecies  to  the  daughters  of  Jerusa- 
lem ;  had  heard  his  great  prayer  for  his  executionei*s ;  had  regarded 
his  bearing  under  the  storm  of  abuse  which  had  been  poured 
upon  him ;  had  seen  the  superscription  on  the  cross ;  had  witnessed 
the  intense  excitement  of  the  ecclesiastics.  But,  after  all,  there 
are  those  things  producing  faith  which  cannot  be  described.  He 
believed  in  Jesus. 

Jesus  did  not  i-epel  his  faith.  He  accepted  it.  The  man  had 
a  sense  of  guilt  and  helplessness.  He  believed  in  the  power  of 
Jesus  to  save  him  somehow.  He  was  so  humble  and  modest  that 
he  did  not  interrupt  the  suffering  Jesus  with  a  plea  that  he  would 


THE    SIXTH   DAY. 


cri 


help  him  now.     He  was  willing  to  die  for  his  offence  against  soci 
ety.     But  he  felt  that  Jesus  was  a  royal  personage  and  had  a  Idng 
dom.     He  j)laintively  begged  tliat  when  he  began 
his  reign  Jesus  would  not  wholly  forget  his  feJlow-    ^.^ 
sufferer  in  Golgotha.     The  accents  of  the  plead- 
ing came  to  Jesus  amid  the  hisses  and  groans  and  taunts  and 
hateful  uproar  of  his  infuriated  enemies.     Jesus  looked  at  the 
dying  man  and  smoothed  his  rough  passage  to  eternity  M'ith  this 
reply :  '^  I  assuredly  say  to  you  that  you  shall  be  with  me  in  para- 
dise to-day." 

"Wliat  perfect  confidence  is  here  ;  what  an  assurance  of  power ; 
what  a  claim  over  the  future ;  what  a  pledge  to  another !  He 
spoke  as  one  to  whom  paradise  belonged — who  held  the  keys  of  the 
gardens  of  the  Future  and  Immortality.  Bound  upon  the  cross 
he  ruled  the  spiritual  world,  and  pledged  to  meet  his  fellow-suf- 
ferer on  the  hither  side  of  the  grave.  Together  on  the  cross,  they 
should  be  together  in  happiness.  There  was  no  confusion  of  idea? 
here,  no  loss  of  confidence,  no  breakdown,  no  despair.  He  makes 
no  reply  to  raillery,  but  has  a  quick  loving  answer  for  faith. 

Jesus  was  not  totally  forsaken  by  his  friends.     The  majority  of 
the  disciples  had  been  scattered  by  the  tragic  events  of  the  pre- 
ceding   night.     Judas   had   betrayed    him,   and 
Peter  had  denied  him,  and  the  others  had  fled,    ^^^^ 
except  John  and  the  women.     The  beloved  dis- 
ciple came  back.     Love  in  him  was  stronger  than  terror.     The 
women  came  in  full  force  from  the  first,  and  through  the  morn- 
ing "  all  his  acquaintance,"  that  had  come  from  Galilee,  became 
sympathizing  witnesses  of  his  sufferings.     Among  the  women  are 
named  his  mother,  and  his  aunt  Mary,  wife  of  Cleophas,  Salome, 
the  mother  of  James  and  John,  and  Mary  of  Magdala.     There 
were  many  other  women.     These  all  stood  afar  off.     Modesty 
would  have  deterred  a  nearer  approach  to  the  naked  person  of 
the  holy  man  they  all  so  tenderly  loved  and  greatly  revered. 

During  the  first  three  hours  he  seems  to  have  had  no  conver- 
sation with  his  friends.  As  it  neared  noon  there  was  coming 
upon  him  a  renewal  of  that  heart-agony  which 
had  made  the  bloody  sweat  of  Gethsemane.  He 
looked  upon  his  friends.  He  made  no  explanation  of  his  position 
as  being  so  contrary  to  all  they  had  hoped  and  desired.  It 
seemed  as  if  his  was  to  be  a  lost  cause,  and  as  if  his  very  name 


672  THE    LAST   WEEK. 

was  being  consigned  to  endless  ignominy.  He  saw  his  niotliei 
standing  near.  She  and  John  had  approached,  drawn  by  theii 
intense  love,  which  contn^lled  every  other  sentiment,  whether  ol 
fear  or  disappointment. 

The  relation  between  Jesus  and  Maiy  was  peculiar.  Mary  was 
his  mother.  lie  had  spent  his  earlier  years  in  her  society.  Even 
after  the  display  of  his  extraordinary  spirituality 
at  twelve  years  of  age  he  was  subject  to  her. 
She  treated  him  with  a  kind  of  maternal  authority  which  was 
strangely  mingled  with  awe,  as  for  a  superior  being.  There  had 
been  miraculous  circumstances  about  his  birth.  She  never  forgot 
them.  There  is  a  veil  over  the  years  intervening  from  his  twelfth 
to  his  thirtieth  year  of  age.  AVe  do  not  know  the  temper  and 
style  of  the  intercourse  between  this  exceptional  mother  and  this 
marvellous  son.  But  after  he  entered  on  his  ministry  it  is  clear 
to  see  that  his  whole  behavior  was  such  as  to  impress  her  that  she 
had  no  maternal  control  over  him.  Yery  distinctly  and  firmly 
was  this  done  in  Cana  of  Galilee,  at  the  changing  of  water  into 
wine.  It  will  be  recollected  that  on  another  occasion,  when  his 
kinsmen  began  to  think  that  much  zeal  was  crazing  him,  and 
went  to  take  him  home,  Mary  accompanied  them,  and  when  she 
sent  him  her  name,  as  ha\dng  some  authoi-ity,  he  returned  for 
answer  that  he  loved  those  who  listened  to  his  teaching  more  than 
his  kinsfolk  who  were  not  believers ;  that  they  were  more  to  him 
than  even  his  mother,  when  she  stood  in  the  way  of  his  high  and 
holy  work.  , 

It  seems  really  a  very  difficult  relation  to  understand,  and  much 
more  difficult  to  maintain.  If  it  be  granted  that  he  foresaw  the 
spread  of  his  religion,  it  is  very  plain  to  see  that  he  determined 
that  no  one,  not  even  a  woman,  not  even  his  mother,  should  have 
a  share  in  the'M'orship  which  the  world  was  to  give  him. 

But  he  had  a  clean,  clear  human  heart,  lie  saw  the  sword  en- 
tering Mary's  soul.  He  did  not  call  her  "  mother ;"  he  gave  him- 
self no  such  indulgence.  Looking  at  John  he 
John'^  ^'''°  ^°  said,  "Woman,  see  your  son!"  Looking  at  Mary, 
and  addressing  John,  he  said,  "  Behold  your 
mother  I "  It  is  as  if  the  feeling  he  had  for  Mary  in  that  hour 
was  a  sentiment  he  entertained  towards  all  womanhood  that  is 
Btricken  and  forsaken.  "Woman : "  that  was  the  dying  son's  title 
for  his  mother.     He  had  no  title  for  his  nearest  male  fiiend. 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  673 

But  he  met  their  several  necessities,  Mary  needed  some  one  to 
take  his  place ;  John  needed  a  charge  to  divert  his  heart  from 
its  breaking  grief.  It  was  an  announcement  of  fitness.  Her 
nephews,  who  had  been  his  playfellows,  and  Mary's  other  sons, 
were  not  spiritual  kinsmen  of  Jesus.  John  was.  It  was  fitting 
that  these  two  should  live  thereafter  in  near  relationship  and 
found  a  household  which  should  be  a  rallying-point  for  all  the 
believers  in  Jesus. 

John  immediately  took  Mary  away  from  the  painful  spectacle 
of  the  cross,  and  ever  thereafter  she  lived  in  his  house. 

The  ecclesiastical  party  had  rolled  back  from  Pilate's  palace  to 
Golgotha,  and  had  been  engaged,  as  we  have  seen,  in  heaping  in- 
dignities and  insults  on  the  dying  Jesus. 

Section  11. — From  Noon  imtil  Three  o'clock. 

It  was  mid-day — the  sixth,  the  sacred  hour.  The  sun  was  in  the 
splendor  of  a  Syrian  noon.  Then  came  a  mysterious  thing.  The 
earth  began  to  darken.  It  was  not  an  eclipse.  It  was  at  the  full 
of  the  moon  of  the  Passover.  The  darkness  did  not  begin  in  the 
sky,  but  on  the  earth,  as  we  learn  from  Luke,  who,  of  all  the  bio- 
graphers of  Jesus,  seems  the  most  careful  observer  of  physical 
phenomena.  The  darkness  spread  itself  outward  and  upward 
until  the  sun  was  shrouded.     It  was  a  darkness 

which  obliterated  outlines.  The  Temple,  the  tower, 

^     '  '    ness. 

the  city  walls  disappeared.  The  people  in  Jeru- 
salem could  no  longer  see  the  crowd  swavin^  about  in  GoVotha. 
The  priests  lost  sight  of  their  victim.  The  crucified  thieves  could 
no  more  see  each  other.  The  Roman  soldiers  could  not  discern 
their  dice.  Mary  of  Magdala  could  not  see  Jesus.  For  three 
hours  men  stood,  or  sat,  or  lay  down.  Jesus  was  in  an  agony.  It 
was  a  long  three  hours  for  the  sufferers,  for  the  persecutors,  for 
Pilate,  for  the  friends  of  Jesus.  What  was  said  or  done  we  know 
not.  "Wliat  was  thought,  we  can  only  conjecture.  The  world 
had  dropped  down  into  the  core  of  darkness.  All  was  night. 
Heaven,  earth,  the  heart  of  man,  the  minds  of  the  wicked  and 
the  souls  of  the  just  were  in  darkness.  When  Mary's  son  was 
being  born,  mid-night  became  a  splendor.  When  Mary's  son  was 
being  slain,  mid-noon  became  a  horror. 

Tiie  eighth  hour  came.     That  darkness  passed  away  as  myste- 
43 


674  TIIE   LAST   WEEK. 

riously  as  it  had  come.     The  pent  up  agony  of  Jesus  found  vent. 

He  shrieked.     Ilis  cry  was  articulate.     The  biographers  have  pre- 

„,  served  the  verv  svllables.     It  was  in  his  mother 

Ine  cry.  "     " 

tongue,  the  Aramaean,  and  reminds  us  of  an 
observed  fact,  that  men  in  dying  frequently  speak  their  original 
dialect  most  accurately.  The  words  with  which  Jesus  thrilled 
the  crowd  were  these :  "'snpsiu  nab  -nbx  Tibx,  Elohee\  Elohee\ 
lammawhf  sehakthanee'^  "My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  Thou 
forsaken  me  ? " 

On  any  theory  of  the  nature  of  Jesus  and  his  character  these 
words,  under  the  circumstances,  are  mysterious.  It  must  be  ad- 
mitted that  he  was  not  more  afraid  of  dying  than 
other  men,  nor  more  afraid  of  being  dead.  Ilis 
shrinking  from  death,  so  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  detect,  was 
merely  the  instinct  of  life.  lie  could  have  saved  himself.  Up 
to  "Wednesday,  nay,  even  up  to  Thursday  night,  there  do  not  ap- 
pear to  have  been  any  insuperable  obstacles  to  his  escape  from 
the  ecclesiastical  party,  his  return  to  Galilee,  or  his  departui-e  into 
another  country  until  this  storm  should  be  over])ast.  Of  all  tliis 
he  was  plainly  aware,  and  yet  declined  to  avail  himself  of  them, 
lie  had  not  rushed  upon  death.  He  did  not  flee  from  it.  He 
had  at  other  times  passed  through  infuriated  mobs  and  walked 
away  as  if  possessing  a  charmed  life.  Now  he  makes  no  effort  to 
escape.  He  had  exhibited  superordinary  power  in  healing  dis- 
eases, in  controlling  the  elements,  in  raising  the  dead.  He  no 
more  attempts  to  exercise  that  power  for  his  own  deliverance  than 
the  vulgar  tbief  who  is  crucified  at  his  side  attempts  a  miraculous 
deliverance  of  himself.  Jesus  had  always  professed  to  experience 
in  his  inner  consciousness  an  mibroken  oneness  with  the  eternal 
God,  of  whom,  as  related  to  himself,  he  spoke  as  Father,  giving 
the  word  an  emphasis  deeper  tlian  any  other  man  ever  gave  to 
his  claim  of  human  relationship  with  man  or  God.  Now  he 
speaks  not  as  if  he  and  the  Father  were  one,  as  he  had  often  as- 
serted, but  as  if  they  were  two,  and  not  only  distinct  but  now 
separated.  In  its  form  it  is  an  intensely  passionate  appeal.  AVhat 
did  it  signify  'i  lie  was  a  good  man  dying  in  martyrdom  for 
loftiest  and  most  precious  things.  He  was  not  God-forsaken.  No 
man  ever  is  who  does  not  forsake  God.  Is  there  any  better  ex- 
planation than  that  in  his  great  spiritual  agony  there  was  a  sub- 
jective, not  an  objective  abandonment?     He  felt  as  though  God 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  675 

and  all  were  lost.  He  was  certainly  enduring  an  agony  with 
wliich  the  pains,  the  fevers,  the  thirsts,  the  misery  of  crucifixion, 
had  nothing  to  do.  It  was  Gethsemane's  hour  and  power  of 
darkness — whatever  that  was — once  beaten  down,  now  risen  np 
again  and  rushing  upon  the  soul  of  the  dying  Jesus.  As  it  smote 
liim  he  shrieked  this  articulate  utterance  of  his  sense  of  agony. 

The  lio'ht  came  back  to  the  hills,  the  citv,  and  Golg-otha.  Men 
raised  themselves.  The  cloud  had  rolled  away,  and  with  the 
clearing  sky  came  the  loud  cry  of  Jesus.  Per- 
haps in  that  darkness  the  consciences  of  his  mur-  . 
derers  began  to  be  painfully  uneasy.  They  caught 
the  first  words  of  the  cry,  "Elohee,  Elohee."  Elijah  among  the 
Jews  was  the  patron  of  the  distressed.  Moreover,  it  had  been 
prophesied  that  Elijah  was  to  precede  the  Messias.  Some  said, 
"He  calls  Elijah."  The  others  said^  "Stop!  let  us  see  if  Elijah 
will  come  to  save  him."  I  cannot  think,  with  Meyer,  that  this  was 
"  a  blaspliemous  Jewish  joke,  by  an  awkward  and  godless  pun  upon 
Eli ;''  and  yet  almost  all  tlie  strong  names  among  the  commentators 
hold  this  opinion  as  firmly  as  Meyer,  or  under  some  modification. 
Could  even  they  indulge  in  joking  then  ?  The  horror  of  the  three 
hours  of  darkness  is  followed  by  a  scream  irotn  the  central  cross ; 
and  that  gentle,  holy,  low-voiced  prophet,  who  had  not  cried  in 
their  streets  nor  been  ever  boisterous,  who  had  been  silent  before 
the  high-priest,  and  silent  before  the  procurator,  and  silent  amid 
the  jeers  and  hisses  of  a  mob,  and  silent  under  that  pall  of  super- 
natural darkness,  now  thrills  the  multitude  by  a  cry  so  fearful  and 
so  piercing  that  if  ever  human  call  had  answer  from  the  invisible 
world,  and  was  calling  for  any  other  soul,  that  soul,  it  would  seem, 
must  come.  Perhaps  the  power  as  well  as  the  hour  of  darkness 
had  passed  away.  Perhaps  Elijah  was  about  to  come.  Perhaps 
the  tawny,  terrible  prophet  of  Carmel  would  in  a  few  moments 
descend  into  Golgotha,  set  free  the  prisoner  from  the  cross,  and 
with  superhuman  power  tear  down,  and  with  the  fierceness  of  one 
to  whose  prayer  fire  fell  from  heaven,  scatter  priest  and  procura- 
tor, Church  and  State,  Jew  and  Gentile,  and  inaugurate  the 
splendors  of  the  Messianic  reign. 

This  cry  continued  to  puzzle  the  materialists  who  stood  around 
this  extraordinary  sufferer,  until  another  saying  came  from  Jesus. 
He  simply  said,  "  I  thirst."  Physiologically  and  psychologically 
this  may  indicate  that  his  agony  was  closing.     The  spirit  which 


676  THE    LAST   WEEK. 

had  been  so  strung  up  that  it  could  think  of  nothing  which  mcrelr 
concerned  his  body,  was  now  relaxing.     He  was  passing  from  out 

the  hour  and  from  under  the  power  of  darkness, 
and  dies  g^^^o  out  of  a  battle  victorious  but  wounded.     It 

may  be  noted  as  indicating  him  to  be  in  the 
full  possession  of  his  faculties,  in  the  fulness  of  his  bodily 
strength,  and  by  no  means  suffering  death  as  an  effect  of  cruci- 
fixion, seeing  that  this  is  only  the  beginning  of  that  terrible  thirst 
which  burns  in  those  who  are  lin<jerino;  on  the  cross.  This  cii"- 
cumstance  seems  quite  incidentally  mentioned  by  John  (xix.  28), 
and  by  some  other  of  the  biographers,  and  yet  it  is  of  great  im- 
])ortance.  In  response  one  of  the  Roman  soldiers  ran  a)id  took  a 
branch  of  hyssop,  a  plant  probably  growing  near,  the  stock  of 
which  we  know  was  about  two  feet  long.  So  low  did  the  cruci- 
fied hang  that  when  the  soldier  fastened  a  sponge  to  this  stock, 
and  filled  it  M-ith  the  sour  common  wine,  or  vinegar,  which  they 
mingled  with  their  water,  it  was  quite  eas}'  to  lay  it  on  the  mouth 
of  Jesus.  He  took  it,  and  said,  "  It  is  finished."  Then  calling 
out  with  a  loud  voice,  "Father,  into  thy  hands  I  commit  my 
spirit,"  he  bowed  his  head  and  died. 

The  darkness  which  had  come  upon  the  whole  land  had  reached 
its  consummation  in  an  earthquake,  which  rent  the  rocks  in  the 

neighborhood,  and  so  moved  the  Temple  that,  at 
An  earthquake.      ,  ,  ,  ,  .  .^  • 

the  very  hour  when  worshippers  were  thronging 

into  the  holy  place,  and  the  priests  were  kindling  the  lamps  before 
the  veil  which  divided  the  holy  from  the  holiest  place,  that  strong, 
well-woven,  annually -renewed  veil  split  from  top  to  bottom,  and 
laid  open  before  the  startled  attendants  that  sacred  spot  where  the 
wings  of  the  cherubim  overshadowed  the  mercy-seat  in  the  ark  of 
the  covenant,  a  spot  no  feet  but  those  of  the  Iligh-priest  might 
tread,  and  a  sight  which  no  eyes  but  his  might  behold.  The  stone 
sepulchres  around  the  city  were  broken  by  this  convulsion  in  na- 
ture, and  the  stone  doors  were  jarred  off  their  hinges,  and  a  few 
da}'B  after  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  Jerusalem  were  visited  by 
holy  people  whom  they  had  seen  dead  and  buried. 

The  Roman  centurion  who  was  in  charge  of  the  execution  re- 
mained witli  his  guard  through  all  these  terrifying  phenomena. 

They  had  ceased  to  amuse  themselves  with  dice. 

They  stood  watching  the  victim.  When  their 
commander  saw  what  was  done  he  exclaimed,  "  Certainly  tliis  was 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  677 

a  righteous  man.  Certainly  this  was  a  Son  of  God."  He  had 
seen  men  die,  civilized  and  barbarian.  He  knew  what  Eoman 
fortitude  was.  He  knew  what  the  crucifixion  was.  But  here  Avas 
something  different  from  all  he  had  ever  witnessed.  The  fact  is, 
that  Jesus  did  not  seem  to  come  under,  the  supreme  effects  of 
physical  torture.  He  did  not  seem  to  die,  in  the  sense  that  the 
soul  was  pressed  from  the  body  by  pain,  but  he  "  gave  up  the 
ghost."  It  was  apparently  a  voluntary  dismissal  on  his  own  part 
of  his  soul  from  his  body.  No  felon  ever  died  so.  Moreover,  tlie 
mythology  of  his  country  had  trained  the  soldier  to  believe  that  in 
earlier  days  the  gods  had  come  among  men.  He  looked  at  Jesus. 
His  mind  ran  rapidly  over  the  phenomena  which  had  filled  the 
last  six  hours.  The  conviction  came  upon  him,  that  if  ever  any 
of  the  kith  and  kin  of  the  gods  had  dwelt  in  flesh,  this  was 
one  of  them.  The  Jews  had  condemned  a  good  man :  that  was 
an  outrage.  They  had  caused  the  crucifixion  of  a  god  :  that  was 
a  horror.  It  was  the  verdict  of  a  pagan  on  one  of  the  crimes  of 
the  church.  Conscience  began  to  do  its  work  in  some  of  the  com- 
mon Jewish  people.  They  smote  their  breasts  and  went  home 
from  this  frightful  scene,  not  knowing  what  form  the  vengeance 
of  Jehovah  might  take. 


Section  12. — From  Three  6'doch  until  Evening. 

This  was  Friday,  3  o'clock  p.m.  That  evening  was  to  begin  the 
Sabbath — the  specially  sacred  Sabbath  of  the  Passover  festival. 
There  remained  only  two  or  three  hours.  Ac- 
cording to  Hebrew  law,  if  one  had  been  stoned  fictlty''''^'*'''  ^^' 
to  death  for  blasj^hemy,  and  his  corpse  hung  upon 
a  tree,  it  must  be  removed  before  night  (Deuteronomy  xxi.  23), 
and  this  regulation  would  be  scrupulously  observed  on  the  eve  of 
the  Paschal  Sabbath.  The  leaders  of  the  ecclesiastical  party, 
who  had  not  shrunk  from  conspiracy,  and  lying,  and  blasphemy, 
and  the  murder  of  the  innocent,  these  ritualistic  Puritans  could 
not  endure  that  their  feast  should  be  defiled  by  the  sight  of 
three  crosses  hanging  near  Jerusalem  on  the  liigh  Sabbath  of 
their  church.  Moreover,  they  did  not  know  what  effect  the  sight 
of  the  body  of  the  innocent  Jesus  might  have  upon  the  fickle  pop- 
ulace. They  might  still  rescue  him.  The  Pharisees  did  not  now 
know  that  he  was  dead.      They  had  a  political  reason,  and  it 


678  THE  LAST   WEEK. 

always  was  the  manner  of  the  hypocrite  to  cover  a  politic  design 
with  a  religious  prof  ession.  So  they  went  to  Pilate  to  ask  that  the 
death  of  the  tliree  crucified  men  might  be  hastened  by  the  break- 
ing of  their  legs,  and  that  the  bodies  might  be  buried.  Pilate  had 
n<i  care  now  as  to  what  might  happen,     lie  consented. 

The  rude  executioners  did  not  hesitate  with  the  two  thieves. 

They  were  soon  dispatched.     But  when  the  soldiers  saw  Jesus 

they   were   convinced   that  he   was    thoroughly 

, .,,  ,  dead.     It  were  a  M'anton  act  to  crush  his  limits, 

killed. 

He  had  been  so  good  and  gentle  througli  it  all ! 
There  may  have  been  something  in  his  very  looks  which  inspired 
a  sense  of  delicacy.  The  phenomenon  attending  his  death  may 
have  awed  them.     They  forbore. 

John  had  returned  from  attending  Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus, 
to  a  place  of  retreat  in  the  city.  He  was  witness  to  an  incident 
which  he  recorded,  probably,  to  meet  a  certain 
■  suggestion  of  his  day,  but  which  throws  light  on 
a  question  important  in  our  own.  One  of  the  soldiers,  more 
daring  and  hardened  than  the  others,  in  order  to  make  assurance 
doubly  sure,  thrust  a  spear  into  the  side  of  Jesus,  and  forthwith 
there  issued  water  and  blood.  The  remarkable  events  of  the 
past  few  hours,  and  the  certainty  of  the  death  of  the  condemned, 
had  probably  removed  all  restraint,  and  any  one  might  approach 
the  cross.  It  was  so  low, — not  lifting  the  body  many  feet  above 
the  ground,  as  the  painters  have  it, — that  John  could  distinctly 
see  what  was  going  forward.  When  his  account  was  written,  it 
had  not  yet  been  suggested  that  Jesus  had  not  died  but  had 
passed  into  a  swoon  from  wliich  he  subsequently  revived  ;  but 
the  Gnostics  afterwards  maintained  that  it  was  not  flesh  and 
blood  that  hung  upon  the  cross,  nor  the  real  Jesus,  but  a  resem- 
blance of  Jesus. 

This  statement  of  facts  John  connects  with  two  passages  from 
the  sacred  Hebrew  books,  namely,  those  which  provided  that  not  a 
bone  of  the  paschal  lamb  should  be  broken  (as  E.xodus  xii,  4^, 
and  Numbers  ix.  12),  and  the  passage  in  Zechariah  (xii.  10)  in 
wliich  John  undoubtedly  underetood  the  prophet  as  predicting 
that  the  people  should  pierce  Jehovah  in  the  person  of  tlie  Mes- 
siah, and  should  have  great  grief  therefor.  But  the  phenomenon 
of  the  outflowing  blood  and  water  brings  us  to  the  question  of 
the  physical  causes  of  the  death  of  Jesus. 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  679 

Thej  manifestly  were  not  the  causes  ordinarily  found  in  cruci- 
fixion.    Jesus  died  in  six  hours  after  lie  was  lifted  to  the  cross ; 

no  other  person  is  known  to  have  died  so  soon. 

.  1  1       11  Pnysical  causes 

borne  pulpit  orators  are  accustomed  to  dwell  on    ^^  death  of  Jesus 

the  horrors  of  crucifixion.  "Whatever  they  were, 
they  wei'e  such  as  were  coniinon  to  all  persons  who  were  cruci- 
fied, and  may  be  as  pathetically  assigned  to  the  thieves  as  to 
Jesus.  Crucifixion  was  not  an  extremely  painful  or  rapid  mode 
of  execution.  Sharp  spikes  were  driven  through  portions  of  the 
body  where  no  injury  was  done  to  any  vital  part.  There  was  not 
a  great  effusion  of  blood  ;  sometimes  almost  none.  There  was 
not  a  very  great  pressure  on  the  wounded  portions,  almost  none 
on  the  feet.  Death  was  not  caused  by  the  wounds  inflicted,  nor 
were  they  extremely  painful,  as  many  persons  have  received  them 
without  a  murmur,  and  survived  on  the  cross  for  very  many 
hours,  e\en  for  days.  Some  have  been  taken  from  the  cross  after 
hours  of  suspension  and  been  healed.  The  convict  was  to  expire 
by  sheer  exhaustion  of  nature  and  the  nervous  irritation  produced 
by  the  fretting  of  the  flesh  where  the  nails  were  inserted. 

The  thieves  had  as  yet  begun  to  show  no  signs  of  even  faint- 
ing.    Jesus  was  as  able  to  endure  as  they.     lie  was  a  young  man, 

a  little   past  thirty.     He  had  been  reared  care- 

TT  PI-  XT  -Sis  physical 

fully,      lie  was  perfectly  virtuous.     JNo  excesses    ^^^^^ 

had  told  upon  his  constitution  to  make  him  pre- 
maturely old.  He  had  lived  temperately,  yet  not  abstemiously, 
allowiuir  himself  a  generous  diet,  while  living  within  all  the 
bounds  of  the  laws  of  health.  He  had  passed  much  of  his  life  in 
the  open  air.  He  had  received  no  special  brutality  at  the  hands 
of  his  executioners.  And  yet  the  man  who  might  have  survived 
six  days,  who,  on  all  known  bases  of  calculation,  should  have  been 
able  at  least  to  survive  the  Paschal  Sabbath  on  the  cross,  died  in 
six  hours.  What  were  the  physical  causes  of  his  death  ?  They 
were  not  the  processes  of  crucifixion. 

The  clearest,  most  scientific,  and  most  satisfactory  answer  to 
the  question  is  in  a  treatise  upon  the  subject  by  William  Stroud, 

M.D.,  first  published  about  a  quarter  of  a  century 

'        ,/      ,  ...  ,  ''Dr.  Stroud's 

ago.      All  subsequent   investigations   have   con-    ^jjgQ— 

spired  to  confirm  it.     It  shall  be  stated  here  as 

succinctly  as  possible.   Dr.  Stroud  says  :  "  It  was  agony  of  mind, 

PKODUcmG  Rupture  of  the  Heart."     That  suggests  the  call  for 


680  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

proof  tliat  tlie  heait  of  Jesus  was  literally  raptured.  If  in  his 
case,  most  probably  it  would  occur  in  other  cases,  which  modem 
science  would  discover.  For  the  satisfaction  of  persons  not 
familiar  with  anatomy,  Dr.  Stroud  furnishes  the  following  de- 
scription of  the  heart : — 

"It  is  a  double  muscular  bag,  of  a  conical  form,  lined  u-ithin  and  wthout 
by  a  dense  membrane,  and  loosely  inclosed  in  a  receptacle  of  similar  material, 
called  the  pericaidium.  It  consists  of  two  principal  sacs, 
the  right  and  the  left,  Mhich  lie  side  by  side,  and  adhere 
fii-mly  together,  so  as  to  form  a  strong  middle  wall,  but  have  no  internal  com- 
munication. Each  of  these  is  subdivided  into  two  connected  pouches,  or 
chambers,  teraied  auricle  and  ventricle,  whereof  the  auricle  is  round  and  thin, 
the  ventricle  long  and  flosliy ;  the  two  former  constituting  the  Ijase,  and  the 
two  latter  the  body  of  the  organ.  Placed  in  the  centre  of  tlie  vascular  sys- 
tem, the  heart  promotes  and  regulates  the  cii-culation  of  the  blood,  received 
on  each  side  from  two  or  more  large  veins  of  a  soft  and  compressible  texture, 
and  discharged  through  a  single  artery  which,  being  firm  and  elastic,  is  kept 
constantly  pervious.  Returning  from  all  parts  of  the  body  except  tlie  lungs, 
blood  of  nearly  a  black  color,  and  become  unfit  for  the  purposes  of  life,  is 
poured  by  two  priuciiial  veins,  called  venoe  cavoe,  into  the  right  auricle, 
whence,  after  a  momentary  delay,  it  is  tjansferred  to  the  corresponding  ven- 
tricle, its  reflux  being  prevented  by  a  membranous  valve  interposed  between 
them.  By  the  powerful  contraction  of  the  ventricle  it  is  transmitted  tlirough 
the  pulmonary  artery  to  the  lungs,  where,  by  minute  subdivision  and  con- 
tact with  atmo.spheric  air  inhaled  through  the  windpipe,  it  is  purified,  and 
acquires  a  bright  crimson  color.  Keturning  from  the  lungs  Ijy  the  four  pul- 
monary veins,  the  renovated  blood  next  passes  into  the  left  auricle,  and  from 
thence,  in  a  similar  manner,  and  at  tlie  same  time  as  on  the  right  side,  into  the 
left  ventricle,  by  the  contraction  of  which  it  is  distributed  with  great  force 
through  the  aorta  to  the  remaining  i)arts  of  the  body,  whence  it  was  origin- 
ally derived." 

It  is  a  familiar  fact  that  the  sanguiferous  system  does  sustain 

sudden  and  great  changes  from  the  influence  of  the  pai^sions.    The 

irlisteninfj  eye  and  <rlowin<i;  face  are  external  indi- 
The  effect  of  the    ^     .  ,  • ,       i  «•  ^    .r^• 

passions  catious,  while  the  persoTi  atrected,  it  his  attention 

be  called  to  his  own  condition,  becomes  conscious 
of  coldness  in  his  extremities,  a  sense  of  distention  of  tlie  heart, 
difficulty  of  respiration,  and  other  distressing  symptoms.  The 
effect  may  l^e  so  great  as  to  superinduce  death,  and  may  be  pro- 
duced by  any  of  the  jiassions.  History  has  many  examples  of 
death  from  joy.  Pliny  informs  us  of  a  Lacedaemonian  who  died 
of  joy  at  hearing  that  his  s(jn  had  gained  a  prize  in  the  Olympic 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  681 

games.  Sophocles  died  of  jo}-  at  gaining  a  decision  in  his  favoi 
in  a  contest  of  honor.  Livy  mentions  an  aged  matron,  who,  be- 
lieving her  son  to  have  been  slain  in  battle,  died  in  his  arms  in 
excess  of  joy  on  his  safe  return.  Leo  X.  died  of  a  fever  produced  by 
j  joy  at  the  news  of  the  capture  of  Milan.  Dr.  Stroud  quotes  many 
(jther  cases  of  sudden  death  from  exciting  passions,  in  all  which 
Ave  cannot  doubt  that  the  decease  was  caused  by  rupture  uf  the 
heart,  although,  for  want  of  examination,  that  cannot  be  affirmed. 
The  following  is  Dr.  Stroud's  description  of  the  modus  : — 

"  The  immediate  cause  is  a  sudden  and  violent  contraction  of  one  of  the 
ventricles,  usually  the  left,  on  the  column  of  blood  thi'own  into  it  by  a  simi- 
lai"  contraction  of  the  corresponding  auricle.  Prevented 
from  returning  backwai'ds  by  the  intervening  valve,  and 
not  finding  a  sufficient  outlet  forwards  in  the  connected  artery,  the  blood 
reacts  against  the  ventricle  itself,  which  is  consequently  torn  open  at  the 
point  of  greatest  distention,  or  least  resistance,  by  the  influence  of  its  own 
reflected  force.  A  quantity  of  Ijlood  is  hereby  discharged  into  the  pericar- 
dium, and  having  no  means  of  escape  from  that  capsule,  stops  the  circula- 
tion by  compressing  the  heart  from  without,  and  induces  almost  instanta- 
neous death.  In  young  and  vigorous  subjects,  the  blood  thus  collected  in  the 
pericardium  soon  divides  into  its  constituent  parts,  namely,  a  pale  watery 
liquid  called  serum,  and  a  soft  clotted  substance  of  a  deep-red  color  termed 
crassamentum  ;  but,  exce])t  under  similar  circumstances  of  extravasation,  tliis 
distinct  separation  of  the  blood  is  seldom  witnessed  in  the  dead  body.  "Wlien, 
however,  the  action  of  the  ventricle  is  less  violent,  instead  of  bursting  under 
the  continued  injection  from  the  auricle,  it  merely  dilates ;  but,  as  in  conse- 
quence of  tliis  ovcr-dist(!ntiou  its  power  of  contraction  is  speedily  destroj^ed, 
death  takes  place  with  equal  certainty,  altliough  i)erhaps  with  less  rapidity, 
and  in  this  case  as  well  as  in  the  former  one,  the  blood  remaining  within  the 
heart  has  been  divided  into  serum  and  crassamentum." 

Let  us  now  revert  to  Gethseraane.  There  the  sweat  of  Jesus 
was  as  it  were  great  drops  of  blood.  Some  passion  of  prodigious 
force  was  producing  a  serious  disturbance  of  his 
circulation.  Many  cases  of  like  phenomena  at-  Cases  of  bloody 
tending  like  states  of  niiiul  are  recorded  in  the 
books,  llervey  tells  of  a  man  who,  under  the  long-continued 
working  of  an  indignation  he  was  compelled  to  restrain,  fell  into 
a  liemorrhagic  state,  attended  with  extreme  oppression  in  the 
chest,  owing  to  an  immense  enlargement  of  the  heart  and  princi- 
l)al  arteries,  exhibiting  a  slight  oozing  of  blood  from  the  cutane- 
ous vessels.  The  eminent  French  historian,  De  Thou,  mentions 
the  case  of  an  Italian  officer  who  comnianded  at  Monte-Maro,  a 


682  THE   LAST   "WEEK. 

fortress  of  Piedmont,  in  the  warfare  between  Charles  Y.  and 
Henry  II,  of  France,  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
"  This  officer,  having  been  treacherously  seized  by  order  of  the 
hostile  general,  and  threatened  with  public  execution  unless  he 
surrendered  the  place,  was  so  agitated  at  the  prospect  of  an  ifj-no- 
minious  death,  that  he  sweated  blood  from  every  part  of  his 
body."  A  young  Florentine,  unjustly  put  to  death  by  Pope  Six- 
tus  Y.,  upon  being  led  to  execution,  discharged  blood  instead  of 
sweat  from  his  whole  body.  In  the  German  Ephemerides  many 
cases  are  given  of  bloody  tears  and  bloody  sweat.  Maldonatus 
refers  to  "  a  robust  and  healthy  man  at  Paris  who,  on  hearing  sen- 
tence of  death  passed  on  him,  was  covered  with  bloody  sweat." 
Schenck  tells  of  a  nun  who  fell  into  the  hands  of  soldiers,  and, 
seeing  herself  encompassed  with  daggers  and  swords,  thi-eatening 
instant  death,  was  so  terrified  that  "  she  discharged  blood  from 
every  part  of  her  body,  and  died  of  hemorrhage  in  the  sight  of 
her  assailants." 

So  far  as  I  know,  no  one  has  yet  called  attention  to  the  fact 
that,  while  sudden  death  may  be  occasioned  by  joy  as  well  as  by 

ffrief  or  terror,  this  phenomenon  of  bloody  sweat 

The Gethsemane  ?  i  ..      i  ,   •  .*'  .  , 

g^gg^^  has  never  been  noticed  except  %n  connecUon  wit/i 

great  mental  agony.  Jesus  had  this  mental  agony 
in  Gethsemane.  It  seemed  to  be  in  a  measure  assua<?ed.  It  was 
renewed  when  he  was  on  the  cross.  Did  it  not  terminate  in  rup- 
ture of  the  heart  ?  Many  such  have  occurred  and  been  examined, 
in  which  no  part  of  the  body  exhibited  morbid  symptoms,  but  the 
heart  was  ruptured  and  the  pericardium  was  filled  with  serum  and 
crassamentum,  which  popularly  are  called  water  and  blood.  In- 
deed, the  crassamentum,  or  red  and  clotted  portions,  contains  "  all 
the  more  essential  ingredients  of  the  blood,"  while  the  serum,  a 
mere  yellowish  liquid,  "  consists  chiefly  of  water."  Dr.  Aber- 
crombie,  of  Edinburgh,  gives  a  case  of  the  sudden  death  of  a  man 
aged  seventy-seven  years,  owing  to  a  rupture  of  the  heart.  In  his 
case  "  the  cavities  of  the  pleura  contained  ahout  three  pounds  of 
fluid,  but  the  lungs  were  sound."  Dr.  Elliotson  relates  the  case 
of  a  woman  who  died  suddenly.  "  On  opening  the  body  the  peri- 
cardium M'as  found  distended  with  clear  serum,  and  a  very  large 
coagulum  of  blood,  which  had  escaped  through  a  spontaneous  rup- 
ture of  the  aorta  near  its  origin,  M'ithout  any  other  morbid  appear- 
ance."    Many  cases  might  be  cited,  but  these  suffice. 


THE   SIXTH   DAY.  683 

The  narrative  of  the  last  hours  of  Jesus,  as  we  have  ah-eadj 

given  it  from  the  Evangelists,  shows  just  such  a  state  of  mind  aa 

has  produced  the  phenomenon  of  the  bloody  sweat 

in  other  persons  ;  and  the  water  and  blood  which      ^^te^eof  mindir 
T  -1  .1         r  11       .  nis  last  hours. 

John  noticed  as  following  the  soldier's  spear,  are 

such  an  exhibition  as  attends  rupture  of  the  heart,  although  it 
was  more  than  a  thousand  years  after  the  record  was  made  before 
science  connected  the  two.  Every  expression  of  Jesus  in  Geth- 
semane  is  such  as  any  man  would  make  in  describing  sensations 
produced  by  the  effect  of  mental  agony  on  the  physical  constitu- 
tion. On  that  cold  night  his  was  not  ordinary  perspiration.  It 
was  the  hemorrhage  which  agony  produces.  He  did  not  die  of 
crucifixion.  He  died  of  a  broken  heart  while  they  were  crucify- 
ing him.  He  did  not  swoon.  He  was  in  full  possession  of  his 
powers,  as  his  direction  to  Mary  and  John  showed.  He  was  in 
full  physical  strength,  as  his  cry — his  loud  cry — showed.  At  three 
o'clock,  if  he  had  endured  only  the  ordinary  pains  of  the  crucified, 
he  might  have  been  taken  down  and  saved,  as  the  Pharisees  show 
that  they  perceived,  by  desiring  to  have  his  legs  broken.  Pilate 
marvelled  when  he  heard  that  Jesus  was  already  dead.  The 
agony  of  Gethsemane  had  a  mortal  tendency.  The  agony  on  the 
cross  was  a  mortal  blow.  It  was  agony, — not  grief, — not  fear. 
If  one  sweats  under  grief  or  fear,  it  is  a  scant  cold  sweat.  In 
the  conflict  of  agony  the  action  of  the  heart  is  violent,  and  sweat 
is  abundant  and  warm,  and  in  extreme  cases  bloody.  Fear  or 
grief  paralyzes  ;  agony  supplies  extraordinary  strength.  In  full 
strength,  Jesus  died  suddenly.  The  water  and  blood  which  flowed 
from  his  punctured  pericardium  showed  that  his  heart  had  been 
ruptured. 

What  was  that  agony  f 

He  was  not  afraid  to  die.  He  could  have  avoided  death.  He 
could  raise  others  from  the  dead.  He  was  not  afraid  of  men. 
He  was  not  afraid  of  God.  He  professed  a  con- 
sciousness of  oneness  Math  God.  He  was  good.  ^^^*  ^^^  ^ 
Others  have  loved  him  so  that  they  have  shouted  ^^°°^ ' 
on  the  cross  and  at  the  stake,  and  died,  of  exhaustion  or  of  fire, 
happier  than  conquering  kings.  But  he,  so  good,  so  humble,  so 
free  from  all  earthly  ambitions,  so  unselfish,— he  died  of  a  men- 
tal agony.  He  had  no  anger,  no  bad  passions,  no  sudden  dis- 
appointment.    He  had  always  expected  to  die  on  the  cross.     He 


GS4  THE   LAST   WEEK. 

had  told  his  intimates  that  unless  he  died  on  the  cross  his  life 
woTdd  be  a  failure.  lie  did  not  avoid  crucifixion,  and  yet,  al- 
though he  expired  on  a  cross,  he  did  not  die  of  crucifixion, 
lie  had  a  great  spiritual  conflict ;  in  the  agony  thereof  his  heart 
was  ruptured. 

WJiat  was  that  agony  f 

It  is  not  a  question  for  history.  It  is  a  question  for  each 
reader's  heart.  It  could  not  have  been  an  agony  on  account  of 
himself :  it  must  have  been  for  others.  For  whom  ?  That  ques- 
tion also  steps  beyond  the  limits  of  history.  With  Jesus  before 
his  death  the  work  of  the  historian  here  closes. 

There  are  circumstances  recorded  of  the  burial  of  Jesus  which 
are  to  be  noticed  as  important  parts  of  his  histor)^ 

There  are  two  men  who  seem  to  have  taken  a  profoimd  in- 
terest in  the  career  of  Jesus — one  was  Joseph.     Of  him  we  learn 

that  he  was  of  Arimatha^a;  that  he  was  an  honor- 
Josepn  and  Ni-      .  ,  ,,  •  i  i  i         • 

codemus  ^"^®  counsellor,  a  rich,  a  good,  and  a  just  man; 

that  he  was  "  waiting  for  the  kingdom  of  God  ;  " 
that  he  had  not  consented  to  the  action  of  the  Sanhedrim  in  the 
case  of  Jesus,  and,  in  fact,  was  a  disciple  of  Jesus,  but  secretly, 
for  fear  of  the  Jews.  The  crucified  Jesus  drew  from  him  a  con- 
fession of  attachment  which  the  living  Teacher  had  never  been 
able  to  elicit.  The  other  was  Nicodemus,  the  ruler  who  had 
gone  to  Jesus  by  night,  early  in  the  career  of  the  great  Teacher, 
and  who  seems  never  to  have  lost  his  interest  in  the  young 
prophet  now  come  to  an  untimely  and  ignominious  end.  These 
two  men  took  charge  of  the  interment.  AMiile  Josei)h  went 
boldly  unto  Pilate  to  crave  the  body  of  Jesus,  Kicodemus  went 
into  the  city  to  procure  myrrh  and  aloes  for  his  embalm- 
ment. 

Tlie  interest  thc}'^  took  in  Jesus  shows  how  deeply  he  had 
impressed  them.     Neither  had  dared  profess  their  faith  in  him. 

Perhaps  that  faith  was  not  well   defined.     But 
Secret  disciples.    ^,  i    t         i    i  •  -,       ^      ^  -,  i 

tney   belie\'ed  him  to   be   both  great  and  good. 

They  had  absented  themselves  from  the  Sanhedrim  which  had 

Ijeen   called  together  that  morning   by  the   high-priest.      They 

knew   the   question    to   be   put   to   them.      Each   was   probably 

Ignorant  of  the  feelings  of  the  other.     I>ut  they  could  not  vote  to 

execute  Jesus,  and  they  had  not  the  courage  to  defend  him.    Now 

they  discover  each  the  other's  lung  regard  for  Jesus,  and  they 


THE   SIXTH   DAT.  685 

unite  in  showing  delicate  attentions  to  the  remains  of  the  cruci- 
fied prophet.  Pilate  granted  the  bod3^  Joseph  brought  a  linen 
shroud,  and  Nicodemus  brought  the  ^picerj. 

There  is  a  pensive  beauty  in  John's  simple  statement :  "  In  the 
place  where  he  was  crucified  there  was  a  garden;  and  in  the 
garden  a  new  sepulchre,  wherein  was  never  man 
yet  laid."  Matthew  says  that  this  sepulchre  was 
Joseph's  "  own  new  tomb,  which  he  had  hewn  out  in  the  rock." 
The  place  was  near,  and  these  good  men,  with  pious  hands,  bore 
Jesus  to  it,  and  thus  saved  him  from  being  flung  into  a  com- 
mon ditch  with  the  malefactors  who  were  crucified  with  him. 
They  seem  to  have  had  no  helpers.  The  friends  of  Jesus  had 
fled.  His  enemies  had  returned  to  the  city.  Alone  and  solitary, 
these  honorable  counsellors  lifted  and  wrapped  and  carried  and 
interred  the  body  of  Jesus  of  ISTazareth.  Joseph  rolled  up  a 
great  stone  to  the  door  of  the  tomb.  It  was  "  the  Jews'  prepara- 
tion-day." He  and  Nicodemus  left  the  garden  to  prepare  for  the 
Passover. 

Two  women  had  watched  these  great  men  in  their  humane  and 

godly  work.     Joseph  and  Nicodemus  had  not  consociated  with 

-r      ,  1    ^   •  •,     Jesus  and  his  friends,  but  they  were  probably 
Lore  s  last  vigil.  '  . 

known  as  men  of  wealth  and  distinction.  It 
nmst  have  been  a  wonder  to  these  women  what  interest  two 
members  of  the  senate  which  had  condemned  Jesus  should  have 
in  the  proper  preparation  and  entombment  of  his  body.  They 
were  too  shy  to  address  them,  and  probably  the  counsellors  did 
not  notice  the  women ;  but  when  the  great  men  went  away  two 
humble  women  were  left  to  keep  love's  vigil  at  the  gate  of  death, 
Mary  of  Magdala  and  her  friend  Mary  the  mother  of  Joses. 
And  even  they  were  so  thoroughly  Jew,  that  shortly  they  re- 
turned to  the  city,  and  having  "  prepared  further  spices  and 
ointments,  they  rested  the  Sabbath-day,  according  to  the  com- 
mandment." 

That  Sabbath-day,  April   8,  a.d.  30,  Jesus  spent  in  Joseph's 
sepulchre. 


PART    VIII. 


THE  RESUEEECTION  OF  JESUS  AND  SUBSEQUENT 

EVENTS. 

FaRTY  DAYS— FROM  APRIL  9  TO  MAY  19,  A.D.  80. 


It  was  a  remarkable  Sabbath.     The  crucified  men  had  been 
removed,  Jesus  had  been  buried,  tlie  Temple  worship  had  been  re- 
sumed, going  forward  as  it  had  gone  for  several 
,,    ^     ^^  ^        centuries,  and  the  church  party  would  fain  have 

after  crucifixion.  o 

had  evervthmg  move  on  as  if  nothing  had  hap- 
pened. But  a  great  storm  had  swept  the  popular  mind.  Pilate  must 
have  been  moody  and  disturbed.  The  disciples  of  Jesus  could 
have  had  little  heart  for  the  Temple  services.  They  loved  the 
buried  Jesus,  and  although  all  their  hopes  of  him  and  much  of 
their  faith  in  his  sagacity  must  have  disap])eared,  their  hearts 
were  buried  in  the  new  sepulchre  of  Joseph  of  Ariniathffia.  The 
priests  had  two  things  to  trouble  them.  There  was  the  rent  veil 
of  the  Temple.  In  the  dying  agony  of  Jesus  had  come  a  con- 
vulsion which  had  torn  that  veil  from  top  to  bottom  and  laid  the 
Holiest  of  Holies  open.  That  must  have  been  an  appalling  sight. 
His  body  might  be  removed  from  the  sepulchre,  and  thus  faith  in 
his  resurrection  Ije  encouraged.  That  was  an  anxiety.  More- 
over, these  politicians  recollected  what  his  disciples  had  forgot- 
ten— his  own  prophecy  of  his  resurrection.  Their  recollections  of 
his  prophecies  were  accurate,  and  they  supposed  his  disciples  were 
as  cunning  as  themselves,  and  they  knew  what  they  would  do 
under  similar  circumstances.  That  was  the  second  trouble. 
When  the  Sabbath  was  past,  the  chief  priests  and  Pharisees 


THE   KESUKKECTION   OF   JESUS.  687 

went  to  Pilate  and  said,  "  Sir,  we  remember  that  that  deceiver 
said,  while  he  was  yet  alive,  'After  three  days  I  will  rise  again.' 
Command,  therefore,  that  the  sepnlchre  be  made 
secure  until  the  third  day,  lest  his  disciples  come  ^'^^  sepulchre 
by  night  and  steal  him  away,  and  say  unto  the 
people  that  he  is  risen  from  the  dead,  and«so  the  last  deceit  be 
worse  than  the  first."  Pilate  c(juld  have  been  in  no  sweet  mood, 
but  there  was  no  reason  why  he  should  n(jt  grant  their  request. 
lie  had  been  forced  by  them  to  consent  to  the  death  of  the  young 
teacher  :  he  might  as  well  yield  this  also.  He  cared  nothing  for 
the  result,  and  could  have  taken  no  interest  in  the  predictions  of 
a  man  whom  he  regarded  as  a  harmless  and  unfortunate  fanatic. 
He  was  cross.  Yes,  they  shall  have  a  guard,  these  mad  priests 
who  are  frightened  by  a  dead  peasant !  If  it  gratifies  them  to 
make  fools  of  themselves  they  may  do  so :  he  will  not  hinder !  He 
said  to  them,  "Ye  shall  have  a  watch:  go  your  way,  make  it  as 
sure  as  you  can."  So  they  Avent  and  made  the  tomb  secure,  roll- 
ing up  a  stone  to  its  mouth,  and  sealing  it. 

The  Poman  guard  took  possession  of  the  sepulchre. 

In  the  mean  time  Mary  of  Magdala  and  other  women,  knowing 
that  the  burial  of  Jesus  by  Joseph  and  Xicodemus  had  been  hur- 
ried, although  decent,  had  gone  out  on  Saturday 
evening,  the  Sabbath  being  past,  and  had  pro-      Preparations  for 

J  j_       •  1  .  .  .        ■,      ~         embalming. 

cured  sweet  spices,  and  were  waitnig  anxiously  for 
the  morning  which  should  follow  the  Sabbath,  that  they  might  go 
and  anoint  the  precious  body,  performing  love's  last  offices  before 
Jesus  should  be  left,  as  they  supposed,  to  lie  fgrever  in  that  grave. 
They  knew  nothing  of  the  government  seal  on  the  tomb,  and 
nothing  of  the  Eoman  guard.  They  knew  that  there  was  a  great 
stone  at  the  mouth  of  the  sepnlchre.  As,  at  earliest  dawn,  they 
approached  the  garden  they  questioned  how  they  should  remove 
the  stone  so  as  to  proceed  with  the  embalming.  Then  they  felt  a 
preternatural  shaking  of  the  ground  l^eneath  their  feet.  Then,  as 
they  looked  towards  the  sepnlchre,  there  was  a  preteniatural  light. 
There  had  been  an  earthquake.  The  stone  had  been  throAvn  down. 
An  apparition  as  of  an  angel  sat  on  the  stone.  His  appearance 
had  so  frightened  the  Roman  guard  that  they  had  fallen  like  dead 
men.  Jesus  had  disappeared  from  the  tomb.  The  guard  had  not 
eeen  him.  The  great  stone  had  not  detained  him.  His  earliest 
biographers  give  no  intimation  of  the  hour  of  the  resurrection. 


688  THE   EE8TJEKECTI0N   OF   .TESUS 

He  was  abroad  at  daylight.  They  represent  him  as  having  had 
frequent  intercourse  with  them  for  forty  days,  in  which  he  gives 
them  no  intimation  of  the  hour  of  his  resurrection.  It  was  be- 
tween Friday's  sunset  and  Sunday's  sunrise.  AVlien  he  rose  he  did 
not  show  himself  to  the  guard :  the  first  fright  they  had  was  from 
the  angel.  lie  did  not  show  himself  to  any  one  until  after  the 
women  had  visited  the  sepulchre. 

There  is  almost  no  twilight  in  Palestine.     It  is  dark ;  a  glim- 
mer comes  in  the  eastern  skies ;  then  the  sun  bounds  forth.     It 
was  yet  dark  as  the  women  came  near  enough  to 

evo  e         ^j^^  sepulchre  to  see  that  the  stone  was  gone  from 
women.  .  ^  .  .    .  , 

its  mouth.     A  terrible  suspicion  flashed  on  the 

mind  of  the  devoted  Mary  of  Magdala,  that  the  beloved  body  had 

been  stolen  by  the  malignant  enemies  of  Jesus,  and  she  could  not 

conjecture  what  outrages  might  have  been  committed  on  it.     In 

her  grief  and  indignation  she  rushed  back  to  communicate  the 

horrible  news  to  John,  with  whom  Peter  then  happened  to  be. 

The  other  women — Mary,  Salome,  and  Joanna — entered.     They 

do  not  seem  to  have  noticed  the  angel  until  they  had  ascertained 

the   absence  of  Jesus.     They   were  sorely  per- 

,  '  plexed.     Perhaps  they  had  irone  into  an  inner 

sepulchre.  ^  „ 

chamber  of  the  tomb,  and  returned,  after  finding 
that  the  corpse  was  missing,  when  the  angel  revealed  himself  to 
them.  Luke  says  there  were  two  angels,  or  rathei-,  "two  men  in 
long  shining  garments."  The  women  were  afraid.  They  bowed 
their  heads.  The  angel  said,  "Do  not  be  afraid,  for  I  know  that 
you  seek  Jesus  why  was  crucified.  AVliy  do  you  seek  the  living 
among  the  dead  ?  He  is  not  here.  He  is  risen,  as  he  said.  Come 
and  see  the  place  where  they  laid  him."  lie  showed  them  tlie  spot, 
and  tlie  grave-clothes  lying  in  order,  and  then  said,  "  Remember 
how'he  spoke  to  you  when  he  was  yet  in  Galilee,  saying  that  the 
Son  of  Man  must  be  delivered  into  the  hands  of  sinful  men,  and 
be  crucified,  and  the  thii-d  day  rise  again."  The  women  then  dis- 
tinctly recalled  that  jirediction. 

The  angel  added,  "  Go  your  way  quickly,  and  tell  his  disciples, 
even  Peter,  that  he  is  risen  from  the  dead,  and  goes  before  you 

into  Galilee.     There  you  shall  see  him,  as  he  said 
p  tp  ™^^^*^    °      to  you."     The  women  started  off  towards  the  city, 

full  of  mingled  fear  and  joy.     They  seem  to  have 
missed  another  party  now  approaching  the  sepulchre. 


AISTD    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  6S9 

Wlle^  Mary  of  Magdala  had  reached  the  city  she  flew  to  the 
house  of  John,  with  whom  Peter  was,  and  rushing  in  breathlessly 
exclaimed,  "  They  have  taken  away  the  Lord  out  j^^,^  ^^^  p^^^^ 
of  the  sepulchre,  and  we  know  not  where  they 
have  laid  him."  This  was  startling  news.  Both  the  men  rose  and 
went  out  to  tlie  sepulchre.  Peter  had  not  yet  learned  that  a  special 
message  had  been  sent  to  him.  He  had  behaved  so  basely  that  he 
did  not  feel  as  if  he  were  of  the  number  of  the  disciples.  But  he 
had  repented,  and  he  loved  the  brotherhood  of  the  disciples,  and 
he  loved  his  dead  Master,  and  he  would  gladly  make  amends  for 
his  denials  by  devotion  to  the  corpse  of  Jesus.  Still  the  burden  of 
the  Ijad  memory  was  on  him.  lie  did  not  go  as  fleetly  as  John. 
Both  ran  ;  but  John  reached  the  sepulchre  first.  There  a  reverent 
awe  checked  him.  He  kneeled  down  and  looked  at  the  grave- 
clothes.  Peter  followed,  and  went  right  in.  There  lay  the  shroud 
wrapped  up,  and  the  napkin,  which  perhaps  Mary  of  Magdala  had 
wound  about  his  mangled  head.  Everything  w^as  orderly.  He 
had  been  taken  away  by  neither  friends  nor  foes.  The  former 
would  have  had  no  care  for  the  clothes,  or  have  not  removed  them  ; 
the  latter  would  have  torn  them  away  carelessly.  It  looked  as  if 
Jesus  had  risen  and  carefully  folded  and  laid  away  the  garments 
of  the  grave,  wherewith  the  hands  of  respect  and  love  had 
wrapped  him. 

Peter  induced  John  to  follow  him.  Peter  was  puzzled.  In 
John  there  began  to  spring  up  some  faith.  "He  saw  and  be- 
lieved ;  "  for  as  yet,  according  to  John's  own  testimony,  "  they 
did  not  know  the  scripture,  that  he  must  rise  again  from  the 
dead."     Then  they  left  the  sepulchre  and  went  home. 

But  Mary  of  Magdala  stood  without  at  the  sepulchre,  weeping. 

The  men  might  go,  but  she  lingered  about  the  spot  where  she  had 

last  seen  the  body  of  him  whom  she  loved  with  .«    -,  , 

'',_,,  ,  TT  Mary  of  Magdala. 

all  her  heart  and   soul.     She  was  alone.      Hers 

was  an  absorbing  love  and  an  absorbing  grief.     She  gazed  through 

her  tears  down  into  the  sepulchre  where  the  dear  Jesus  had  been 

laid.     She  was  flooded  with  sorrow.     She  sa.w  the  two  angels  in 

white,  but  she  had  no  attention  to  give  to  even  angels.     Xothing 

in  heaven  or  earth  could  interest  her  but  Jesus.     They  said  to  her, 

"  Woman,  why  are  you  weeping  ? "     She  could  not  be  astonished 

or  frightened  even  by  so  brilliant  an  apparition  as  two  angels  ;  but 

she  was  ready  to  burst  forth  when  the  subject  of  her  love  was 

44 


690  THE   KESURKECTION    OF   JESUS 

touched.  She  sobbed  out,  "  Because  they  have  taken  away  my 
Lord,  aud  I  know  not  where  they  have  laid  him  !  " 

"What  marvellous  beauty  of  loving  is  here  !  "  My  Lord  !  "  It 
was  the  emphasis  of  appropriating  affection.  He  was  hers  more 
than  he  was  any  other's.  She  loved  him  more 
than  any  other  woman  or  any  man  loved  him. 
And  he  had  done  everything  for  her.  She  did  not  ask  the  angels 
for  any  consolation  ;  she  was  inconsolable.  She  turned  to  go,  and 
through  her  tears  she  saw  a  man  standing  in  the  garden.  She 
scarcely  looked  at  him.  One  man  filled  her  lieart  and  brain  and 
eyes,  and  he  was  dead,  and  his  dear  body  was  stolen.  Wlien  the 
stranger  asked  her,  "  "SVliy  do  you  weep '{  whom  do  you  seek  ? "  she 
thought  it  was  the  gardener,  and  that  he  must  know  all  about  it. 
Her  reply  was,  "  Sir,  if  you  have  borne  him  hence,  tell  me  where 
you  have  laid  him,  and  I  will  take  him  away  !  " 

What  mar\ellous  beauty  of  loving  is  here !  "  Him  " — as  if  every- 
body nnist  know  Mary's  "  him  !  "  If  it  were  not  considered  meet 
for  his  corpse  to  be  in  that  garden  because  he  had 

She  sees  Jesus.    ^.^^  ^^  ^  malefactor— although  she  felt  that  that 

body,  if  laid  down  on  God's  throne,  would  sweeten  all  heaven — 
she  would  take  it  away  to  some  place  where,  witlunit  interruption, 
he  might  sleep  the  sleep  of  death,  and  she  might  weep  the  tears 
of  the  dying.  She  had  not  turned  to  gaze  full  on  the  speaker. 
It  was  Jesus,  and  she  did  not  know  it.  He  said  to  her,  "  Mary  !  " 
In  his  lifetime  it  is  probable  that  he  had  never  called  the  other 
Marys  with  the  tone  in  which  he  was  accustomed  to  prtmounce 
her  name,  the  poor  dear  friend  whom  he  had  brought  out  of  the 
darkness  of  insanity  with  the  marvellous  light  of  his  love.  The 
syllables  in  the  familiar  tone  thrilled  her.  She  turned.  She  saw 
him.  She  knew  it  was  Jesus.  She  sprang  towards  him  saying, 
"Rabboni."  It  seems  that  she  would  have  embraced  him,  but- 
Jesus  checked  her.  He  said,  "  Touch  me  not,  for  I  am  not  yet 
ascended  to  my  Father  :  but  go  to  my  brethren  and  say  unto  tliem 
that  I  ascend  unto  my  Father  and  your  Father,  to  my  God  and 
your  God." 

Mary  left  him.     Her  love  was  obedient.     The  brilliant  moment 

was  past.     She  might  not  see  him  again,  but  he  was  alive.     He 

M'as  to  meet  the  brethren  in  Galilee.     He  was  not 

Her  obedience,    ^j^^  Comforter ;   he  had  not  yot  come  in  that  cha- 
racter, as  he  had  promised  his  disciples,  because  he  had  not  yet 


AND    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  691 

ascended  to  the  Father.  So  Mary  of  Magdala,  lovingest  of  women, 
ont  of  whom  Jesus  had  east  seven  devils,  and  into  whom  seven 
angels  had  come,  sad  Mary,  glad  Mary,  left  her  Lord  and  went 
about  the  errand  on  which  he  sent  her. 

The  interview  was  exceedingly  brief.  Before  the  other  women 
could  reach  the  city,  Jesus  was  with  them.  He  met  them.  He 
saluted  them  with  "All  hail !  "  Combining  the 
accounts  given  by  Mark  and  Matthew,  a  very  natu-  '^^®  °*^®^  '^°" 
ral  history  seems  to  me  to  be  this :  The  women 
had  entered  the  sepulchre  and  seen  where  Jesus  lay ;  then  they 
had  the  vision  of  the  angels ;  then  they  went  out  "  quickly  "  and 
fled  from  the  sepulchre,  for  they  trembled  and  were  amazed,  "  and 
departed  with  fear  and  great  joy."  Leaving  the  sepulchre  in  great 
agitation,  they  may  have  wandered  off  from  the  city  quite  as 
naturally  as  towards  it ;  but  recalling  the  message  of  the  angel  to 
the  disciples,  their  joy  p]-edominated  ;  their  mental  equipoise  began 
to  return.  To  make  up  the  lost  time,  they  began  to  run,  and  thus 
they  met  Jesus,  They  knew  him  at  once.  As  soon  as  he  saluted 
them  they  fell  at  his  feet,  clasping  them  and  rendering  him  hom- 
age. He  permitted  in  them  what  he  had  forbidden  in  Mary  of 
Magdala.  Their  worship  and  their  feelings  were  quite  different 
from  those  of  the  loving  Mary.  Jesus  soothed  them,  saying,  "  Bo 
not  afraid  ;  go  tell  the  brethren  that  I  go  into  Galilee,  and  there 
shall  they  see  me." 

As  the  women  went  to  bear  this  message  to  the  disciples,  some 
of  the  watch  went  to  report  to  the  Pharisees,  and  to  consult  for 
their  own  safety.  The  Sanhedrim  assembled.  The 
soldiers  pi-obably  told  the  facts  as  they  occurred. 
The  council  was  driven  to  desperation.  They  had  hoped  that  the 
money  given  Judas  should  end  the  matter.  Isow  there  must  be 
more  bribery.  They  gave  the  soldiers  '*  large  money,"  as  our 
common  version  has  it ;  "  sufficient  silver  pieces  "  it  is  in  the  ori- 
ginal. They  instructed  them  what  to  say ;  it  was  this :  "  His  dis- 
ciples came  by  night  and  stole  him  away  while  Ave  slept."  They 
also  pledged  themselves  to  stand  between  them  and  Pilate,  if  a 
report  of  the  affair  should  reach  the  governor's  ears. 

AVe  can  readily  account  for  the  mental  and  moral  temper  of  the 
majority  of  the  Sanhedrim.     A  course  of  crime 
had   blunted  their  sensibilities.     It  was   natural 
that  they  should  offer  money  to  the  soldiers.     It  was  natural  that 


692  THE    RESURRECTTOX    OF   JESUS 

the  soldiers  should  accept  it.  Their  case  was  this :  having  dis- 
charged their  duty  faithfully,  they  were  in  such  circumstances 
that  if  tried  by  a  military  court  they  would  be  executed.  Csesar 
would  take  no  "  angel "  for  an  excuse.  They  had  suffered  the 
government  seal  to  be  violated.  They  had  committed  a  military 
crime.  If  brought  to  trial  their  doom  was  scaled.  They  would 
better  make  all  out  of  their  circumstances  that  could  be  made. 
They  took  the  money,  and  took  the  pledge  of  the  priests,  and  went 
off  and  awaited  events. 

But  there  is  no  evidence  that  these  soldiers  ever  told  to  a  mili- 
tary tribunal  what  the  Sanhedrim  put  into  their  mouths.  They 
could  not  be  woree  men  than  the  priests,  and  not 
e  conspiracy,  ^^^^^y  fools  as  to  tell  a  lie  that  would  convict  them. 
It  is  quite  probable  that  they  repeated  the  stupid  falsehood  to 
some  of  the  populace,  in  the  presence  of  some  of  the  priests,  to  make 
o-ood  their  bargain.  The  priests  would  use  it  among  the  \nilgar 
people,  and  thus  the  report  would  gain  currency  among  the  Jews. 
But  the  soldiers  would  not  have  said  so  if  arrested.  "  We  slept : " 
that  was  a  crime  for  which  death  would  be  inflicted,  according  tc 
imperial  law.  "  They  stole : "  how  could  men  tell  what  was  done, 
or  who  did  it,  while  they  were  asleep?  But  it  is  quite  easy  to  see 
why  the  soldiers  did  as  they  were  taught :  there  was  in  that  direc- 
tion some  possibility  of  escape,  but  none  in  any  other. 

That  the  body  of  Jesus  could  not  have  been  stolen  by  any  one, 
a  very  slight  inspection  of  the  facts  must  show.  If  stolen,  it  was  by 
friends  or  by  foes,  by  the  Jewish  authorities  or  by 
tolen  °  "^  ^°  the  disci})les.  The  former  could  not  have  takeii  it ; 
for  if  they  had,  they  would  have  made  an  exhibi- 
tion of  the  coqise  after  three  days,  and  thus  secured  a  complete 
demolition  of  the  claims  of  Jesus.  The  disciples  could  not  have 
done  so.  The  presence  of  the  dead  body  would  be  a  perpetual 
reminder  of  the  death  of  their  hopes.  There  would  be  no  stimu- 
lus in  that.  They  had  no  conceivable  reason  for  stealing  the  body. 
If  they  had,  they  could  not  have  accomplished  it.  They  were  too 
few  to  overpower  the  guard.  If  tliey  had  made  the  attack  some 
would  have  been  at  least  wounded,  aud  perhaps  killed,  and  the 
uproar  would  have  aroused  the  city.  But  this  is  not  charged.  It 
is  unreasonable  to  suppose  that  all  the  guard  were  asleep  at  once, 
and  that  at  that  juncture  tlie  disciples  stole  the  body.  That  would 
have  involved  the  breakinf;^  of  the  government  seal  on  a  night 


AIJD    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  693 

when  the  moon  was  at  its  full,  and  the  city  was  crowded,  and  the 
populace  was  excited.  If  that  had  occurred  the  disciples  would 
have  been  prosecuted.  But  they  never  were  prosecuted.  The 
testimony  of  the  soldiers  would  then  have  been  called  into  court, 
and  that  would  have  acquitted  the  disciples  and  covered  the  San- 
hedrim with  shame. 

There  were  in  the  Sanhedrim  a  few  who  believed  in  Jesus,  and 
to  them — to  such  men  as  Joseph  and  Nicodemus,  for  instance — 
the  early  historians  must  have  been  indebted  for  a  narrative  of 
what  had  passed  in  the  Sanhedrim,  including  their  infamous  and 
stupid  proposition  to  the  soldiers.  \ 

Wlien  the  w^omen  returned  and  made  their  report  the  disciples 
did  not  believe ;  but  what  the  women  said  seemed  to  them  like 
"  crazy  talk," 

That  afternoon   tw^o  disciples  left  Jerusalem  to  walk  to  Em- 

maus,  a  village  seven  miles  distant.  The  name  of  one  is  preserved. 

It  was  Cleopas ;   but  we  know  not  who  he  was. 

rm  1  111  1  lie         ,      .^  On  the  wav  to 

ihey    started    probably    about    halt-past    three    Emmaus 

o'clock,  after  the  evening  sacrifice.  They  had 
heard  the  reports  w-hich  seemed  to  have  been  circulated  among 
the  friends  of  Jesus,  that  the  sepulchre  was  empty.  As  they  walked 
they  conversed  upon  the  subject  nearest  to  all  their  hopes  and 
fears  and  interests,  the  dead  Jesus,  and  what  had  happened  in 
the  three  eventful  days.  They  were  perplexed.  They  "  reasoned.'' 
They  were  probably  striving  to  reconcile  the  apparently  conflicting 
facts,  the  claims  of  Jesus  and  his  manifest  power,  with  the  igno- 
minious death  which  he  had  suffered.  Jesus  drew  near  and 
walked  with  them ;  but  they  were  so  absorbed  that  they  did  not 
notice  him. 

He  spoke  to  them  respectfully  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  be  offen- 
sive even  in  a  stranger.     "  What  are  these  words  that  ye  exchange 
one  with  another  as  ye  walk?"     Luke  says  that 
"  they  stood  with  sorrowful  countenances."    They    g^jj-^no-er 
looked  at  Jesus,  but  did  not  recognize  him.     The 
same  historian  says,  "  their  eyes  were  holden  that  they  should  not 
know  him."     Mark  says  that  Jesus  "appeared  in  another  form 
unto  them."    It  is  to  be  noticed  that  some  change  must  have  passed 
in  the  appearance  of  his  person.     None  of  his  friends  recognized 
him  immediately  on  first  sight ;  but  none  failed  to  recognize  him 
afterwards.     "Who  can  tell  what  that  chano-e  was  ?     It  was  his 


694  THE   RESUERECTION   OF   JESUS 

ovm  body.  They  all  saw,  and  some  touched  him.  "Was  the  gi-oss- 
ness  of  the  material  body  disappearing,  and  the  fineness  of  the 
spiritual  body  coming  forth?  But  we  are  to  record  only  what  are 
the  facts  in  the  case. 

When  Jesus  asked  his  question  the  two  disciples  looked  at  him. 
There  was  nothing  in  the  apj^earance  of  this  stranger  to  make  him 

seem  a  suspicious  person,  to  be  avoided,  and  the 
Grief  of  the  dis-  ,      ^  ^  i  .  .r  t   -         • 

p-  jgg  tone  and  manner  or  ms  respectrul  inquiry  com- 

mended him  to  the  confidence  which  these  simple- 
hearted  men  gave  him.  Cleopas  replied :  "  Are  you  the  only  so- 
journer in  Jerusalem  who  has  not  known  these  things  that  have 
come  to  pass  there  in  these  days  ?  "  It  was  a  polite  reflection  on 
his  apparent  ignorance.  "  "Wliat  things  ? "  asked  the  stranger,  to 
draw  him  out.  One  of  them  answered,  "  Concerning  Jesus  the 
Nazarene,  who  was  a  man,  a  prophet  mighty  in  act  and  speech 
before  God  and  all  the  people ;  and  how  the  chief  priests  and  our 
rulers  delivered  him  to  be  condemned  to  death  and  have  crucified 
him."  And  then,  running  out  into  confidential  lamentations  to 
the  attentive  and  sympathizing  stranger,  the  speaker  continued : 
"  But  we  hoped  that  it  had  been  he  who  was  about  to  redeem 
Israel ;  yet,  for  all  these  hopes,  this  is  the  third  day  since  these 
things  were  done.  Besides,  certain  women  of  our  company 
astounded  us,  who  were  carlv  at  the  tomb,  and  not  havinir  found 
his  body  they  returned,  saying  that  they  had  seen  a  vision  of 
angels,  who  say  that  he  is  living.  And  certain  of  those  with  u? 
went  to  the  tomb  and  found  it  thus,  according  also  as  the  women 
had  said  :  but  him  they  saw  not !  " 

The  stranger  had  completely  won  their  confidence  and  tested 
the  genuineness  of  their  grief,  their  faith,  their  love,  and  their 
fears.  They  had  even  confessed  themselves  disciples  of  the  pro- 
pliet  who  had  seemed  to  have  failed,  whose  ignominious  execution 
liad  blasted  their  hopes  but  not  their  affection.  They  even  ad- 
mitted him  to  a  knowledge  of  what  was  passing  in  the  inner  circle 
of  the  friends  of  the  crucified  Jesus.  These  simple-hearted  pea- 
sants were  the  first  confessors. 

Then  Jesus  replied,  "  O  thouglitless  and  slow  of  heart  to  believe 

all  that  the  prophets  have  spoken !     Ought  not 

thf  tlo  dildplet°    The  Christ  to  have  suffered  these  things  and  to 

enter  his  glory  ? "     They  supposed  their  Master  to 

be  The  Christ  of  God :  if  so,  the  l)ooks  held  to  be  sacred  writings 


AND   SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  695 

bv  the  Jewish  people  pointed  to  just  sncli  a  course  of  affairs  as 
liad  happened  to  Jesus.  Then  he  began  with  Moses,  and  running 
tlirougli  ]iis  writings  and  those  of  their  prophets,  he  explained  to 
these  simple  men  that  those  very  things  which  had  shaken  their 
confidence  should  be  confirmatory  of  the  faith  of  all  those  who 
understood  and  believed  the  Holy  Scriptures.  We  can  never 
know  what  special  passages  Jesus  quoted  and  expounded  in  this 
conversation  ;  but  it  is  not  diflicult  now  to  see  how  the  whole  sys- 
tem of  worship  instituted  under  Moses  can  be  made  highly  typical 
of  what  happened  to  Jesus,  to  the  minds  of  those  who  believe  in 
him.  It  was  new  light  to  these  simple  but  thoughtful  men,  and 
they  received  it  gladly. 

Upon  reaching  the  house  where  they  were  to  abide,  Jesus  was 
about  to  take  his  leave  and  pass  on.  But  he  had  been  so  charm- 
ing a  talker,  his  glowing  eloquence  had  so  won 

the  hearts  of  his  two  ingenuous  listeners,  that  they    u-  ^^^t^  ''^^^'^'' 

1    -I.        ,        ,  r,       ,  ^^       '  *^     himself, 

urged  hmi   to  stay  with  them.     He   consented. 

Wlien  the  meal  was  spread  Jesus  assumed  the  host's  place.  As 
they  reclined  at  the  table  he  took  bread  and  uttered  the  usual 
thanksgiving,  which,  according  to  the  Jewish  ritual,  was  obliga- 
tory where  three  ate  together.  There  was  something  in  the  tone, 
or  there  was  some  change  come  over  Jesus,  which  caused  them  to 
recognize  their  dear  dead  friend,  or,  perhaps,  as  he  broke  the 
bread  they  saw  his  wounded  hands.  "  Their  eyes  were  opened," 
says  Luke.     At  that  instant  Jesus  became  invisible  to  them. 

This  can  scarcely  be  regarded  as  the  history  of  a  subjective 
process  on  their  part.  That  both  should  see  the  same  man,  and 
hear  the  same  words  through  a  long  discourse,  and  see  him  as 
they  prepared  the  meal,  and  behold  and  hear  him  while  uttering 
the  thanksgiving,  and  both  lose  sight  of  him  at  once,  and  the 
whole  be  a  mere  subjective  fancy  of  both  minds,  is  not  at  all  in 
accordance  with  the  well-known  laws  of  our  intellectual  constitu- 
tion.    His  disappearance  is  not  explained. 

Then  they  said  to  each  other,  "  Did  not  our  hearts  burn  within 
us  as  he  talked  to  us  by  the' way,  and  opened  the  Scriptures  to 
us  ? "  They  were  so  excited  at  what  had  happened 
that  they  arose  and  returned  to  Jerusalem.  It  ^^^^^^  '"^^'''^  ^'^ 
must  have  been  night ;  but  enough  was  happening  ^  '''*"^" 
to  draw  the  little  circle  closer  together.  When^  Cleopas  and  his 
companion  reached  the  city  they  found  the  eleven  Apostles  to- 


696  THE   RESUKEECTION    OF   JESUS 

getlier  and  others  of  the  disciples.     As  soon  as  they  entered  some 

one  said  to  them,  "  The  Lord  is  risen  indeed,  and  has  appeared  to 

Simon."     And  perhaps  all  the  strange  occurrences  of  the  day,  so 

far  as  they  knew  them,  were  related  by  the  company  to  the  two 

who  had  just  come  from  Emmaus. 

"We  do  not  know  when  this  appearance  to  Peter  occurred.     It 

was  some  time  since  morning-,  of  course  ;  but  whether  it  was  before 

or  after  the  revelation  of  himself  to  the  Emmaus 
Jesus     appears     ■,.     .   ^  ■,  r  ^   •    •  t^ 

p  ,  disciples,  we  have  no  means  or  ascertaining,     it 

might  have  been  after.  There  was  time  enough. 
The  company  were  evidently  greatly  excited  by  the  appearance  to 
Peter.  In  an  earlier  part  of  the  day  he  may  have  gone  to  the 
sepulchre,  or  he  may  have  been  wandering  about  the  suburbs  or 
through  the  streets,  very  disconsolate  and  unhappy.  None  of  the 
disciples  had  as  much  cause  for  sorrow  as  he.  He  had  denied  his 
Lord  and  broken  into  profanity.  The  last  look  which  Jesus  gave 
him  must  have  haunted  him.  Even  if  his  Master  had  risen  from 
the  dead,  would  he  appear  to  him  ?  He  had  forfeited  his  place. 
Perhaps  none  of  his  brother  Apostles  knew  how  basely  he  had 
acted :  but  Jesus  did.  Would  he  allow  poor  Simon  to  fall  peni- 
tently at  his  feet  ? 

Nothing  can  be  more  beautiful  or  appropriate  than  these  first 
appearances  of  Jesus.  He  first  shows  himself  to  the  grief  of  love 
in  Mary  of  Magdala.  Lie  next  shows  himself  to  the  grief  of  per- 
plexity in  the  two  Emmaus  disciples.  He  then  shows  himself  to 
the  grief  of  penitence  in  Peter.  It  was  all  in  beautiful  consis- 
tency with  the  character  he  had  displayed  through  his  whole  career. 

After  the  assembly  had  informed  Cleopas  and  his  companion 
of  what  was  known  in  Jerusalem,  they,  in  turn,  gave  an  account 
of  their  interview  with  Jesus  in  Emmaus  and  on  the  way  thither, 
and  especially  told  of  how  Jesus  was  made  known  to  them  in  the 
breaking  of  bread.  There  was  great  incredulity  in  the  company, 
and  much  perplexity.  They  all  believed  that  he  was  no  longer  in 
the  sepulchre;  l)ut  his  appearance  to  Mary  and  the  other  women, 
and  Simon,  wlio  professed  to  have  seen  him,  seemed  to  them  like 
hallucination.  The  story  told  by  the  Emmaus  disciples  increased 
the  perplexity  of  the  company.  Jesus  was  seen  so  often,  in  such 
different  places,  so  near  the  same  time,  and  vanishing  so  strangely. 
It  began  to  be  frightful.  It  suggested  spiritual  appearances 
They  were  mournfully  disturbed. 


AND    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  697 

It  was  probably  the  first  time  they  had  been  gathered  together 

8ince  the  supper  with  Jesus  on  Thursday  night.     They  were  afraid 

of  the  church  authorities,  and  so  the  doors  were       ^. 

_  ,  ,  .  1      •      1  First    assembly 

shut.     Just  when  they  were  ni  most  perplexity  by    ^^  ^-^^  disciples. 

all  these  narratives  of  preternatural  things,  Jesus 

suddenly  appeared  in  their  midst.     Whether  he  opened  the  door, 

or  was  admitted  by  the  doorkeeper,  who  might  have  seen  that  it 

Avas  Jesus,  or  w^hether  it  was  accomplished  in  some  way  still 

'•'  unknown  to  our  philosophy,"  we  cannot  say.     Here  is  the  simple 

historical  statement.     It  shows  that  he  was  no  longer  in  the  grave, 

but  was  in  bodily  intercourse  with  the  disciples.     As  he  entered 

he  said  :  "  Peace  to  you !  "     It  was  his  usual  salutation.     But  they 

were  terrified  and  affrighted.     They  thought  they  saw  a  spirit,  a 

phantasm,  a  ghost,  something  produced  preternaturally.     Their 

nerves  were  unstrung  b}^  the  events  of  the  day.     They  w^ere  so 

agitated  that  they  did  not  notice  his  salutation. 

He  said  to  them  :  "  Why  are  you  troubled  ?     And  why  do  rea  • 

sonings  arise  in  your  hearts  ? "     He  saw  that  they  regarded  him 

as  some  strange  "  appearance "  merely.     He  re-       ^         .      ,   . 

,    ,  »  ,     ,.      .        ,,  1  Jesus   in   their 

proved  them  for  not  believmg  the  men  and  women    ^.^^^ 

who  had  seen  him  and  had  reported  his  resurrec- 
tion, thus  preparing  them  for  his  coming  into  their  midst.  He 
exhibited  the  wounds  which  they  knew  he  had  received  in  cruci- 
fixion. "  Behold  my  feet  and  my  hands,  that  it  is  I  myself : 
handle  me,  and  see :  for  a  spirit  has  not  flesh  and  bones  as  you 
see  me  have." 

Whether  they  touched  him  or  not  we  do  not  know  ;  they  might 
have  done  so.  But  they  were  overjoyed;  they  were  too  glad  to 
believe ;  they  were  full  of  wonder.  The  sight  of  Jesus  was  first 
terrible,  and  then  glorious.  They  were  in  a  state  of  great  mental 
agitation,  described  very  naturally  by  these  intelligent  historians. 
They  behaved  just  as  people  would  behave  who  were  not  placing 
a  part  or  posturing  for  effect. 

Jesus  said  very   simply,  "  Have  you  anything  to  eat  here  ? " 
They  gave  him  some  broiled  fish  and  some  honey-comb.     He  took 
them  and  ate,  the  whole  company  beholding  him. 
And  while  eatinp;,  he  said  to  them  :  "  These  are    ^,    ^   ^^  ^    ^^ 

'-^  .  them. 

the  words  which  I  spoke  to  you,  while  I  was  }et 

with  you,  that  all  things  must  be  fulfilled  which  are  written  in 

the  law  of  Moses,  and  in  the  Prophets,  and  in  the  Psalms,  con- 


698  THE   EESUERECTION    OF   JESUS 

cerning  me."  These  are  the  parts  into  which  thej  M-ere  accus- 
tomed to  classify  the  canonical  Scriptures.  He  showed  that  they 
all  pointed  to  his  death  and  resurrection.  lie  assisted  them, 
opening  their  understanding,  that  they  might  know  what  the 
Scriptures  meant  in  passages  which  had  been  sealed  to  them.  He 
concluded  by  adding,  "  Thus  it  is  written  that  The  Christ  should 
suffer,  and  rise  from  the  dead  the  third  day,  and  that  repentance 
for  the  remission  of  sins  should  be  proclaimed  in  his  name  among 
all  the  nations,  beginning  at  Jerusalem.  You  are  witnesses  of 
these  things  :  and,  Ijehold,  I  send  the  promise  of  the  Father  upcjn 
you :  but  tarry  in  the  city  until  you  be  endued  with  power  from 
on  high,"  He  cleared  up  for  them  a  point  which  was  gi-eatly 
dark  to  the  Jewish  mind,  namely,  that  The  Christ,  the  Messiah  of 
God,  should  be  a  sufferer.  They  had  so  thoroughly  misread  the 
Scriptures.  We  need  not  be  surprised  at  that,  when  w^e  see  how 
traditional  readings  of  the  New  Testament  come  to  have  such 
influence  on  men,  that  when  one  gives  a  natural  and  consistent 
interpretation  it  often  seems  a  shocking  innovation.  His  com- 
mand to  remain  in  Jerusalem  must  be  understood  as  making  that 
their  centre  and  headquarters,  as  we  soon  see  them  ordered  to 
Galilee  for  a  season. 

John  records  that  Jesus  again  said,  "  Peace  unto  you  !  As  my 
Father  has  sent  me,  I  also  will  send  you."  And  then  he  breathed 
on  them,  and  said :  "  Receive  the  Holy  Spirit.  If 
you  remit  the  sins  of  any,  they  shall  be  remitted 
to  them ;  and  if  you  retain  the  sins  of  any,  they  are  retained." 
The  act  of  breathing  seems  symbolical.  These  men  wei-e  from 
that  time  very  different  from  the  men  they  liad  l)een  before. 
They  were  wiser,  better,  deeper,  more  holy  men.  The  last  words 
are  not  to  be  interpreted  as  conferring  upou  any  corporate  body 
of  officials  the  authority  to  bind  upon  their  fellow-men  the  sins  of 
which  they  have  been  guilty,  and  to  forgive  authoritatively  all 
whom  they  choose  to  forgive.  The  meaning  of  these  words,  which 
are  here  repeated,  having  been  used  before,  we  liave  discussed 
their  signiiicance  on  pp.  421,  422. 

In  addition  we  may  add,  (1)  That  the  company  addressed  were 

not  the  twelve  Apostles,  because  thei-e  were  other  persons  present 

to  M'hom  the  Holy  Spirit  was  given,  if  given  to 

any,  and  who  received  this  authority  quite  as  much 

as  the  Apostles,  t)f  wlu^m  there  were  only  ten  present,  the  place  of 


AOT)    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  699 

Judas  II.  not  having  been  filled,  and  Thomas  Didymus  being  ab- 
sent. (2)  Moreover,  there  is  not  the  slightest  historical  evidence 
that  any  of  this  company,  whether  disciples  or  Apostles,  ever, 
separately  or  conjointly,  attempted  to  exercise  what  came  long 
afterward,  in  churchly  corruptions,  to  be  called  "  Absolution." 
This  pretence  of  priestcraft  rests  itself  altogether  on  a  misrej^re- 
sentation  of  this  passage. 

We  do  not  know  wliy  Thomas  was  absent.  There  is  no  special 
blame  to  be  attached  to  him.  lie  loved  Jesus.  lie  was  so  de- 
voted to  him  that  when  Jesus  proposed  to  return 
into  Judaea,  to  visit  the  bereaved  family  of  Laza-  ^ 
rus,  Thomas  proposed  to  accompany  him  and  die 
with  him  (see  p.  497).  The  very  love  and  distress  which  brought 
the  others  together  may  have  kept  Thomas  apart.  He  was  thor- 
oughly stunned  by  the  blow.  There  seemed  nothing  left  to  him. 
He  was  of  that  temj)erament  which  has  its  grief  aggravated  by 
seeing  the  grief  of  others.  When  the  disciples  had  been  lifted 
into  a  great  joy  by  seeing  their  Master,  they  found  Thomas  and 
told  him  all.  They  had  refused  to  believe  the  women ;  but  they 
had  accepted  the  testimony  of  Peter  and  the  two  disciples  from 
Emmaus,  before  Jesus  appeared  to  them.  Thomas  declined  the 
combined  testimony  of  the  whole  body  of  women  and  men  that 
professed  to  have  seen  Jesus. 

We  may  assign  many  and  very  diverse  reasons  for  this  incredu- 
lity, without  supposing  Thomas  extraordinarily  skeptical.  It  may 
have  been  partly  w(ninded  love,  or  love  that  felt  that  the  news 
was  too  good  to  be  true.  His  associates  were  compelled  to  ac- 
knowledge that  Jesus  had  come  to  them  very  much  after  the 
manner  of  an  apparition,  and  that  his  appearance  was  changed. 
They  may  have  confessed  that  they  had  not  touched  their  Mas- 
ter. They  could  not  convince  Thomas  throughout  all  that  week. 
To  their  repeated  representations  Thomas  at  last  gave  his  decided 
ansAver  :  "  Unless  I  shall  see  in  his  hands  the  print  of  the  nails, 
and  thrust  my  hand  into  his  side,  I  will  not  believe."  He  was  all 
the  week  in  this  unhappy  state  of  mind.  If  his  friends  were  mis- 
taken, they  were  at  least  happy. 

Another  Sabbath  passed,  and  another  Sunday.  On  Sunday 
evening  the  friends  of  Jesus  were  collected  again.  Thomas  was 
now  with  them,  Jesus  suddenly  stood  in  their  midst,  as  he  had 
done  eight  nights   before.     He   repeated    the   usual   salutation, 


700  ■       THE    KESUERECTION    OF   JESUS 

"Peace  unto  you  !  "  Then  tiiruiug  at  ouce  to  Thomas,  he  said, 
"  Eeach  hither  thy  finger,  and  see  my  hands  ;  and  reach  hither  thy 

hand,  and  thrust  it  into  mv  side,  and  be  not  faith- 
sembl    e  ^^*^'  ^"'  believing,"     Thomas  had  gazed  at  him 

through  all  this  speech.  It  was  not  a  ghost.  It 
was  not  a  phantasm.  It  was  The  Master,  However  changed,  it 
was  undoubtedly  he.  Thomas  knew  the  voice.  The  Master  had 
not  met  any  of  the  disciples  during  the  intei-vening  week,  else  they 
would  have  told  Thomas,  Xow  Jesus  knew  his  verv  thoughts, 
and  repeated  his  very  words,  and  offered  himself  to  the  very  test 
which  Thomas  had  proposed.  Thomas  believed  of  Jesus  three 
things  at  once — that  he  retained  his  personality ;  that  he  could  be 
where  he  would  at  any  moment ;  and  that  he  knew  all  tilings. 
The  whole  infidelity  of  Thomas  broke  down  at  once.  lie  ac- 
knowledged all.  The  resurrection  of  Jesus  was  an  accomplished 
fact.  Here  were  the  pierced  hands,  and  ankles,  and  side.  He 
?ras  omnipresent.  He  was  omniscient.  All  their  preconceptions 
of  their  Master  were  below  the  fact.  He  was  very  God. 
Thomas  woi-shipped  him,  calling  him  '"  My  God,"  Jesus  recog- 
nized the  faith  of  Thomas  in  his  Godhead  as  correct,  and  while 
receiving  the  homage  due  only  to  God,  he  administered  a  mild 
rebuke  for  the  slowness  of  the  faith  of  Thomas :  "  Thomas, 
you  have  believed  because  you  have  seen  me  :  blessed  are  they 
that  have  not  seen,  and  have  believed." 


II. 

All  these  six  appearances  of  Jesus  had  occurred  in  or  near  Je- 
rusalem.    It  bound  the  disciples  into  a  company  of  believei-s. 
But  as  yet  they  had  no  plan.     The  eleven  Apos- 

e    po    esm    ti^g  jef^;  ^jj^  metropolis  for  Galilee  (Matt,  xxviii. 
Galilee.  ^. 

16),  whether  at  the  immediate  direction  of  Jesus 

or  at  the  promptings  of  prudence  we  have  no  means  of  knowing. 

But  at  the  last  supper  he  had  said  to  them  words  which  M-ere  then 

incompi'ehensible :  "  After  I  am  risen  again  I  will  go  l)ef<jre  you 

(into  Galilee  "  (Mark  xiv.  28).   And  the  angel  at  the  sepulchre  had 

reminded  the  women  of  that  promise,  and  directed  them  to  "  tell 

his  disciples,  and  Peter,  that  he  goeth  before  you  imto  Galilee," 

(See  p,  689,)     They  would  prudently  remain  in  Jerusalem  until 

the  close  of  the  Passover,     Thev  would  then  follow  the  directiou 


AKD   SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  701 

of  Jesus,  and  go  back  to  their  old  homes  in  Galilee.  Beyond  that 
they  had  no  direction,  except  the  knowledge  of  the  fact  that  they 
were  to  come  back  to  Jerusalem  and  await  the  gift  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  They  did  not  know  when  that  should  occur ;  in  point  of 
fact  it  did  not  occur  until  about  two  months  afterward.  THiile 
waiting  for  the  reappearance  of  their  Lord,  and  further  direc- 
tions, they  naturally  resumed  their  old  employment  on  which 
their  livelihood  depended.  One  evening,  on  the  shore  of  the  Sea 
of  Tiberias,  Simon  Peter  said  he  should  go  a  fishing.  Thomas 
Didymus,  and  Xathanael  of  Cana,  and  James  and  John,  and  two 
other  Apostles,  who  are  not  named,  were  of  the  company.  These 
seven  were  all  experienced  fishermen,  but  they  toiled  all  night 
and  caught  nothing. 

At  break  of  day  Jesus  was  standing  on  the  shore ;  but  they  did 
not  recognize  him.     It  is  related  of  each  appearance  of  Jesus  after 
his  resurrection  that  he  was  not  recognized  at  first 
sio^ht  bv  his  most  intimate  fi-iends.     Thev  saw    ,  ,  ^^^      ^       ^ 

1  -,.  "  lake. 

the  stranger,  standing  on  the  shore,  as  an  early 
purchaser  of  fish  might  be  who  stood  where  he  saw  the  men  fish- 
ing and  awaited  an  opportunity  to  buy.  At  last  he  said,  "  Chil- 
dren, have  you  any  meat  ? "  The  form  of  the  question  would  not 
arouse  the  suspicion  that  it  was  Jesus.  They  answered,  "  Xo."  He 
said  to  them,  "  Cast  the  net  on  the  right  side  of  the  ship  and  you 
shall  find."  Even  this  did  not  reveal  Jesus.  Any  man  acquaint- 
ed with  the  lake  mio^ht  have  detected  fi'om  the  shore  some  siern 
of  fish  which  had  eluded  their  weary  eyes.  It  was  an  easy  thing 
to  do ;  so  they  followed  the  stranger's  direction,  and  they  were 
not  able  to  draw  the  net  for  the  multitude  of  the  fishes. 

John's  quick  eye  first  recognized  Jesus.  He  said  to  Peter,  "  It 
is  the  Lord."  Since  the  crucifixion  these  two  men,  so  much  un- 
like, each  ha^-ing  what  the  other  lacked,  had  been  drawn  into  a 
very  close  companionship.  They  were  in  a  boat  together.  Peter, 
always  impulsive,  pulled  on  his  fisher's  coat  to  go  to  Jesus.  The 
vessel  was  about  three  hundred  feet  from  the  shore.  The  other 
disciples  came  up  to  the  help  of  John,  and  they  dragged  the  net 
and  the  fishes  up  near  enough  to  the  shore  to  secure  them. 

Upon  landing  they  saw  a  fire  of  coals,  and  fish  thereon,  and 
bread.  Jesus  directed  them  to  bring  of  the  fish  they  had  just 
^aught ;  and  Simon  Peter,  perhaps  now  recollecting  how  he  had 
abandoned  John,  promptly  obeyed  the  command,  and  landed  the 


702  THE   RESURRECTION    OF   JESUS 

unbroken  net  with  its  contents  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-three 
great  fishes.  Jesus  tlien  said,  "  Come  and  dine."  Jesus  divided 
the  bread  and  the  fish.  It  was  a  silent  meaL  A  tender  awe  was 
on  the  company.  The  disciples  knew  it  was  "  tlie  Lord,"  as  they 
had  now  learned  to  call  him,  but  they  asked  him  no  questions. 

AVlien  all  had  eaten,  Peter,  who  since  his  denial  of  his  Master 
must  have  felt  that  he  had  largely  lost  the  confidence  of  his  asso- 
ciates, and  must  have  felt  very  uncomfortable  as 
to  the  opinion  which  Jesus  had  of  him,  was  called 
to  endure  a  painful  ordeal,  which  resulted,  however,  in  the  re-es- 
tablishment of  his  confidence  in  Jesus  and  of  the  confidence  of 
his  brethren  in  him.  Jesus  said  to  him,  "  Simon,  son  of  Jonas, 
do  you  love  me  more  than  these?"  This  must  have  recalled 
to  him  his  boastful  professions  compared  with  their  reserve,  and 
his  cowardly  desertion  compared  with  their  fidelity.  His  reply 
was,  "  Yes,  Lord ;  you  know  that  I  love  you."  He  does  not  now 
rest  the  proof  of  his  devotion  on  bragging  professions  of  what  he 
would  do,  but  upon  the  consciousness  of  his  Master,  who  must 
have  believed,  notwithstanding  the  dark  passage  of  his  momen- 
tary weakness,  that  Peter  loved ;  or,  if  he  did  not,  nothing  the 
disciple  could  now  say  would  convince  him.  Jesus  replied,  "  Feed 
my  lambs."  Perhajis  a  brief  silence  ensued.  Jesus  then  varied 
the  question,  and,  looking  down  into  Peter's  eyes,  said,  "  Simon, 
son  of  Jonas,  do  you  love  me?^''  Poor  Peter  had  only  the  same 
reply  to  make  :  "  Yes,  Lord  ;  you  know  that  I  love  you."  Jesus 
said,  "  Feed  my  sheep."  After  another  silence  Jesus  repeated  liis 
question  :  "  Simon,  son  of  Jonas,  do  you  love  me  ? "  All  this  was 
passing  in  the  presence  of  his  associate  Apostles.  Jesus  was  most 
tender,  but  this  probing  was  most  painful.  But  Peter  could  not 
complain.  Thrice  had  he  denied  his  Master.  The  othei-s  had 
not  done  so.  It  was  not  unfair  that  he  should  be  called  upon 
publicly  to  make  a  triple  reversal  of  his  triple  denial.  But 
it  pierced  Peter  to  the  heart.  This  third  time  he  threw  his  case 
on  the  knowledge  of  his  Master.  "Lord,  you  know  all  things; 
you  know  that  I  love  you."  The  "  all  things  "  involved  Peter's 
denials;  but  the  subject  was  so  distressing  to  him  that  he  could 
not  speak  more  specifically  of  what  was  so  shameful  in  his  his- 
tory. Then  Jesus  replied,  "  Feed  my  sheep."  It  was  the  com- 
plete restoration  of  Peter.  lie  was  to  be  a  pastor,  an  under-shep- 
herd  of  the  flock  of  God. 


iiii'||j!|ip!!!'''''"2Si'':5 


AND    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  703 

Then  in  tenderness,  but  to  lay  on  tlie  over-arclent  temperament 
of  Peter  what  should  be  a  balance- weight  to  his  character,  Jesns 
intimated  to  him  that  he  should  die  a  violent 
death.  Jesus  had  never  made  a  prophecy  to 
gratify  curiosity.  lie  would  never  be  classed  with  fortune- 
tellers and  magicians.  But  he  said  to  Peter,  as  indicating  his 
aifection  for  him  and  his  confidence  in  him,  "  Yerily,  verily,  I  say 
to  you.  When  yon  were  young  you  girded  yourself,  and  walked 
whither  yon  would ;  but  when  you  become  old  you  shall  stretch 
forth  your  hands,  and  another  shall  gird  you,  and  carry  you 
whither  you  would  not  go."  John,  who  was  present,  and  who 
records  this  sa3ang,  adds,  "  This  he  spake  signifying  by  what 
death  he  (Peter)  should  glorify  God."  John  understood  it,  and, 
of  course,  Peter  did.  Perhaps  Jesus  added  some  tone  or  ges- 
ture or  word  not  recorded,  which  made  his  speech  perfectly 
intelligible  to  the  parties  concerned.  Peter  had  once  said  that 
he  would  follow  Jesus  anywhere.  Jesus  had  been  crucified.  It 
should  be  the  fate  of  Peter  to  follow  his  Master  even  to  crucifix- 
ion, and  thus  have  his  words  verified  in  a  sense  he  had  not 
meant.  Perhaps  it  was  a  melancholy  comfort  to  Peter  to  know 
that,  in  any  sense,  what  he  had  said  would  come  true. 

Then  Jesus  rose  and  said  to  Peter,  "  Follow  me."  Peter  looked 
at  his  friend  John,  who  had  risen  and  followed  with  him,  drawn 
by  his  devotion  to  Jesus  and  his  friendship  for 
Peter.  At  the  last  supper  John  had  asked  a 
question  of  the  Master  at  the  suggestion  of  Peter.  Now  Peter 
asked  a  cpiestion  for  John  :  "  Lord,  and  what  this  man  ? "  It  was 
a  question  of  mere  affectionate  curiosity.  Jesus  replied,  "  If  I 
will  that  he  tarry  till  I  come,  what  is  it  to  you  ?  Do  you  follow 
me ! "  It  recalled  Peter  to  a  sense  of  his  propriety  and  of  his 
personal  responsibility.  It  told  him  nothing  about  the  fate  of  his 
friend,  but  the  report  was  circulated  among  "  the  brethren  "  that 
John  should  not  die.  He  did  live  to  a  great  age.  He  is  the 
historian  of  this  interview,  and  adds,  "Yet  Jesus  did  not  say.  He 
shall  not  die ;  but.  If  I  will  that  he  tarry  till  I  come^  what  is 
that  to  you  ?  "  As  John's  life  prolonged  itself,  that  saying  of 
Jesus  must  have  come  to  his  recollection  very  often  with  very  great 
force  ;  but  never  perhaps  so  impressively  as  when,  forty  years 
after,  he  survived  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem,  a  frightful  event ; 
winch  Jesus  in  his  discourses  was  accustomed  to  associate  with  hi? 


704  THE   RESURKECTION    OF   JESUS 

"  coramir,"  ^e  cannot  fail  to  notice  the  claims  which  Jesus  here 
makes  to  a  c<jmplete  control  over  the  periods  of  men's  lives.  "  I 
will,"  as  applied  to  fixing  the  limits  of  human  life,  is  the  lan- 
guage of  the  Almighty  God,  and  is  blasphemy  in  the  mouth  of 
any  one  who  is  not  God. 


III. 

It  appears  from  Matthew's  account  (xxviii.  16)  that  Jesus  had 
appointed  a  time  and  a  place  in  Galilee  to  meet  his  followers. 
We  know  of  the  time  only  that  it  was  within 
forty  days  after  the  resurrection.  The  place  was 
a  mountain.  It  would  seem  that  Mount  Tabor  would  be  the 
most  convenient  place  for  such  an  assemblage.  The  fact  that  it 
was  inhabited  is  against  the  theory  of  those  who  would  make  it 
the  scene  of  the  Transfiguration,  but  is  rather  in  favor  of  its  se- 
lection for  this  meeting,  as  the  inhabitants  were  Galilseans,  and 
would  be  at  least  not  unfriendly  to  the  followers  of  Jesus.  Tabor 
is  six  miles  east  of  Xazareth.  "  North wai-d  it  overlooks  all  the 
confronting  highlands  of  Galilee  ;  southward  it  extends  far  down 
into  the  plain  of  Jezreel"(Lange).  On  the  top  is  a  table  about 
a  mile  and  a  half  in  circumference. 

This  is  the  only  occasion  mentioned  by  any  Evangelist  which 

can  correspr.)nd  with  a  fact  mentioned  by  Paul  in  his  first  letter 

to  the  Corinthians  (xv.  6).      "lie  was  seen  of 

ive      uncre     q^q^q  ^^,g  hundred  brethren  at  once."     It  would 

brethren  at  once. 

seem  that  the  Apostles  had  been  at  pams  to 
make  this  appointment  knovm  to  all  who  might  be  supposed 
to  be,  in  any  sense,  disciples  of  Jesus.  It  was  a  large  gathering. 
Afterwards,  in  Jerusalem,  this  company  mustered  only  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty.  While  in  Galilee,  and  before  this  meeting,  the 
Apostles  liad  doubtlessly  been  industriously  repeating  the  narra- 
tive of  all  tlic  strange  occurrences  of  the  resurrection  and  the 
repeated  ap[)earances  of  Jesus.  Thomas  had  most  probably  been 
giving  an  account  of  his  mental  processes  by  which  he  had  gone 
over  from  despondent  unbelief  to  exultant  faitli  in  Jesus  as  God, 
and  had  told  how  he  had  worshipped  Jesus,  and  how  the  Master 
had  received  the  homage  due  only  to  God. 

Jesus  appeared  in  their  midst.    No  account  has  been  preserved 
of  his  manner  of  approach.     Wlien  they  saw  him  the  body  of  the 


sion. 


AND    SUBSEQUENT    EVENTS.  705 

disciples  worshipped  liim.  But  some  hesitated.  In  the  common 
version  it  is  said  some  "  doubted  "  (Matt,  xxviii.  17).  But  this 
is  not  the  meaning  of  the  word.  None  doubted  j^g^^  .^appears, 
that  this  was  Jesus.  Thej  all  knew  him,  and  had 
all  met  at  this  time,  on  this  mountain,  at  his  appointment.  But  it 
is  most  reasonable  to  suppose  that  among  five  hundred  persons 
there  should  be  several  who  had  the  temperament  of  Tliomas, 
and  were  slow  to  worship.  The  historian,  who  was  present,  does 
not  say  that  all  worshipped,  but  he  does  frankly  state  that  "  some 
hesitated." 

Jesus  met  these  doubts  as  to  his  divinity  with  a  vast  claim. 
lie  approached  the  doubters  and  said,  "  All  power  is  given  to  me 
in  heaven  and  on  earth."     He  claimed  to  be  al- 

•    1  rrn  1  11  1  •  1  The       commis- 

mighty.  These  words  could  mean  nothing  else 
to  the  listeners.  They  must  believe  that,  or  they 
could  never  undertake  the  great  work  he  was  about  to  place  iu 
their  hands.  This  was  the  commission :  "  Go,  make  disciples  of 
all  the  nations,  baptizing  them  into  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Spirit :  Teaching  them  to  ob- 
serve all  things,  whatever  I  have  commanded  you:  And  lo, 
I  am  with  you  every  day  till  the  consummation  of  the  present 
seon." 

Of  this  commission  several  things  are  to  be  noticed. 

1.  It  was  the  last  word  of  Jesus  recorded  by  his  biographers. 

It   was   the  commitment   of    his   cause   into  the   hands  of    his 

friends.     It  is  his  last  protest  against  churchli- 

1       o  11111  The  last  record- 

ness.     Ihere  were  the  beventy,  who  had  had   a    g^^oj-d 

special  work  to  do,  and  had  done  it.  There  were 
the  Twelve,  who  were  still  to  continue  in  that  work  of  an  itine- 
rant proclamation  of  the  gospel  of  the  kingdom  of  Jesus.  But 
neither  to  the  Seventy  nor  to  the  Twelve  does  Jesus  grant  any 
corporate  powers.  What  the  Seventy  had  done,  and  what  the 
Twelve  had  to  do,  all  his  disciples  were  authorized  to  do,  wher- 
ever their  sphere  and  whatever  their  condition  in  life.  All  these 
five  hundred  might  make  disciples  and  baptize  them,  and  all 
these,  when  made  disciples,  might  in  their  turn  perform  the  same 
ofiices  for  others.  No  word  or  act  of  Jesus,  before  or  after  his 
resurrection,  can  be  fairly  employed  to  sustain  the  modern  arti- 
ficial distinction  between  "  clergymen  "  and  "  laymen." 

2.  Jesus  gives  the  name  of   God  in  the  sjmonym  of  "The 

45 


706  THE    RESURRECTION    OF   JESUS 

Father,  the  Son,  the  Iloly  Spirit.'-     lie  believed  that  there  is  one 
God.     lie  called  himself  tlie  Son.     lie  claimed  to  be  God  in  his 

oneness  with  "  The  Father,"  in  his  omnipotence, 
His  concept  of    -^^  j^j^  omnipresence,  and  in  his  eternal  existence. 

He  allowed  his  disciples  to  present  to  him  the 
worship  proper  to  be  rendered  to  Jehovah.  His  concept  of 
God  was  of  a  triunitv.  This  is  quite  manifest.  The  mode  of  the 
existence  of  this  oneness  and  this  threeness  together  he  never  dis- 
cusses. God  is  the  Father,  God  is  the  Son,  God  is  the  Holy 
Spirit :  The  Father  is  God,  the  Son  is  God,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  is 
God.  But  he  does  not  say  that  there  are  three  persons,  or  three 
several  forms  of  the  exhibition  of  one  person.  He  makes  no  dog- 
matic statement.  As  this  is  not  a  theological  treatise,  but  rather 
a  psychological  essay,  we  ha^■e  nothing  to  do  with  theological  sci- 
entific explanations.  But  the  historical  statement  is  that,  in  ]X)int 
of  fact,  in  the  mind  of  Jesus  the  concept  of  God  was  that  of  a 
trinnity. 

As  the  Jews  were  "baptized  unto  Moses,"  and  so  incorporated 
with  that  system  of  religion  which  is  represented  under  the  He- 
brew theocracy,  the  kingliness  of  the  One  Jehovah,  so  now  the 
disciples  of  Jesus  are  to  be  baptized  unto  "  The  Fatlier,  Son,  and 
Holy  Spirit,"  and  incorporated  into  that  system  of  religion  which 
is  represented  by  tlie  triple  concept  of  God  as  being  Father  and 
Son  and  Spirit,  the  living  loviugness  of  the  One  Jeliovah, 

3.  Jesus  removed  all  restrictions  to  the  labors  of  liis  disciples, 
such  as  are  recorded  in  Matthew  x.  5.     His  gospel  is  to  be  preached 

to  all  nations.     He  has  so  succeeded  in  this  that 
AU  restrictions    ^^.^  ^^.^  unable  to  appreciate,  even  by  an  eifort  of 

the  intellect,  what  a  stupendous  undertaking  it 
was.  All  other  systems  are  suited  to  nationalities.  They  there- 
fore intensified  all  tlic  narrowness  of  race,  and  that  narro\nicss 
helped  to  ])cri)etuate  them.  None  did  so  more  than  the  Jewish 
church.  To  put  Samaritans  and  Bomans  and  Greeks  and  distant 
barbarians  on  the  same  footing  of  spiritual  privilege  as  the  elect 
Jewish  race  was  an  idea  so  wide  that  it  had  never  before  entered 
the  Jewish  mind.  Jesus  believed  that  his  system  was  as  well  adapt- 
ed to  one  climate  as  iinother,  and  to  one  nation  as  another;  to  the 
polytheistical  Gentiles  as  to  the  monotheistic  Jews;  to  the  power- 
ful Iloraans  as  to  the  weak  Gauls ;  to  the  cultivated  Greeks  as  tc 
the  rough  savages  in  the  forests  of  Germany. 


AJTD    SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS.  707 

It  was  an  idea  wholly  original  with  Jesus.  He  had  no  prece- 
dent, lie  had  no  human  authority  for  it.  lie  predicted  that  it 
should  be  done.  If  he  had  simply  delivered  a 
discourse,  in  which  he  had  taught  the  desirable-  .  '^^^^^^  '®' 
ness  of  this  universal  religion,  and  that  discourse 
had  been  preserved,  it  M^ould  have  rendered  his  fame  immortal, 
and  have  placed  him  far  in  advance  of  all  the  wisest  and  most 
profound  of  human  thinkers.  Coming  from  an  unlettered  me- 
chanic, raised  in  one  of  the  meanest  villages  of  the  most  narrow 
and  bigoted  people  on  earth,  the  announcement  would  have  been 
a  mar\el  of  grandest  thought.  The  more  remarkable  fact  is,  that 
each  succeeding  centui-y  has  brought  his  words  nearer  to  a  ful- 
iilment,  and  that  noi.ie  since  his  death  has  contributed  so  much  to 
their  accomplishment  as  the  present,  a  century  full  of  hottest 
political  excitements,  of  vastest  enterprises,  of  most  material  pro- 
gress, and  largest  liberality  of  thought. 

4.  His  latest  words  were  a  claim  and  a  prediction.  They  were 
a  claim  of  perpetuity,  of  pei-sonal  jDresence,  and  personal  influence. 
He  should  exist.  He  sliould  be  present  with  each 
disciple  in  every  part  of  the  world,  every  day,  ^-^4.^^™  ^^  ' 
until  the  present  system  of  things  shall  meet  the 
cataclysm  which  shall  inaugurate  another  teon,  another  system  of 
things.  All  our  new  science  demonstrates  that  the  Great  Creator 
divides  His  biography  into  parts  and  into  chapters.  The  whole 
universe,  so  far  as  we  have  been  able  to  read  it,  is  falling  forM'ard. 
Kothing  in  the  past  gives  us  much  help  towards  ascertaining  the 
probable  length  of  the  present  aeon ;  but  everything  we  learn  in- 
creases the  probability  that  some  vast  change  shall  come. 

Everything  that  Jesus  predicted  has  come  to  pass,  except  this, 
and  this  is  coming  to  pass.     The  present  age  promises  that  when 
the  last  day  of  the  system,  of  which  thoughtful 
mcu'tals  form  a  part,  shall  arrive,  there  will  be    ^,  ^™^  ^  ® 

^        '  '  filment. 

disciples  of  Jesus  engaged  in  his  work,  according 
to  this  prediction.  They  are  now  more  busy  than  ever.  It  is  an 
important  series  of  facts  that  the  books  which  contain  the  original 
liistory  of  Jesus,  the  record  of  his  acts  and  words,  and  the  predic- 
tions which  he  made,  constitute  the  fii*st  volume  Avhich  was  set  in 
type  and  published  at  tlie  invention  of  printing;*  that  at  this 

*  It  was  issued  at  Mentz,  in  Germany,  I  Revived,  says  of  this  book  :  "  Though  a 
in  1450.     McClure,  in  his   7'/'a?t4;«ic/'^(  I  first  attempt,  it  is  beautifully  printed  on 


708 


THE   KESTJKRECTION   OF   .FESUS 


time  there  are  several  presses  engaged  on  each  of  the  continents 
in  printing  nothing  but  that  volume ;  that  it  is  printed  and 
circulated  in  more  languages  and  dialects  than  any  other  book  o" 
books  considered  by  any  criticism  as  sacred  or  profane ;  *  that  so 
soon  as  a  savage  tribe  is  discovered  its  language  is  reduced  to  a 
grammar,  that  there  shall  be  translated  into  it  the  volume,  the 
central  figure  of  which  is  Jesus  ;  that  his  name  occurs  more  fre- 
quently in  song  than  that  of  any  other  man  who  ever  lived,  and 
that  the  eighteenth  century  after  that  in  which  he  lived  has  pro- 
duced more  books  investigatino:  his  character  and  claims  than  all 
the  preceding  centuries. 


very  fine  paper,  and  with  superior  ink. 
At  least  eighteen  copies  of  this  famous 
edition  are  known  to  be  in  existence  at 
the  present  time.  Twenty-five  years 
ago,  one  of  them,  printed  on  vellum, 
was  sold  for  five  liundred  and  four 
pounds  sterling !  " 

*  The  whole  number  of  languages  and 
dialects  into  which  the  Holy  Scriptures 
have  been  translated  is  two  hundred  and 
fifty-two.  Of  these,  two  hundred  and 
five  are  versions  prepared  since  the  ori- 
gin of  Bible  Societies,  at  which  time 
the  Scriptures  had  been  translated  into 
only  forty-seven  different  languages. 
Bagster,  in  his  Bible  of  Every  Land, 
gives  specimens  of  the  Scriptures  in 
various  languages  and  dialects,  to  the 
number  of  about  three  hundred,  includ- 
ing those  which  have  been  printed  in 
different  native  characters. 

It  is  supposed  that  within  three  years 
after  the  publication  of  the  Great  Bible, 
in  1539,  no  less  than  twenty-one  thou- 
sand copies  were  printed.  Between 
1524  and  1011,  two  hundred  and  sev- 
enty-eight editions  of  Bibles  or  Testa- 
ments in  English  were  printed.  In  1611, 
1612,  and  161.3,  five  editions  of  King 
James's  version  were  publi.'thcd,  besides 
separate  editions  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment ;  and  we  have  some  slight  clue  to 
the  size  of  the  editions  in  the  fact,  that 
«ne  person  in  England  has  recently  col- 


lated no  less  than  seventy  copies  of  the 
issues  of  101 1 ;  yet,  after  all,  this  was 
the  day  of  small  things. 

Since  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  the  British  and  Foreign  Bible 
Society  has  issued  over  sixty-three  mil- 
lions of  Bibles  and  Testaments ;  the 
American  Bible  Society  has  Lssued  more 
than  twenty -seven  millions  of  volumes  ; 
other  Bible  Societies,  not  far  from 
twenty  millions  ;  while  private  publish' 
ers  in  Great  Britain,  the  United  States, 
and  elsewhere,  have  increased  these  is- 
sues by  scores  of  millions  besides. 

In  speaking  on  this  subject,  Anderson, 
in  his  AimaU  of  the  Englixh  Bible,  says  : 
' '  The  volumes  of  the  ScrijJtures  which 
have  already  been  printed  cannot  be 
numbered.  Hitherto  we  have  num- 
bered the  editions  only  ;  but  this  is  now 
impossible.  No  one  can  say  exactly  how 
many  editions  even  of  the  English  Bible 
have  been  publi.shed,  much  less  inform 
us  how  many  r^ie^." 

The  volumes  of  Holy  Writ  circulated 
^vithin  the  present  century  are  gfreatet 
in  number  than  all  that  were  in  the 
world  from  Moses  to  Martin  Luther, 
and  are  more  than  double  the  entire 
production  of  the  press,  from  the  print- 
ing of  the  first  Bible  in  1450  to  the  era 
of  Bible  Societies  in  1804.  (See  Man- 
unl  of  the  American  Bible  Society.) 


AND   SUBSEQUENT   EVENTS. 


709 


The  Ascension. 


lY. 

There  is  but  one  other  thing  to  record.  They  all  returned  to 
Jerusalem.  On  the  fortieth  day  after  his  resurrection,  Jesus  led 
them  out  to  the  neighborhood  of  Bethany.  There, 
on  some  part  of  the  Mount  of  Olives,  they  saw  him 
for  the  last  time.  He  blessed  them,  and  while  in  the  act  of  pro- 
nouncing his  final  benediction,  he  was  parted  fi-om  them.  He 
ascended  in  their  sight.  He  passed  into  a  cloud.  The  rapt 
disciples  stood  gazing  up  into  that  part  of  the  heavens  where  they 
had  last  beheld  their  Lord.  Suddenly  two  men  in  white  apparel 
stood  beside  the  silent  group,  and  one  said,  "  Ye  men  of  Galilee, 
why  do  you  stand  gazing  up  into  heaven?  This  same  Jesus, 
which  is  taken  from  you  into  heaven,  shall  so  come  in  like  man- 
ner as  you  have  seen  him  taken  into  heaven." 

The  disciples  returned  to  Jerusalem  with  great  joy.  They 
believed  that  Jesus,  who  had  departed,  was  still  present,  and  their 
sorrow  was  gone ;  and  they  who,  forty  days  before,  were  in  the 
darkness  of  despair,  now  continually  praised  God,  and  waited  foi 
the  further  direction  of  Jesus.  He  had  become  to  them  the  glory 
of  heaven  and  of  earth. 


JCSOAL  FOUND   AT   URFA,    SYBIA. 


710  THE   KESURRECnON   OF   JESUS. 

V. 

Who  is  this  Jesus  ? 

I  have  told  liis  story  as  simply  and.  as  conscientiously  as  possi- 
ble, and  have  honestly  endeavored  to  apprehend  and  to  repre- 
sent the  consciousness  of  Jesus  at  each  moment  of  his  career. 
The  work  of  the  historian  is  completed.  Each  reader  has  now 
■  the  responsibility  of  saying  who  he  is.  All  agree  that  he  was 
man.  The  finest  intellects  of  eighteen  centuries  have  believed 
that  he  was  the  greatest  and  best  man  that  ever  lived.  All  who 
have  so  believed  have  become  better  men  therefor.  We  have 
seen  that  he  never  performed  an  act  or  spoke  a  word  wliich  would 
have  been  unbecoming  in  the  Creator  of  the  Universe,  if  the 
Creator  should  ever  clothe  Himself  with  human  flesh.  Millions 
of  men — kings,  and  poets,  and  historians,  and  philosophers,  and 
busy  merchants,  and  rude  mechanics,  and  purest  women,  and 
simple  children — have  believed  that  he  is  God.  And  all  who  have 
devoutly  believed  this,  and  lived  by  this  as  a  truth,  have  become 
exemplary  for  all  that  is  beautiful  in  holiness. 

What  is  he  who  can  so  live  and  so  die  as  to  produce  such  intel- 
lectual and  moral  results  ? 

Kcader,  you  must  answer. 


ffijMjteB: 


APPEISTDICES. 


Chkonology  of  the  Biktii  of  Jesus. — Pp.  26-37. 

By  an  inadvertence  whicli  I  seek  to  correct  in  this  Appendix,  a  note 
was  omitted  in  the  proper  place,  giving  full  credit  for  my  obligation  to 
A  JVew  Harmony  and  Exjyosltion  of  the  Go!ipels^  by  James  Strong, 
LL.D.  (published  by  Carlton  &  Lanahan,  New  York),  for  much  aid 
which  I  received  from  that  vakiable  volume  in  my  discussion  of  the  date 
of  the  birth  of  Jesus. 

Capernaum. — P.  167. 

It  should  have  been  stated  in  the  text  that  the  proper  name  "  Na- 
hum"  means  "consolation."  The  reader  would  naturally  infer  that  if 
it  had  any  signification  it  was  something  else  than  "  consolation."  The 
place  may  have  been  named  for  Nahum,  or  it  may  not :  if  not,  then  its 
name  simply  signified  "  Village  of  Consolation."  I  did  not  detect  this 
inadvertence  until  after  the  page  had  been  stereotyped. 

Addition  to  Note  on  P.  189. 

Perhaps  the  auTouf,  "  them,"  in  Liike  v.  17,  may  refer  to  oj^Xoi  'ttoXXoi, 
"  great  multitudes,"  in  verse  15.  But  what  I  have  written,  both  in  the 
text  and  in  the  note,  is  \innecessary  if  the  rea'ling  of  the  /Sinakic  Codex 
be  adopted.  That  omits  the  avTovs,  and  reads  "  the  power  of  the  Lord 
wrought  in  him  so  that  he  healed."  With  the  omission  of  the  word 
"  them  "  at  the  end  of  the  sentence  the  dilficulty  disappears. 

Slaves  at  Jubilee. — P.  203. 

The  statement  in  the  second  paragraph,  in  regard  to  the  freeing  of 
slaves  at  the  Jubilee,  is  to  be  understood  with  the  limitation  stated  in 
Leviticus  xxv.,  from  which  it  would  appear  that  slaves  which  were  "  of 
the  heathen  round  about"  them,  "  of  the  children  of  the  strangers  that 


712  APPENDICES. 

Bojoumed  among"  them,  did  not  enjoy  this  provision  of  the  jubilee. 
The  statement  in  the  text  is  correct,  but  this  is  added  for  accuracy. 


Mary  of  Magdala.— Pp.  321-323. 

That  part  of  this  book  which  treats  of  Maiy  of  Magdala  was  in  the 
hands  of  the  printer  before  I  read  Dr.  Hanna's  view  of  the  case,  as  he 
gives  it  in  the  Forty  Days,  etc.,  chap.  ii.  I  am  gratified  to  have  the 
suj)port  of  this  elo(juent  preacher  so  far  as  that  this  Mary  is  not  to 
be  confounded  mth  the  "  sinner  "  who  anointed  Jesus, — and  that  she 
was  not  a  woman  of  base  character  or  low  condition, — and  that  the 
having  had  seven  devils  is  no  proof  that  she  was  of  depraved  and 
dissolute  habits.  He  well  says  :  "  Satanic  possession  carried  then  no 
more  evidence  along  with  it  of  previous  immorality  than  insanity 
would  do  now  among  ourselves," 

A  Translation  Explained. — P.  325. 

In  the  last  pai-agrapli  is  this  translation  of  the  words  of  Jesus  as  re- 
ported by  Matthew :  "  And  every  city  or  house  divided  against  itself 
shall  not  stand."  These  words  are  a  literal  but  not  a  logical  trans- 
lation of  the  original,  because,  when  the  original  is  rendered  into  our 
language  the  English  words  imply  that  some  such  city  or  house  may 
stand.  If,  however,  the  word  "  not  "  be  considered  as  attached  to  the 
predicate  and  not  to  the  copula,  tliis  translation  will  be  a  logical  as 
well  as  a  literal  rendering.  It  then  means,  "  Every  such  city  shall 
fall."  [See  Whately's  Elements  of  Logic,  book  ii.,  chap,  ii.,  §  4.] 
This  explanation  aj)plies  as  well  to  the  translation  on  p.  143,  "  that  eveiy 
one  who  trusts  in  him  may  not  perish,"  etc. 

Discipline.— Pp.  353,  354. 

This  paragrapli  may  be  suggested  by  over-caution,  but  it  may  be 
that  my  explication  of  the  pax'able  of  the  Tares  may  be  understood  by 
some  readers  to  be  a  protest  against  all  church  discipline.  I  would  not 
be  80  understood.  I  do  not  believe  tliat  Jesus  taiight  that  there  was 
to  be  no  discipline  in  the  chux-ch.  His  lesson  is  against  that  excessive 
rigor  which  is  destructive  and  not  disciplinary,  and  a  caution  against 
undue  confidence  in  our  power  of  discrimination.  One  sentence  on  page 
353  I  should  rewrite :  "  It  is  Vjcttcr  by  mistake  to  permit  an  evil  man 
to  reside  in  a  community,  a  church,  a  society,  a  town,  than  by  mistake 
to  destroy  a  good  man." 


APPENDICES.  713 

The  Woman  taken  in  Adultery, — P.  456. 

The  story  of  the  woman  taken  in  adultery  is  found  only  in  John's 
Gospel.  The  critical  editors  of  the  Greek  Testament  mark  this  whole 
passage  in  the  eighth  chapter  as  doubtful  or  spurious.  It  does  not  ap- 
pear in  the  Sinaitic  Codex.  In  the  fii'st  writing  of  this  book  I  omitted 
this  narrative.  Upon  a  review  of  the  authorities  my  opinion  agrees 
with  that  expressed  by  Dr.  Schaff:  "The  prevailing  critical  evidence, 
tliough  mostly  negative,  is  against  the  passage,  the  moral  evidence  for 
it ;  in  other  words,  it  seems  to  be  no  original  part  of  John's  written  Gos- 
pel, but  the  record  of  an  actual  event  which  probably  happened  about 
the  time  indicated  by  its  position  in  the  eighth  chapter.  The  story  could 
not  have  been  invented,  the  less  so  as  it  runs  contrary  to  the  ascetic  and 
legalistic  tendency  of  the  ancient  church,  which  could  not  appreciate  it." 
Those  who  desire  to  see  the  authorities  on  both  sides  may  consult 
Lange's  Commentary  on  the  chapter,  with  Dr.  Schafl"'s  valuable  addi- 
tions in  his  translation.  It  is  so  consistent  with  the  character  of  Jesus 
that  I  think  we  may  accept  it  as  a  real  event  in  his  life,  inserted  by 
some  unknown  author  in  the  narrative  given  by  John. 

Bethan¥=Bethabara. — P.  482. 

According  to  the  received  text,  Bethabara  is  the  name  of  the  place 
where  John  was  baptizing,  apparently  at  the  time  when  Jesus  came  to 
him  for  baptism.  (See  John  i.)  But  the  oldest  manuscripts  have 
*'  Bethany,"  a  reading  which  Origen  states  was  found  in  most  of  the 
copies  of  his  day. 

The  Translation  of  Matthew    jxix.  10. — P.  519. 

I  found  it  difficult  to  render  the  original  of  the  passage  which  in  our 
common  version  is  translated,  "  If  the  case  of  a  man  be  so  with  his 
wife."  I  am  not  yet  satisfied  with  this  translation,  and  yet  am  not  pre- 
pared to  suggest  a  better.  The  word  translated  "case"  means  cause, 
but  specially  the  cause  of  something  bad.  It  is  a  sinister  word.  My 
translation  appears  very  awkward,  now  that  I  see  it  in  print.  The 
disciples  seemed  to  mean  that  if  their  Master's  view  of  the  marriage 
relation  was  correct,  then  the  relation  of  a  married  man  to  his  wif© 
was  injurious  to  him,  and  it  were  better  one  should  not  marry. 

Physical  Cause  of  the  Death  of  Jesus. — P.  679. 

Attention  has  been  called  to  Dr.  Stroud's  book  on  the  Physical  Cause 
of  the  death  of  Jesus.  It  has  been  republished  in  this  country  since 
this  portion  of  the  book  was  written. 


714  APPENDICES. 

After  writing  my  paragraph  on  the  subject,  I  saw  Dr.  Hanna' 
volume  on  The  Last  Day  of  the  Passion  of  our  Lord.  In  the 
Appendix  he  has  a  letter  from  Dr.  Begbie,  late  President  of  the  Royal 
College  of  Physicians  in  Edinburgh,  in  which  that  learned  gentlonuni 
accepts  Dr.  Stroud's  theory.  lie  calls  attention  to  the  fact  that  ruj)- 
ture  of  the  heart  is  comparatively  a  rare  affection,  and,  so  far  as  he 
knows,  liiuite<l  to  persons  advanced  in  life  or  laboring  under  some 
degeneration  of  the  structure  of  the  oi'gan,  Jesus,  however,  "wa.s  young 
and  healthy,  so  far  as  we  can  discover.  How  great  must  have  been 
his  anguish  to  produce  this  rupture  ! 

Dr.  Hauua  also  quotes  a  letter  from  Dr.  Sim])sofi,  Professor  in  the 
University  of  Edinburgh,  who  also  accepts  Dr.  Stroud's  theory.  He 
asserts  that  so  far  as  we  can  now  understand  the  physical  condition 
of  Jesus,  snch  a  sudden  termination  of  his  sufferings  in  death  could 
be  produced  only  by  fatal  fainting  or  by  a  ru])ture  of  the  walls  of 
the  heart  or  of  larger  blood-vessels  issuing  from  it.  But  the  symp- 
toms, such  as  the  loud  cry,  show  that  it  was  not  mortal  syncope.  He 
says :  "  On  the  other  hand,  these  symptoms  were  such  as  have  been  seen 
in  cases  of  rupture  of  the  w^alls  of  the  heart.  Thus,  in  the  latest  book 
published  in  the  English  language  on  Diseases  of  the  Hearty  the  eminent 
author,  Dr.  Walshe,  Professor  of  Medicine  in  University  College,  Lon- 
don, when  treating  of  the  symptoms  indicating  death  by  rupture  of  the 
heart,  observes :  "  The  hand  is  suddenly  carried  to  the  front  of  the 
chest,  a  piercing  shriek  uttered,"  etc.,  etc.  The  rapidity  of  the  resulting 
death  is  regulated  by  the  size  and  shape  of  the  ruptured  opening.  But 
usually  death  very  speedily  ensues  in  consequence  of  the  blood  escaping 
from  the  interior  of  the  heart  into  the  cavity  of  the  large  surrounding 
heart,  sac,  or  pericardium ;  which  sac  has,  in  cases  of  rupture  of  the 
heart,  b(;en  found  on  dissection  to  contain  sometimes  two,  three,  four, 
or  more  pomids  of  blood  accumulated  within  it,  and  separated  into  red 
clot  and  limpid  seinim,  or  '  blood  and  water,'  as  is  seen  in  blood  when 
collected  out  of  the  body  in  a  cup  or  basin  in  the  opei'ation  of  common 
blood-letting." 

Dr.  Josiah  C.  Nott  of  this  city,  a  gentleman  of  well-known  high  scien- 
tific attainments,  h;us  favored  uin  with  a  copy  of  his  jt>o*/-nio;-^em  examina- 
tion of  the  Kev.  Mr.  [Maffitt,  made  with  the  a.ssistance  of  Dr.  E.  P.  Gaines, 
in  Mobile,  in  1850.  Mr.  Maflitt  was  known  all  over  the  United  States 
a«  a  man  of  no  ordinary  pulpit  ability.  He  was  what  is  called  a  "  re- 
vivalist," anil  spent  the  la.st  years  of  his  life  in  gi-eat  excitement.  He 
got  into  trouble,  was  arraign<^d  before  the  courts  of  his  church  in  New 
York,  and  subsecpieutly  went  South,  where  he  was  preaching  with  great 
success,  and  apparently  in  high  health,  when  oWl  reports  pursued  hiui^ 


APPENDICES.  715 

and  damaging  articles  from  the  New  York  papers  were  republished  in  Mo- 
bile. Parties  were  arrayed  for  and  against  him.  He  was  gi-eatly  excited. 
He  was  taken  suddenly  ill,  about  eight  o'clock  p.m.,  on  the  27th  of  June, 
and  died  in  seven  hours  When  the  physician  arrived  he  found  him  "  in 
great  pain,  which  he  referred  to  the  inferior  sternal  region."  He  had 
had  pain  in  the  heart  on  several  previous  occasions.  "  Auscultation  de- 
tected no  abnoi'raal  sound,  no  palpitation,  but  the  heart  beat  regularly 
and  slowly."  "  He  was  perfectly  cold  all  ovei*,  and  bathed  in  cold  sweat." 
After  anodynes  and  carminatives  had  been  administered,  he  said, 
"  Doctor,  I  feel  better  now,  everywhere  else,  but  that  pain  still  remains. 
It  is  a  persistent  and  abiding  pain,  that  seems  to  press  through  me  against 
my  spine."  "  All  this  time  liis  pulse  was  regular,  full,  strong,  but 
rather  slow ;  his  strength  was  good,  for  he  got  out  of  bed  several 
times  without  help."  At  one  o'clock  morphine  and  calomel  were  adminis- 
tered. At  two  o'clock  the  pain  had  left  his  breast  and  gone  to  his  heart, 
but  still  retained  its  severity.  There  was  no  palpitation.  He  com- 
plained of  being  weaker,  and  his  pulse,  although  regular,  seemed  slower 
and  weaker.  In  fifteen  minutes  his  heart  had  stopped  beating.  The 
post-mortem  showed  his  lungs  sound  throughout :  "  pericardium  fully 
distended  with  fluid,  and  when  opened  was  found  to  contain  blood  and 
serum."  Dr.  Nott  says  :  "  This  being  carefully  removed  by  a  sponge, 
I  introduced  my  hand  into  the  sac  beneath  the  heart,  and  on  grasping 
this  organ  the  contained  blood  was  seen  to  spirt  from  a  small  perforation 
in  the  anterior  wall  of  the  left  ventricle,  disclosing  at  once  the  imme- 
diate cause  of  his  death."  Dr.  Nott  pronounced  the  death  "  from  fatty 
degenei'ation,  ulceration,  and  riqHure  of  the  hearty''''  confirming  Dr. 
Begbie's  general  view  of  such  cases  in  his  letter  to  Dr.  Hanna.  If  Mr. 
Mafiitt's  heai't  had  not  been  diseased,  he  would  probably  have  survived 
his  grief.  Jesus  was  younger  by  a  quarter  of  a  century,  and  was  appa- 
rently sound.  Dr.  Nott  believed  that  Mr.  Maffitt  had  a  malady  which 
"  marches  steadily  onward,"  but  adds  that  "  it  is  highly  probable  that  its 
termination  was  hastened  hy  moral  causes.''''  I  cite  it  as  a  well-authen- 
ticated case,  the  most  modern  kno^vn  to  me,  of  rupture  of  the  heart. 


IN"  D  E  X 


OP  MATTEE  NOT  EASILY  FOUND  IN  THE  TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


Ab-Beth-Din,  the,  70. 

Abercrombie,  Dr.,  quoted,  683. 

Abia,  course  of,  15. 

Abbot,  Rupert,  quoted,  119. 

Aceldama,  Potter's  Field,  663. 

Acta  Philippi,  115. 

Acta  Sanctorum,  quoted,  74. 

Adonis,  grove  of,  37. 

.^non,  145. 

^on,  31,  338,  476. 

.^ra,  Vulgar,  34. 

.iEschylus,  quoted,  119. 

Alford,  Dean,  quoted,  31,  34,  47,  94, 
114,  130,  140,  181,  184,  195,  335,  389, 
395,  303,  335,  406,  630. 

Alexander,  J.  A.,  quoted,  165,  303,  330, 
345. 

Ambivius,  procurator,  63. 

Ambrose,  quoted,  293. 

Amen,  117. 

"Amicus  Ccesaris,"  659. 

Anderson's  "Annals  of  English  Bible," 
quoted,  708. 

Andrew,  the  Apostle,  114,  331. 

Andrews,  S.  J.,  quoted,  541,  603,  613. 

Angaros,  Persian,  376. 

Angel  of  Jehovah,  109. 

Angels,  appear  to  shepherds,  40  ;  minis- 
ter to  Jesus,  106 ;  Scriptural  repre- 
sentations of,  106-111. 

Anna,  the  prophetess,  43. 

Annas,  the  high-priest,  67,  506,  636. 

Annius  Rufus,  procurator,  68. 

Annunciation,  of  John's  birth,  15;  of 
birth  of  Jesus,  30. 

Anthony,  Mark,  29,  358. 

Antigonus,  39. 

Antiochus  Epiphanes,  139,  551. 

Antisthenes,  quoted,  193. 

Antonia,  tower  of,  6C3,  653,  656. 

Apostolic  Constitutions,  893. 

Aquinas,  Thomas,  the  Angelic  Doctor, 
354. 

Archelaus,  his  troubles,  58 ;  in  Rome, 
59  ;  as  Ethnarch,  60  ;  his  income,  60 ; 
marries  Glaphyra,  60  ;  dies  in  Vienna, 
61  ;  suggests  a  parable,  540. 


Archisynagogus,  163. 

Aretas,  father-in-law  to  Herod  Antipaa 

66. 
Asnapper,  colonizes  Samaria,  150. 
Assarion,  a  coin,  380. 
Astronomical  calculations,  30. 
Axigustine,    quoted,    31,    34,    47,    205, 

382,  288,  329,  343,  346,  347,  534. 
Ava,  land  of,  150. 


B. 


Babylon,  colonists  from,  to  Samaria, 
150. 

Badius,  Conrad,  430. 

Bahr,  quoted,  150. 

Bagster's  "Bible  in  Every  Land,"  quot- 
ed, 708. 

Baptism,  John's,  80  ;  of  Jesus,  84-89. 

Barabbas,  654  ;  preferred  to  Jesus,  657. 

Barachias,  588. 

Bartholomew,  the  Apostle,  119,  326. 

Bartimaeiis,  533. 

Bath-Kol,  the,  551. 

Beelzebul,  335,  444. 

Benedictus,  the,  31. 

Bengel,  quoted,  93,  140,  143,  335,  285, 
289,  534. 

Bernard,  quoted,  119. 

Bertholdt,  quoted,  159. 

Bethabara,  483. 

Bethany,  465,  495,  498. 

Bethany,  east,  145,  495. 

Bethesda,  198. 

Bethlehem,  36 ;  children  slain,  83. 

Bethsaida,  denoiuiced,  316,  387. 

Bethsaida-Julias,  413. 

Bethphage,  543. 

Beza,  quoted,  143. 

BibUotheca  Sacra,  quoted.  111,  167. 

Biehle's  Economic  Calendar,  37. 

Bloody  sweat,  cases  of,  682. 

Boanerges,  223,  532. 

Bonar,  quoted,  167. 

Bordeaux  Pilgrim,  37. 

Bucher,  quoted,  534. 

Burials  among  the  Jews,  498. 

Byssus,  492. 


718 


TNDEX. 


Ctpsar,  Aogustus,  death  of,  11 ;  decree 
for  taxing',  IG. 

Caesar,  Tiberius,  10. 

Crcsarea  Philippi,  415,  431. 

Caiaphas,  high -priest,  57,  67,  637,  643. 

Caligula,  Emperor,  favors  Herod  Agrip- 
pa,  67. 

Calvary,  true  site  of,  665. 

Camel's  hair,  74. 

Cana  of  Galilee,  120. 

Canatha,  407. 

Capemaura,  167;  denounced,  316. 

Caravanserai.  40. 

Cas.'^iodorus,  quoted,  26. 

Cellarius,  quoted,  407. 

Celsu.s.  quoted,  303. 

Census,  ordered  by  Augustus,  30  ;  Ro- 
man and  Jewish  methods,  32. 

Chardin,  quoted.  568. 

Chazzan,  The,  163. 

Chief  priests,  69. 

Chorazin,  denounced,  34. 

Christmas,  Latin,  23  ;  Greek,  26. 

Chronology  of  birth  of  Jesus,  23. 

"  Church,"  420.  440. 

Chrjsostom,  quoted,  235,  346,  578. 

Chnza.  101. 

Cicero,  quoted,  307,  362. 

Clement  of  Alexandria,  quoted,  115, 
249,  362. 

Cleopa.s.  50  ;  name  of  an  Emmaus  disci- 
ple, 695. 

Cleopatra  and  her  pearls,  358. 

Clericus,  quoted,  534. 

Coins,  12(). 

"  Congregation,"  420,  440. 

Con.stantLue,  Emperor,  37. 

Consulships,  25. 

Coponius,  procurator.  62,  (J3. 

CorlKin,  The,  65,  400. 

Cra-sus.  129. 

Criminal  laws  of  the  Jews,  632. 

Crosby,  Dr.,  quoted,  199,  534,  613. 

Cross,  form  and  construction  of,  664. 

Cuthah,  colonizing  Samaria,  150. 

Cyprian,  quoted,  93. 

Cyrenius  (Quirinus),  31,  33,  34,  62. 

Cyril,  of  Alexandria,  quoted,  181. 

Cyril,  of  Jerusalem,  quoted,  428. 


D. 

Da  Cofita,  quoted,  534. 

Dalmanutha,  410. 

Damascus,  407. 

Dante,  quoted,  354. 

Darius,  Hystapes,  151. 

Darius,  Nothus,  151. 

Death  from  joy,  cases  of,  080,  081. 


Decapolis,  182,  400. 

Demetrius,  276, 

Denarius,  404. 

De  Pressense,  quoted,  36. 

De  Quincey's  theory  of  Judas,  605,  608, 

609. 
De  Sacy,  quoted,  151. 
Devil,  The,  popular  superstitions,  376. 
De  Wette,  quoted,  93,  469. 
Diabolus,  460. 
Dickinson's  Version,  300. 
Didrachm,  436. 
Didymus  (Thomas),  227. 
Dio  Cassius,  quoted,  25,  31. 
Dion,  city  of  Decapolis,  407. 
Dionysius,  Exiguus,  24. 
Doctor  of  Divinity,  583. 
Doddridge,  quoted,  534. 
Dods,  Rev.  Morris,  quoted,  469. 
Domitian,  Emperor,  18. 
Dora,  415. 

Dove,  at  baptism  of  Jesus,  88. 
Drachma,  coin,  4S7. 
Dupin,  M. ,  on  trial  of  Jesus,  631-635, 
Dwight,  Dr.,  quoted,  107. 


E. 


East,  The,  43. 

Ebal,  Mount,  150. 

Ebrard,  quoted,  534. 

Edinburgh  Review,  quoted,  85. 

Egypt,  Jesus  in,  47. 

Eichhom,  quoted,  93. 

El-Azariyeh,  505. 

Elders,  69. 

Eleazer,  high-priest,  63. 

Eliezer,  of  Lydda,  164. 

Elijah,  73,  416 ;  with    Jesus,  415,  428, 

430,  675. 
Elizabeth,   15,  16,  20,  21. 
Ellicott,  Bishop,  quoted,  82,  386,  534, 571. 
EUiotson,  Dr.,  quoted,  682. 
El-Mcjdel.  410. 

Emmau.s,  693;  the  walk  thither,  693-695. 
"  Ephphatha,"  408. 
Ephratah,  36. 
Ephrem,  507. 
Erasmus,  quoted,  335. 
Esarhaddon,  150. 
Esscnes,  sketch  of,  72. 
Eunuch.s,  521. 

Euripides,  his  "  Phncdra  and  Medam,"  470. 
Eusebius,  quoted,  39,  114,  115,  146,230, 

571. 
Euthymins,  quoted,  142. 
Excommunication,  475. 


Fairbaim,  quoted,  236. 


INDEX. 


719 


Parmer,  quoted,  93. 

Fasti,  The,  25. 

Figs,  555. 

Fountain  of  the  Virgin,  199. 

Friedlieb,  quoted,  5i34. 

Furness,  quoted,  85. 


G. 


Gabriel,    and    Zacharias,  15,  and  Mary, 

21. 
Gadara,  365,  407. 
Gaius,  Institutes  of,  31. 
GalUee,  "of  the  Gentiles,"  169  ;    "no 

prophet  arises  out  of,"  456. 
Gaulonitis,  428. 
Gehenna,  585. 
Gemara,  The,  400,  518. 
Gemini,  consulship  of  the,  25. 
Genealogical   tables    of    Matthew    and 

Luke,  17. 
Gennesaret,  Plain  of,  168. 
Gerasa,  407. 

Gerizim,  Mount,  150,  446. 
Gethsemane,  628,  62!),  681. 
Glaphyra,  wife  of  Archelaus,  60. 
Golgotha,  Calvary,  665. 
"Gospel   according  to  the   Hebrews," 

214. 
Graves,  whitened,  586. 
Gresswell,   quoted,  225,  235,  243,  386, 

584,  541,  613,  621. 
Grotius,  quoted,  137,  202,  476,  534. 
Grotto  of  Jeremiah,  666. 
Gustave  Dore,  423. 


H. 


Hackett,  quoted,  556. 

Hades,  418. 

Hadrian,  Emperor,  37. 

Hallel.  the  Great,  545,  624. 

Hamann,  quoted,  53. 

Haraath,  150. 

Hammond,  quoted,  475,  555. 

Heart,  description  of  the,  680. 

Hebron,  16. 

Hegesippus,  229. 

Heinsius,  quoted,  555. 

Helena,  Empress,  39,  666. 

Heliopolis,  47,  48. 

Hengstenberg,  quoted,  109,  111,  578. 

Hermon.  406,  427. 

Herod,  the  Great,  15  ;  interview  with 
wi«e  men.  29 ;  date  of  death,  28 ; 
becomes  king,  29 ;  kills  the  Bethle- 
hem babes,  32,  46  ;  connection  Avith 
the  census,  33  ;  Augnstus's  opinion 
of  him,  48 ;  his  outrages,  48,  56 ; 
his    family,    57 ;    his    will,   58 ;    hia 


funeral,  58;  completes  the  Temple, 
131. 
Herod,  Antipas,  Tetrarch,  65  ;  seduces 
Herodias,  66  ;  quarrels  with  Pilate, 
66  ;  his  fall  and  death,  67  ;  his  char- 
acter, 07 ;  and  John  Baptist,  148 ; 
kills  John  Baptist,  386  ;  seeks  Jesus, 
483 ;  at  trial  of  Jesus,  650 ;  quarrel 
with  Pilate  healed,  651. 
Hei'od,  Agrippa  I.,  57. 

Herod,  Philip  I. ,  husband  of  Herodias, 
55. 

Herodias,  forsakes  Philip  for  Antipas, 
66  ;  whom  she  instigates  to  his  ruin, 
66  ;  adheres  to  him,  67,  148 ;  causes 
death  of  John  Baptist,  385. 

Herodians,  sketch  of,  72,  216,  568. 

Herodotus,  quoted,  195,  276,  568. 

Herzog,  quoted,  68. 

High-priest,  507. 

High-priesthood,  67,  506,  561. 

Hill  of  EvU  Counsel,  663. 

HiUel,  214,  517. 

Hippolytus,  of  Thebes,  17. 

Hippos,  of  Decapolis,  409. 

Homer,  quoted,  195,  262. 

Horace,  quoted,  567. 

Horns  of  Hattin,  241. 

Howe,  Fisher,  quoted,  666. 

Hiibner,  quoted,  93,  331. 

Hyrcanus,  551. 


Meier's  calculation,  30. 

Ingraham's   "  Prince  of  the  House   of 

David,"  quoted,  604. 
Ignatius,  Martyr,  439. 


J. 


Jacob's  Bridge,  191. 

Jacob's  well,  152. 

Jahn,  quoted,  64,  498. 

Jarvis,  quoted,  534. 

James  I.,  Apostle,  170,  222,  590,  030. 

James  II. ,  Apostle,  228. 

Jennings,  quoted,  448,  449. 

Jericho,  465. 

Jerome,  quoted,  37,  74,  114,  146,  249, 
289,  320. 

Jerusalem,  date  of  destruction,  26. 

Joazer,  High-Priest,  56. 

Job,  470. 

John,  Apostle,  114,  170,  223,  439,  590  ; 
his  .allegation  against  Judas,  607, 
619;  in  Gethsemane,  630,  671;  at 
the  cross,  673,  678  ;  at  the  sepulchre, 
689,  701. 

John,  the  Baptist,  birth  announced,  17; 


720 


INDEX. 


his  birth  and  circnmcision,  21  ;  early 
life,  22  ;  ministry,  73  ;  baptizes  Jesus, 
84-89  ;  discoverer  of  the  Messiah,  90  ; 
in  prison,  311  ;  message  to  Jesus, 
312;  Jesus's  estimate  of  him,  314; 
his  execution,  385. 

Joppa,  415. 

Joseph,  betrothed  to  Mary,  10 ;  his 
dream,  23  ;  in  Bethlehem,  39 ;  in 
the  Temple,  42;  takes  Mary  and 
Jesufl  to  Egypt,  47 ;  settles  in  Naza- 
reth, 49  ;  with  Jesus  at  a  passover, 
51. 

Joseph,  of  Arimathea,  684. 

Josephus,  quoted,  24,  29,  33,  51,  58,  60, 
61.  02,  05,  08,  09,  71,  103,  120,  126, 
129,  130,  148,  151,  168,  174,  183, 
221,  231,  276,  326,  332,  342,  347,  407, 
449,  405,  500,  512,  518,  551,  501,  015, 
029,  04^3. 

JosEpnrs  Cataphas,  506. 

Judas,  of  Galilee,  heads  a  revolt,  62. 

Judas  I. ,  Apostle,  230,  024. 

Judas  II.  (Iscariot),  Apostle,  231,  398, 
001 ;  his  case  studied,  003,  019 ;  in 
high-priest's  palace,  039;  the  last  of 
him,  0()0. 

Julian,  Emperor,  249. 

Justin,  Martyr,  37,  578. 

Juttah,  10. 

Juvenal,  quoted,  388. 


Kedron,  the  creek,  625,  628. 

Keneth,  of  Decapolis,  407. 

Kepler,  his  calculations,  30,  40. 

Kerala,  The,  205. 

King  James,  orders  "church"  inserted 

in  the  translation,  420. 
Kitto,  quoted,  534. 
Knapp,  quoted,  142. 
Krabbe,  quoted,  93. 
Krafft,  quoted,  534. 
Kunol,  quoted,  68,  335. 


Lachmann,  quoted,  406. 

Lanpe,  quoted,  142,  237,  289,  3il.  849, 

302,  452,  409,  525,  534.  501, 
Lanbier,  quoted,  34,  48. 
La\v3'er,  vo^ikoj,  575. 
Lazariych,  505. 
Lebanon,  400. 
LebbeuB,  230. 
Lcgis  Actioncs,  31. 
Leprosy,  the,  183-186. 
Lepton,  coin,  589. 
Lex,  quoted,  534. 


Lichtonstein,  quoted,  48,  534. 
Lightfoot,   quoted,  08,   285,  335,   371 
417,  448,  472,  534,  501,  571,  586,  660 
Livy,  quoted,  473. 
Locke,  quoted,  176. 
Locusts,  74. 

Liicke,  quoted,  142,  469. 
Luthardt,  quoted,  541. 
Luther,  quoted,  142,  405. 


M. 


Maccabees,  the,  182,  463. 

McClintock  and  Strong's  Cyclopaedia, 
quoted,  108,  407. 

McClure,  quoted,  707. 

Machairus,  Castle  of,  148,  311. 

McKnight,  quoted,  469,  534. 

MacWhorter,  quoted,  111. 

Magadan,  410. 

Magdala,  320,  410. 

Magi,  the,  and  Herod,  43-46. 

Magnificat,  The,  22. 

Magor-missabib,  201. 

Maimonides,  quoted,  194,  571,  624. 

Malchus,  high-priest's  servant,  640. 

Maldonatus,  Spanish  Jesuit,  354. 

Mammon,  490. 

Manasseh,  150.  151,  261. 

Manual,  Bible  Society,  quoted,  708. 

Mariamne,  57,  60. 

Mark,  his  style,  520. 

Mary,  the  mother  of  Jesus,  betrothal, 
10 ;  genealogy,  17;  in  Nazareth,  20; 
the  Annimciation,  19;  vLsits  EMza- 
beth,  20  ;  pronounces  the  JIagnificat, 
20 ;  returns  to  Nazareth,  21 ;  her 
several  sons,  39  ;  in  Bethlehem,  40  ; 
in  the  Temple,  41  ;  her  relations 
with  Jesus,  672 ;  at  the  cross,  672, 
678. 

Mary  Magdalene,  321,  067,  671,  685, 
087,  088,  090. 

Mary,  wife  of  Cleopas,  671. 

Massillon,  quoted,  311. 

Matthew  (Levi),  Apostle,  191,  226. 

Maundrell,  quotod,  152. 

Menahem,  heads  a  revolt,  03. 

Messiah,  The,  to  be  a  leper,  180. 

Metariyeh,  47. 

Metempsychosis,  among  the  Jews,  472. 

Meyer,  quotod,  93,  142,  279,  317,  406, 
442,  409,  5S0,  075. 

MichaelLs,  quoted,  248,  578. 

Midra-sh,  The,  551. 

Blilman,  Dean,  quoted,  63,  81,  159.  182, 
408,  409. 

Milton,  quoted,  108. 

Mina,  its  value,  540. 

Mishna,  The,  27  ;  quoted,  68,  69,  400. 

Money,  coins,  126. 


INDEX. 


721 


Moreh,  an  epithet  of  contempt,  268. 
Morrison,  quoted,  534. 
Moriah,  Mount,  454. 
Moses,  with  Jesus,  427. 
Myth  theory,  The,  94. 

N. 

Nablfis,  149. 

Nain,  309. 

Nasi,  of  the  synagogne,  70. 

Nathanael,  115,  226. 

Nazareth,  19 ;  Jesus  settles  there,  49 ; 
Kenan's  description  of  it,  50,  54 ;  Je- 
sus revisits,  162. 

Neander,  quoted,  31,  93,  124,  534,  610. 

Neapolis,  149. 

Nehemiah,  151. 

Nemesis,  470. 

Newcome,  quoted,  534. 

Nicodemus,  his  interview  with  Jesus, 
133  ;  in  the  Sanhedrim,  563;  secret 
disciple,  684. 

Nicophanes,  quoted,  114. 

Nineveh,  332. 

Nunc  Dimittis,  The,  42. 


O. 


Olearius,  quoted,  248. 

Olshausen,  quoted,  93,  133,  343,  347, 

469,  500,  621. 
Oosterzee,  quoted,  534. 
Origen,  quoted,  37,  93. 
Osiander,  quoted,  534. 
Ovid,  quoted,  192,  262. 
Owen,  quoted,  534. 


Palingenesia,  The,  527. 

Palm- Sunday,  546. 

Paranymph,  147. 

Paschal  Chronicle,  26. 

Pashur,  261. 

Passover,  crowds  at,  516  ;  Jesus's  last, 

616  ;  Great  Sabbath  of,  677. 
Paulus,  quoted,  93. 
Peccability  of  Jesus,  97. 
Pella,  of  Decapolis,  407  ;  Christians  find 

refuge,  596. 
Perea,  361,  482. 
Peter  (Simon).  114,  170,  181,  219,  398, 

402,  405,  417,  436,  527,  590,  593,  617, 

619,  620,  630,  638,  639,  671,  688.  689, 

696,  701-703. 
Pfeninger,  quoted,  167. 
Pharisees,  sketch  of,  71. 
Phidias,  his  statue  of  Nemesis,  470. 
46 


Philadelphia,  of  Decapolis,  407. 
Philip,  the  Apostle,  115,  225,  362.  388, 

549,  623. 
Philip,  the  Tetrarch,  415. 
Philo,  quoted,  64,  173. 
Phoenicia,  402. 
Phylactery,  463. 
Pilate,  Pontius,  procurator,  63  ;  outragea 

the  Jews,  64,  342  ;  at  trial  of  Jesua, 

644  ;  his  wife's  dream,  655. 
PiBdngton,  quoted,  534. 
Plato,  quoted,  173,  202. 
Plutarch,  quoted,  173. 
Polybius,  quoted,  129,  365. 
Pompey,  129. 

Porter's  Hand-Book,  quoted,  666. 
Potter's  Field,  603. 
Priests,  courses  of,  15,  29. 
Procurators,  62. 
Pseudo- Alexander,  61. 
Publicans,  partitores,  227. 


Q. 


Quadrans,  coin,  589. 

Quarantania,  Mount  of  Temptation,  92, 

Queen  of  the  South,  332. 

Quirinius  (Cyrenius),  16. 


B. 


Rab,  Rabbi,  Rabboni,  113,  583. 
Rabboth-Ammon,  of  Decapolis,  407. 
Raka,  a  term  of  reproach,  208. 
Raphana.  of  Decapolis,  407. 
Renan,  quoted,  20,  40  ;  his  description 

of  Nazareth,  50,  55. 
Robinson,   quoted,   120,  125,  167,   198, 

200,  241,  317,  367,  507,  534,  541. 
RosenmuUer,  quoted.  344. 
Routh,  quoted,  230. 


S. 


Sabinus,  procurator,  provokes  a  revolt, 
59. 

Sadducees,  sketch  of,  71. 

Sagan,  of  the  Synagogue,  68. 

Salim,  145. 

Salome,  531,  671. 

Salvador,  Dr.,  on  "the  Trial  of  Jesns," 
631. 

Samaritans,  their  origin,  150  ;  defile  the 
Temple,  151. 

Sanballat,  151. 

Sanhedrim,  its  origin,  68  ;  its  constitu- 
tion, size,  President,  place  of  meeting, 
and  jurisdiction,  69,  453,  691. 

Satan  —  the  DevH,  93,  98  ;  Jewish  ideas 


:oo 


INDEX. 


of,    1 00 ;    Mnnichapan   idea  of.    1 00  ; 

idea  in  Job,  101;  in  Da^■id.   101  ;  in 

Zechariah,    101;     Jesus's   idea,   102; 

17H;  424, 
Saton.  a  Greek  measure,  347. 
Schaff,  Dr.,  quote<l,  284.  522. 
Scliloicrraacher,  quoted,  42,  93,  335. 
Schoettgen,  quoted.  151,  586. 
Scj-thopolis,  now  Bei.san,  146,  407. 
Selden,  quoted,  70.  558. 
Seneca,  quoted,  279. 
Sephar^'aim,  colonizes  Samaria,  150. 
Sepp,  quoted,  49. 

Sh.ilnianezer,  carries  Israelites  into  cap- 
tivity, 150. 
Shammai,  head  of  a  Jewish  school,  214. 
Shaw,  quoted,  74. 
Shechera,  capital  of  Samaria,  149. 
Shekel,  value  of,  60. 
Sheliach,  officer  of  the  synag^ogTie,  103. 
Shepherds,  see  angels,  39  ;  village  of,  40. 
"  Shoe's  latchet,"  68. 
Sicarii.  63. 

Sidon,  denounced,  316  ;  visited,  402,  405. 
Siloam,  454,  472. 

Simeon,  at  the  circumcision  of  Jesus,  41. 
Simla,  high-priest's  garment,  643. 
Simon  I.,  Apostle,  see  "  Peter." 
Simon  II.,  Apostle,  231. 
Simon  of  Cyrene,  663. 
Simon,  Zelotes,  231. 
Smith,  Sir  J.  E.,  quoted,  298. 
Smith.    Dr.   Wm.^    "Dictionary  of  the 

Bible."  quoted,  29,  71,  74,  151,  163, 

219.  222,  613. 
Smith,    Dr.    Wm.,     "  N.    T.    History," 

quoted.  57,  103. 
"  Ron  of  David,"  18,  119,  403. 
"Son  of  God,"  118. 
"  Son  of  the  Law,"  51. 
"  Son  of  Man,"  first  use,  117;  361;  599. 
Sophooles.  his  "CEdipus,"  470. 
Spartian,  his  "  Life  of  Hadrian,"  31. 
Stanley,  cjuoted,  74,  1(1(1,  168,  242,  320. 
Stater,  coin  for  Temple-tax.  437. 
Stier,  quoted,  53,   335,   347,  383,  469, 

518,  534. 
Story,  W.  W..  his  theory  of  Judas,  005. 
Strabo,  quoted,  74. 
Strong,  his    "  IL-irmony,"  quoted,   105, 

2(i5,  332,  541. 
Stroud,  Dr.  Wm.,  quoted,  679. 
Sue,  his  ••  Wandering  Jew,"  99. 
Suetonius,  quoted.  25,  31,  45. 
Sycamore  tree,  537. 
Sychar  —  Shechem,  152. 
Synagogue,  full  account  of,  102-164. 


T. 
Tabor,  Mount,  428,  704. 


[  Tacitus,    quoted,    31  ;    "  bre\namm   of 

Augustus,"  32  ;  prevailing  expectation 

of   the  Coming   One,  45  ;    speaks   ot 

Jesus,  65,  186,  473. 
Talent,  value  of,  442. 
Talmud,  quoted,  55,  80,  192,  331.  400 

666. 
Targum,  The,  551. 
Taxing,  The,  under  Cyrcnius,  31 . 
Tavlor,  Jeremy,  quoted,  475,  664. 
Tell  Hum,  ruins  of,  168. 
Temple,    The,    128;     tax:,    126,    436; 

tabemge,  557  ;  veil  rent,  676. 
Temptation  of  Jesus,  91 . 
Tephilla  =  Plijdactery,  582. 
Tertnllian,  quoted,  578. 
Thaddeus,  230. 
Theodoret,  quoted,  114. 
Theodoms  of  Mopsuestia,   quoted,  93 

347. 
Theophvlact,  quoted,  343. 
Tholuck,   quoted,   141,   152,  244,    269 

453,  469. 
Thomas,  Apostle,  227,  362,  497,  699. 
Thomson,  Abp..  quoted,  33. 
Thomson,  his  ','  Land  and  Book,"  quot 

ed,  92,  146.  167,  184,  245,  298,  346, 

360,  387,  390,  537,  629. 
Tiberius.  Emperor,  17,  24,  26,  66. 
Tischeudorf,  quoted,  380,  406,  534. 
Townsend,  quoted,  49. 
Tragelles,  quoted,  406 
Trajan,  Emperor,  224. 
Trench,  Abp.,  quoted,  124, 151, 184, 185 

353,   355,   469,    473,   475,   534,  507, 

597. 
Trent,  Council  of,  its  Catechism,  287. 
Tristam,  quoted,  366. 
Tsitsith,  The,  583. 
"Twelve,  The,"  235. 
Tyre,  402,  405. 


IT. 


Upham,    Dr.    F.   W.,   his  "The    Wise 

Men,"  46. 
Urim  and  Thummim,  The,  507. 


V. 


Valerius  Gratus,  procurator,  68,  506. 
Van  do  Velde,  quoted,  140. 
Varus,  Prefect  of  Syria,  00. 
Ve^pa.sian.  Emperor,  12,  149. 
Viotorius,  quoted,  20. 
Vitellius,  6(i. 

Voice,  at  baptism  of  Jesus,  77. 
Voltaire,    on  number  slain   at  Bethle- 
hem, 47. 
Von  der  Hardt,  quoted,  262. 


INDEX. 


723 


Von  Gerlach,  quoted,  540. 
Vorstius,  quoted,  69. 
Vulgar  ^ra,  The,  26. 

W. 

Ward,  "View  of  the  Hindoos,"  597. 

Weisse,  quoted,  93. 

Wesley,  quoted,  167. 

Wetstein,  quoted,  248,  473,  578,  586. 

Wiclif's  translation,  489. 

Wieseler,  quoted,  29,  31,  68,  386,  534, 

561 
Williams,  "Holy  City,"  quoted,  602. 
Wilson,  "Lands  of  the  Bible,"  quoted, 

167. 
Winer,  quoted,  842,  518,  561. 
"Wise  Men,"  The,  28,  30,  43. 


Xenophon,  quoted,  141,  276. 
Xerxes,  276. 


Zacharias,  sees  apparition,  15  ;  becomei 
dumb,  10  ;  names  his  son  John,  21  ; 
pronounces  the  "  Benedictus,"  21; 
his  sacerdotal  class,  27. 

Zealots,  The,  63. 

Zealot-right,  The.  558. 

Zelotes,  Simon,  231. 

Zoroaster,  44. 

Zinzendorf ,  Count,  583. 

Zumpt,  quoted,  36. 


PASSAGES  OF  THE  OLD  AND  THE  NEW  TESTAMENT  AND 
APOCRYPHA, 

AUuded  to,  or  Quoted;  otMr  than  the  Four  Evangelists. 


Genesis  i.  201 ;  i.  27,  520 ;  ii.  201  ;  iv. 

3,  201 ;  vii.  4,  10,  202 ;  viii.  10,  12, 
202;    xii.  6,  149;    xiv.  22,567;   xvi. 

7-13,  109  ;  xviii.  6,  347  ;  xviii.  8, 108 ; 

xviii.  109;   xviii.    110;    xix.  3,   108; 

xxii.  110  ;  xxxiii.  18,  150;  xxv.  9,  363; 

XXV.  22,  472  ;  xxiv.  7,  40,  109  ;  xxviii. 

12,  108  ;  xx\-iii.  12,  109  ;  xxix.  25-30, 

202;    xxxii.    2,  108;    xixv.   19,  47; 

XXXV.  29,  363. 
Exodus  iii.  110;  iii.  6,  574;  xii.  46,  678; 

xiii.  2-10,  11-17,582;  xiii.  9.  16,582; 

xvi.  202;  xx.  202;   xx.  26,  276;    xxi. 

24,  274 ;  xxi.  32,  603  ;  xxx.  13,  126 ; 

XXX.  13,  436;  xxxii.  110;    xxxiv.  28, 

98 ;  XXXV.  3,   203. 
Levit.  xii.  24,  41 ;  xii.  8,  41 ;  xiii.  45, 

185;   xvi.  20-31,  515;   xviil  2,  509; 

xviii.  46,  509;  xix.  18,  277;  xxi.  10, 

643  ;  xxiii.  27-29,  203 ;  xxiii.  5,  541 ; 

xxiv.  20,  274 ;   xxvii.  30,  335 ;   xxvii. 

30,  515  ;  xxvii.  30,  580. 
Numbers  v.  2,  509 ;  v.  6,  538 ;  vi.  1-21, 

16;  vi.  9,  185;  ix.  12,  678;  xv.  32, 

203;  XV.   37^0,  371;    xv.    38,   583; 

xviu.    15,    16,    43;    xviiL    21,    515; 

xviii.   21,  586;    xix.    448;    xix.    10, 

586;  XX.  10,  269  ;  xxi.  143  ;  xxiv.  17, 

45;    xxiv.  17,    158;    xxv.    11,  558; 


xxvii.  8-11,  10;  xs^iii.  9,212;  xxix. 
7,  515. 

Bmt.  V.  26,  173;  vi.  16,  104;  vi.  5, 
463;  vi.  4-9,  13-22,  582;  ^dii.  3, 
103;  xii.  6,  586;  xiv.  22,  515;  xiv. 
22-28,  586;  xw.  7,  457;  xviii.  15, 
112;  xviii.  18,  116;  xviii.  15,  158; 
xix.  14,  253;  xix.  21,  274;  xxi.  22, 
23,  664;  xxi.  237677;  xxii.  11,  150; 
xxii.  12,  371  ;  xxii.  21,  456;  xxiiL 
25,  211  ;  xxiii.  13,  518;  xxv.  5,  573; 
xxvi.  14,  173. 

Joshua  xviii.  16,  269. 

Judfjes  ii.  110  ;  vi.  22,  109  ;  vi.  110  ;  vi. 

14,  110  ;  vi.  22,  110  ;  vi.  19.  347  ;  xiii. 

15,  16,  108  ;  xiu.  110  ;  xiii.  22,  110 ; 
xiv.  12,  567. 

1  Sam.  i.  24,  347 ;  vi.  5,  475  ;  xiv.  25, 
74 ;  XV.  22,  212  ;  xxi  212  ;  xxii.  20-23, 
212. 

2  S:nn.  viii.  17,  212 ;  xix.  22,  101 ;  xix. 
27,  107  ;  xxiv.  107. 

1  Kings  ii.  27,  561 ;  v.  4,  101  ;  x.  1, 
332  ;  xviii.  26,  282  ;  xix.  8,  98  ;  xxiL 
19,  108. 

2  Kings  v.  27,  177  ;  v.  184 ;  v.  14,  15, 
185 ;  V.  5,  567  ;  xii.  4,  126  ;  xvii.  24, 
150  ;  xvii.  41,  150  ;  xix.  15,  107  ;  xix 
107;  xxiii.  10,13,14,268. 


724 


INDEX. 


1  CTiroti.  xii.  22,  108;  xr.  11,  212; 
xxi.  1,  101  ;  xxl  20,  109  ;  xxi.  30, 
109  ;  xxiv.  10,  15  ;  xxiv.  27;  xlix  10, 
15H. 

2  Chran.  iv.  24,  507;  xviii.  18,  107; 
xxiv.  G,  9,  12G;  xxiv.  18-23,  330; 
xxiv.  20,  587;  xxx.  21-26,  204; 
xxxiv.  4.  5.  268. 

Ezra  u.  9.  537  ;  iv.  2,  10,  150 ;  viii  15, 

163;   X.  11.  475. 
NdtanMi  vii.  14,  537  ;  viii  2,  163  ;  viii. 

9-12,  204;   ix.  1,  163;   xii.  29;   xiii. 

15-23,  204. 
E*ther  v.  8,  566 ;  vi.  14,  506. 
Job  i.  6,  101 ;  ii.  1-7,  101  ;  iv.  18,   108  ; 

ixvii.  16,  567  ;  xxxiii.  29,  30,  443. 
Psiilms  ii.  6-9,  116;  viii.  2,  559;  x^ii. 

15,  255;  xxii.  16,  18,  667;    xxv.    13, 

253;    xxxiv.    7,   111;    xxxv.  5,   111; 

XXXV.  19,  626;  xxxvii.  9,  253  ;  xxx^'ii. 

11,  253;  xxxix.  5,  296;  xii.  9,  618; 
xlii.  1,  255  ;  Ii.  12,  141  ;  Ixviii.  108; 
Ixix.  4,  626 ;  Ixix.  0.  127  ;  Ixxxii.  6, 
4«1  ;  xci.  104;  xcii.  2(14  ;  civ.  4,  107  ; 
cvi.  28,  173;  cix.  6,  101  ;  ex.  578; 
cxiii.  54.5  ;  cxv.  624 ;  cxvi.  624 ; 
cxvii.  624  ;  cxviii.  545 ;  cxviii.  624 ; 
cxviii.  22,  565 ;  cxlvi.  8,  476. 

hmah  vL  1-3,  108;  viH.  19,  173;  ix. 
«i,  116  ;  ix.  7,  552;  xi.  1-5,  10,  116  ; 
xix.  1,  643;  xx.  4,  518;  xxv.  656,  6  ; 
xxx.  29,  204  ;  xl.  2,  7,  476  ;  xlii.  1-4, 
217;  xlix.  24,  327;  liil  49;  liii.  2-12, 
116;  liii.   12,  327;    Uii.  12,  621  ;  liii. 

12.  667  ;  liv.  13,  396  ;  Iv.  1,  255 ;  Ivi. 
7,  558  ;  Iviii.  6,  165  ;  Iviii.  13,  203  ; 
Ix.  3,  45  ;  Ixi.  1,  2,  165  ;  IxL  10,  566  ; 
Ixii.  5,  566;  Ixiii.  9,  110;  Ixv.  13, 
566. 

JeremiaJi  vii.  11,  558;  xvii.  21,  203  ;  xx. 

261  ;   x.xi.   12-14.  204;   xxii.  30,  19; 

xxiii.  5,  6,  116  ;    xxxi.  15,  47;    xxxi. 

33.  141  ;  xxxi.  33,34,  396;  xxxiii.  15, 

116;  xii.  17,  39. 
Ezekielyui.   1,  163;  x.   1,   106;  xiv.   1, 

163;    xviii.  31,  141  ;    xx.  1,  163;    xx. 

12-24.  204;  xxiv.  17,  185;  xxviii.  14, 

107;  xxxiii.  31,  163;  xxxiv.  23,  116; 

xxxvi.  34-28,  141;   xlvii.  454. 
DaiiiA   iv.  13.  23.   107;  ^^i.  9,  10,  108; 

vii.   13,   118;    315;   361;    411;    642; 

vii.  14,  C52 ;  130 ;  viii  14.  3:31  ;  viii 


13,  107;  ix.  21-23,  16;  ix  24,  45 
ix.  25,  116;  x.  13,  107;  x.  7,  109 
X.  8,  15.  17,  109. 

Ilosai  ii  6.  204  ;  ii.  9,  566 ;  vi.  6,  192 
vi.  6.  212  ;   xi  1,  47. 

Joel  ii.  36,  39,  396  ;  iii  18,  454. 

Amos  i  3,  443 ;  ii.  6,  443. 

Mimh   V.    2,  36;  v.   1,37;    v.   2,  46 
V.  2,  116. 

Nahiim  i  3,  642. 

Tlnggai  ii  7,  116. 

Zcch.  ii.  12-15,  110;  iii  1,  101;  iii.  8. 
116;  vi.  15,  111;  vii  5.  163;  ix.  9 
116;  ix.  9,  544;  xi  13,  603;  xii  S\ 
111  ;  xii  60.  678;  xiii.  4,  74;  xiii.  7, 
116  ;  xiii.  1,141  ;  xiii.  7,  631. 

Malichi  iii.  1,  116;  iv.  5,  6,  74;  iv.  5. 
113  ;  iv.  3,  116;  iv.  5,  6,430. 

ToUt  iv.  3.  363  ;  xii.  19,  108. 

S<mg  ii.  1,2,  16,  298. 

Caitt.  V.  1,  566. 

1  Mdcc.  iv.  52,  59,  480;  xi.  71,  643. 

2  Mace,  i  10,  69;  iv.  44;  69;  xi.  27, 
69  ;  X.  9,  537. 

Acts  i    3,    115;  i  13,  223;  i  13,  226 
i    13,  238;    i.   13,  331;    i  13,  330 
i.  16,  611;    iv.   12,   13,   119;  iv.   13 
219;    V.    36,    37,    209;     v.    36,    37, 
512;    vi    6,    10,   498;    vii.   56,   70 
vii   55,  118;    ix.  7,  551;   x.  47,  48! 
221;    X.    13,    15,   551;    xii   1,   223 
xii   17,   229;    xiii.   15,   164;    xv.    13 
19,   229;  xix.    13,   326;  xx.  33,  567 
xxi  18,  339;    xxiii  3,  638;  xxvii  3, 
611. 

Rminns  xvi.  25,  328. 

1  Cor.  i  21.  257;  iv.  15,  584;  vii.  29, 
249;  viii  13,  328;  ix.  5,  181;  xiL 
613;  XV.  6,  704. 

2  Cor.  xi.  25,  831. 
Onl.  ii  9,  339. 
Eph.  iii.  9,  338. 
Col.  i.  36.  328. 

1  Timothy  i  2,  584 

2  Timothy  ii.  8,  20. 
Titus  i  4,  584. 
Hebrews  xiii  12,  666. 
Jameji  v.  1,2,  567. 

1  Peter  \.  13,  584. 
1  John  ii  16,  98. 
Juds,  ver.  17,  231. 
liev.  i.  13,  118. 


souKCEs.  725 


SOUKCES. 

[The  following  books  have  been  consulted,  and,  so  far  as  known,  credited  foi 
what  use  has  been  made  of  them.  The  list  may  be  serviceable  to  those  who  de- 
sire to  verify  my  quotations  or  to  prosecute  studies  in  this  department.] 

Abbott,  Rev.  Lyman  :  Jesus  of  Nazareth.     1  vol. 

AiNSLEE,  Rev.  Robert  :  Translation  of  Tischendorf  s  Greek  New  Testament. 
1  vol. 
Adams,  Nehemiah,  D.D.  :  Friends  of  Christ  in  the  New  Testament.     1  voL 
Alexander,  Joseph  A.,  D.D.  :  Matthew  Explained.     1  vol. 

"  "  Mark  Explained.     1  vol. 

AXFORD,  Henry,  D.D.  :  New  Testament  Revised.     1  vol. 

''  "  Our  Lord  and  His  Twelve  Disciples.     1  vol. 

"  "  Greek  Testament,  with  Notes  (on  Evangelists).  1  voL 

Alger,  W.  R.  :  History  of  the  Doctrine  of  a  Future  Life.     1  vol 
Andrews,  S.  J.  :  Life  of  our  Lord  upon  Earth.     1  voL 
Anonymous.     "Ecce  Agnus  Dei."     1  vol. 

"  "Ecce  Deus."     1  vol. 

"  "Ecce  Homo."     1vol. 

"  Jesus  of  History.     1  voL 

Augustine  :  Homilies  on  the  Gospel  of  St.  John.     2  vols. 

•'  Sermons.     1  vol. 

Bagster  :  Polyglott  Bible.     2  vols. 
Balfour,  W.  P.  :  Lessons  from  Jesus.     1  vol. 
Balfour,  W.  :  Import  of  Sheol,  Hades.     1  vol. 
Barclay,  J.  T. :  City  of  the  Great  King.     1  vol. 
Baum,  B.  p.  :  Companion  to  the  Bible.     1  vol. 
Bengel,  J.  A.  :  Gnomon  of  the  New  Testament.     2  vols. 
Bibliotheca  Sacra.     30  vols. 

Bloomfield,  Bishop  :  Greek  Testament,  with  Notes.     2  vols. 
Blunt,  Rev.  J.  H.  :  Dictionary  of  Devotional  and  Historical  Theology.    1  vol. 
BoURDiLLON,  Rev.  Francis  :  Parables  of  Our  Lord.     1  voL 
Briepot,  Abbe  :  La  Vie  de  N.  S.  Jesus-Christ.     3  vols. 
Brown,  James  :  Bible  Truths  with  Shakesperian  Parallels.     1  vol 

' '  Rev.  John  :  Discourses  and  Sayings  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Chriftt.    2  voIb. 

BuNSEN,  E.  :  Hidden  Wisdom  of  Christ.     1  vol. 
Burt,  N.  C.  :  Hours  among  the  Gospels.     1  vol. 
Calmet,  a.  :  Dictionary  of  the  Bible.     4  vols. 
Christian  Examiner  for  1854.     1  vol. 

Clark,  Rev.  G.  W.  :  New  Harmony  of  the  Four  Gospels.     1  vol. 
Clayton,  G.  :  Angelology.     1  vol. 
Cobbe,  F.  p.  :  Studies,  Old  and  New.     1  vol. 
Cox,  Robert  :  Literature  of  the  Sabbath  Question.     2  vols. 
Crosby,  Dr.  Howard  :  Jesus  and  His  Works.     1  vol. 
Cust,  E.  :  Horas  Dominicse.     1  vol. 


726  SOURCES. 

De  PRESSEXSii,  E.  :  Jesus  Christ.     1  vol. 

De  Qdikcey,  Thomas  :  Theolog-ical  Essays.     1  vol. 
"  "  Historical  Essays.     1  voL 

Dickinson,  R.  :  Corrected  Version  of  the  Xew  Testament.     1  voL 

Ellicott,  Bishop  :  Historical  Lectures  on  Jesus  Christ.     1  vol. 

EUSEBICS  :  Ecclesiastical  History  and  Life  of  Constantine — ed.  1G38,  folio.     1 
voL 

EwALD,  H.  :     The  Life  of  Jesus  Christ.     1  vol. 

Fairuaiux,  Dr.  Patkick  :  Typology  of  Scripture.     2  vols.  ^ 

Fak.mi:u,  Hlgu  :  Demoniacs  of  the  New  Testament.     1  vol. 

FowLEU,  Wm.,  LL.B.  :  lliracles.     1  vol. 

FciiNESS,  W.  H.  :  Jesus  and  His  Biographers.     1  vol. 
"  "         Jesus.     1  vol. 

GiLMORE,  J.  R. :  Life  of  Christ.     1  vol. 

Gresswell,  Edward  :  Dissertations  on  the  Harmony  of  the  Four  Gospels.    5 
vols. 

Hackett,  H.  B.  :  Illustrationa  of  Scripture.     1  vol. 

Hale,  W.  H.  :  History  of  the  Jews.     1  vol. 

Hammond's  Paraphrase  and  Annotations  on  New  Testament.     3  vols. 

Hakna  :  The  Life  of  ChrLst.     C  vols. 

Hardwick,  C.  :  Christ  and  other  Masters.     2  vols. 

Hemans,  Charles  J.  :  Ancient  Chiistianity  and  Sacred  Art.     1  vol. 

Hengstenrerg,  E.  W.  :  Christology.     3  vols. 

Hekodotus  :  Tran.slated  by  Rawlinson.     4  vols. 

Hill,  Genl.  D.  H.  :  Sermon  on  the  Mount.     1  vol. 

Howe,  Fisher  :  True  Site  of  Calvary.     1  vol. 

Jajiieson,  Mrs.  A.  :  History  of  our  Lord,  as  exempUfied  in  Works  of  Art.  2  vols. 

Jarvis,  S.  F.  :  Chronological  Introduction  to  History  of  the  Church.     1  vol. 

Jennings,  D.  :  Jewish  Antiquities.     1  vol. 

Jones,  Joel,  LL.D.  :  Notes  on  the  Scripture.     1  vol. 

JosEPHUS :    Translated  by  Whiston.     6  vols. 

JnsTiN  Martyr  :  Writings  of.     1  vol. 

Lange  :  Life  of  the  Lord  Jesus.     5  vols. 

Leatues,  S.  :  Witness  of  Old  Testament  to  Christ.     1  vol. 
"  "  Paul  to  Christ.     1vol. 

LowTH,  Bishop  :  Isaiah.     1  vol. 

McClintock  and  Strong  :  Cyclopajdia.     3  vols. 

Mackat,  R.  W.  :  Rise  and  Progi-ess  of  ChrLstianity.     1  vol. 

I^IcWnoRTKR,  A.  :  Yahveh  Christ.      1  vol. 

MiCHAELls,  J.  D.  :  Introduction  to  N.  T.     6  vols. 

MiLEf^,  H.  A.  :  Traces  of  Pictiuo  Writing  in  the  Bible.     1  voL 

MiLMAN,  Dean  :  History  of  the  Jews.     3  vols. 

MooHE,  T.  V.  :  The  Last  Day.s  of  Jesus.     1  vol. 

M(H;ntkord,  William  :  Miracles,  Past  and  Present.     1  voL 

ISIuRRAY  :  Hand-book  of  Syria  and  Palestine.     1  vol. 

Neander,  a.  :  Life  of  Christ.     1  vol. 

NovES  :  New  Testament,  Translated  from  Greek  Text  of  Tiechendorf.     1  voL 

Olshausen,  Dr.  II.  :  Commentary,  etc.     6  vols. 

Parker,  Joseph  :  Homiletic  Analysis  of  New  Testament.     1  vol. 

Pliny  :   Natural  Hi.story,  Edition  Bohu'a  Library.     G  vols. 


SOURCES.  727 

Plumtre,  Prof.  :  Christ  and  Christendom.     1  vol. 

Pkime,  W.  C.  :  Tent  Life  in  the  Holy  Land.     1  vol. 

Priestley,  Joseph  :  Early  Opinions  Concerning  Christ.     1  voL 

RAMMonuN  Roy  :  Precepts  of  Jesus.     1  vol. 

Renan,  Ernst  :  Life  of  Jesus.     1  vol. 

Reville,  Dr.  Albert  :  The  Devil.     1  vol. 

Robinson,  Dr.  E.  :  Biblical  Researches,  etc.     2  vols. 

Ryle,  Rev.  J.  C.  :  Thoughts  on  the  Gospel  of  St.  John.     1  voL 

ScHAFP,  Dr.  P.  :  History  of  the  Christian  Church.     3  vols. 

"  '■  Person  of  Christ.     1  vol. 

SCHENKEL  :  Sketch  of  the  Character  of  Jesus.     2  vols. 
Smallbrook,  Bishop  :  on  Miracles.     2  vols. 
Smith,  Dr.  Wm.  :  Chronological  Tables.     1  vol. 

"  "  Dictionary  of  the  Bible.     4  vols. 

"  "  New  Testament  History.     1  vol. 

_  P  j  State  of  Man  before  the  Promulgation  of  Christianity.    1  vol 

/  Greek  Philosophy  from  the  Age  of  Socrates  to  Christ.     I  vol 
Stackhouse,  T.  :  History  of  Holy  Bible.     6  vols. 
Stanley,  Prof.  A.  P.  :  Sinai  and  Palestine.     1  vol. 
Stephen,  Sir  George  :  Life  of  Christ.     1  vol. 
Stier,  R.  :  The  Words  of  the  Lord  Jesus.     6  vols. 
Story,  W.  W.  :  A  Roman  Lawyer  in  Jerusalem.     1  vol. 
Strauss,  D.  F.  :  New  Life  of  Jesus.    2  vols. 
Stroud,  Dr.  W.  :  Physical  Causes  of  the  Death  of  Christ.     1  voL 
Tacitus  :  Annals.     1  vol. 

Taylor,  Bp.  Jeremy  :  Histoiy  of  Life  and  Death  of  Jesus  Christ.     1  voL 
Taylor,  Charles  :  The  Gospel  in  the  Law.     1  vol. 
Tertullian  :  Works.     3  vols. 
TisCHENDORF,  C. :  Nov.  Test.  Grajce,  ex  Sinaitico  Cod.     1  vol. 

"  Origin  of  the  Four  Gospels.     1  vol. 

Tholuck,  Aug.  :  The  Sermon  on  the  Mount.     1  vol. 

"  The  Gospel  of  John.     1  vol. 

Thomson,  W.  M.  :  The  Land  and  the  Book.     2  vols. 
Thrupp,  J.  F.     Ancient  Jerusalem.     1  vol. 
TnuCYDlDES  :  GoeUer's  Edition.     2  vols. 

Townsend,  G.  :  New  Testament  arranged  in  Chronological  Order.     1  voL 
Trench  :  Studies  in  the  Gospel.     1  vol. 
"  On  the  Miracles.     1  vol. 

''  On  the  Parables.     1  vol. 

TURPIE,  D.  M.  :  The  Old  Testament  in  the  New.     1  vol. 
Uhlhorn.  Dr.  G.  :  Modem  Representations  of  the  Life  of  Jesus.     1  vol. 
Van  Dyke,  Rev.  Dr.  H.  T.  :  The  Lord's  Prayer.     1  vol. 
Veith,  J.  E.  :  Life  Pictures  of  Passion  of  Christ.     1  vol. 
West,  Dr.  N. :  Complete  Analysis  of  the  Bible.     1  vol. 
Whately,  Archbishop :  The  Kingdom  of  Christ.     1  vol. 

"  "  Scripture  Revelation  of  a  Future  State.     1  vol. 

YOTTNG,  John,  LL.D.  :  The  Christ  of  History.     1  vol. 


LIST    OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

DESIGNED  BT 

ALBERT  LEIGIITON  -RAWSON. 

ENQBAVED  BY 

LINTON,  FILl^EER,  AND  OTHERS. 


Ideal  Head  of  Jesus- (opposite  the  title-page),  after  the  celebrated  painting 
by  Guercino  called  "  Ecce  Homo,"  engraved  in  aquatint  by  W.  G.  Jackman,  New 
York. 

All  of  the  so-called  heads  of  Jesus  are  ideals  of  the  artists,  made  to  supply  the 
demands  of  certain  believers  in  the  several  ages,  and  they  are  of  every  possible 
variety  of  character  and  expression,  as  they  were  designed  to  represent  the  teach- 
ing, laboring,  healing,  suffering,  or  triumphant  Christ.  The  most  ancient  of  these 
that  have  been  preserved,  that  are  worthy  of  the  name  of  fine-art  works,  are 
engraved  on  precious  stones,  and  must  be  assigned  to  quite  a  recent  age,  when 
the  Italian  revival  of  art  found  it  necessary  to  supply  the  multitude  of  worshipers 
with  some  visible  image  of  the  divine  man.  The  best  of  these  is  called,  "  The 
Emerald  of  the  Vatican,"  and  is  a  copy  of  the  head  of  Jesus  in  Rafaelle's  cartoon 
of  the  Miraculous  Draught  of  Fishes. 

The  heads  engraved  by  Albert  Diirer  are  very  artistic  ideals  of  the  notion  that 
the  Messiah  must  have  been  repulsive  and  unlovely  in  appearance.  The  Italians 
(Leonardo  da  Vinci,  RafaeUe,  Guido,  Guercino,  Titian,  etc.)  made  their  ideals 
weak  and  womanish,  without  intellectual  force  or  manly  vigor,  and  have  in  nearly 
every  instance  lowered  their  hero  beneath  the  average  appearance  of  men  in  active 

life. 

The  recent  attempts  of  Europeans  and  Americans  have  served  only  to  show 
that  the  artist  is  incapable  of  painting  any  ideal  above  or  beyond  his  own  char- 
acter; and  if  that  falls  below  the  pure  and  lofty  ideal  which  is  universally 
given  1;0  the  conception  of  the  character  of  Jesus,  then  the  work  must  reflect 
upon  the  subject  to  its  disadvantage.  The  all-healing  Messiah  could  only  be 
represented  faithfully  as  the  merciful  physician  and  restorer  to  spiritual  and 
physical  health  by  an  artist  who  was  qualified,  first,  by  having  the  almost  divine 
attribute  of  a  soul  that  is  willing,  for  the  sake  of  relieving  a  suffering  brother,  to 


730  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

take  his  disease  upon  himself,  or  his  criminal  shame  as  his  own  ;  and,  second,  the 
ability  to  reproduce  the  expression  of  countenance  which  wUl  convey  that  will- 
ingness to  self-sacrifice.  The  artist  who  would  not  so  sacrifice  himself  is  lesa 
than  the  ideal  of  Jesus  which  every  believer  holds  sacred,  and  is,  therefore,  inca- 
pable of  conceiving  the  proper  character  of  the  divine  physician.  And  this  is 
also  true  of  any  other  aspect  of  the  many-sided  character  of  the  Great  Teacher. 
That  such  an  artist  lives  we  cannot  determine ;  but  that  any  such  picture  haa 
been  produced  we  are  certain,  and  can  only  wait.  It  seems  to  many  persons  that 
this  subject  in  all  its  aspects,  whether  representing  Jesus  as  teacher,  healer,  or 
the  divine  man,  is  above  and  beyond  the  possible  achievement  of  art. 

The  early  fathers  were  influenced  by  the  Jewish  habits  of  thought,  which 
regarded  every  representation  of  the  human  form,  and  more  especially  any  at- 
tempts at  imaging  the  divine,  with  horror,  and  therefore  the  only  devices  used 
were  such  as  the  dove,  the  fi.sh,  the  lyre,  the  anchor,  the  ship  under  sail,  etc. 
The  very  earliest  date  that  can  be  assigned  to  any  head  of  Jesus  engraved  on  a 
gem  (and  there  are  hundreds  known)  is  to  the  age  when  the  emperors  sustained 
a  school  of  engraving  as  an  appendage  to  the  court,  as  is  mentioned  in  a  law  of 
the  Emperor  Leo,  A.  D.  880-911. 

The  most  popular  pictures  representing  Jesus  are  those  of  the  passion,  includ- 
ing the  trial,  incidents  on  the  way  to  Calvary,  the  crucifixion ;  and  in  this  work  of 
Guercino  the  incident  of  the  crowning  with  thorns  is  presented  in  a  masterly 
manner.  This  painting  has  long  been  valued  by  some  critics,  who  think  they  see 
in  it  more  of  the  real  character  of  a  Jew  of  Syria,  in  middle  age,  than  appears  in 
any  other  Italian  work.  It  is  almost  impossible  to  convey  even  a  fair  impre.ssi(jn 
of  the  excellence  of  the  original  painting,  which  is  justly  classed  among  the  chief 
works  of  the  greatest  masters  in  art.  This  engraving  gives  as  clear  and  satisfac- 
tory an  idea  of  the  original,  which  is  in  colors  and  very  carefully  finished,  as  is 
possible  to  be  done  in  black  and  white,  and  the  style  of  engraving  (aquatint) 
aeems  to  be  peculiarly  adapted  for  such  a  subject.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind 
that  the  orientals  were  not  in  the  habit  of  stripping  even  condemned  criminals 
nuds,  and  therefore  the  nudity  of  the  Italian  artists  is  local,  and  has  no  reference 
to  the  customs  of  Palestine. 

If  we  must  have  pictures  of  Jesus,  it  seems  a  pity  that  they  cannot  be  the 
work  of  artists  who  are  as  free  as  possible  from  the  monkish  traditions  of  the 
Romish  Church,  and  of  the  efiFete  whims  concerning  Greek  art,  and  who  will  take 
the  time  and  do  the  work  of  informing  themselves  on  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  Syrians,  and  especially  of  the  Jews  in  the  first  century  A.  D. ,  and  who 
would  endeavor  to  present  the  man  Jesus,  the  native  of  Palestine,  in  such  a 
character  that  we  should  find  it  natural  to  respect  and  love  him  as  a  powerful 
and  good  person.  So  far  everj*  attempt  to  represent  the  person  or  character  of 
JesuB  has  been  a  vote  for  Rome,  the  head,  the  drapery,  and  often  the  accessories, 
carrying  the  mind  of  the  beholder  to  Rome  instead  of  to  Jerusalem. 

Map  ok  Pai-estinb  in  the  Timr  of  Ckuist  (p.  15).— This  map  gives 
only  the  most  important  places,  the  hundreds  of  small  villages  having  been  omit- 
ted to  avoid  crowding. 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS.  731 

SnErnERDs'  Field,  BEinLEUEM  cp.  2d). — The  side  hill  and  fields  east  of 
the  convent  and  village  of  Bethlehem  bear  the  name  of  The  Shepherds'  Field, 
and  have  been  used  as  a  pasture,  as  they  are  now,  from  the  most  ancient  time. 
The  soil  is  kept  from  washing  down  the  steep  by  stone  walls,  forming  terraces, 
on  which  there  are  a  few  trees,  the  remains  of  orchards  of  olives  and  figs.  The 
shepherds  watch  their  flocks  day  and  night,  very  few  having  a  fold,  sleeping 
near  them  under  a  tent  of  coarse  cloth,  or  of  leaves  and  grass. 

It  was  in  one  of  these  fields,  east  from  the  terraced  hillside,  that  the  beauti- 
ful idyl  of  Ruth,  Boaz,  and  Naomi  occurred,  forever  sanctifying  the  toils  of 
common  life,  and  shedding  a  glory  over  the  harvest-field. 

The  scene  is  also  associated  with  David,  first  as  the  shepherd  boy,  tending  his 
father's  flocks,  then  as  the  brave  leader  and  chief,  contending  with  his  enemies, 
and  singing  the  praises  of  the  great  Leader  who  assists  all  who  contend  against 
evil ;  and  after  that  as  the  king  twice  crowned  as  ruler  over  the  Jews.  A  well 
is  pointed  out  there  as  the  one  whose  waters  David  thirsted  for  with  a  resistless 
longing,  which  was  suddenly  changed  into  regret  when  he  learned  that  its 
water  had  been  brought  to  him  at  the  risk  of  good  men's  lives. 

The  village  on  the  hill  is  not  very  ancient,  although  it  may  be  on  the  site  of 
the  original  town.  It  is  not  again  mentioned  in  Scripture  after  the  birth  of 
Jesus,  which  occurred  not  in  the  village,  but,  as  Justin  Martyr  says  (a.d.  150), 
"in  a  certain  cave  very  close  to  the  village." 

The  village  is  built  on  a  low  hUl,  which  is  west  of,  and  separated  a  little  by  a 
shallow  depression,  from  the  convent ;  it  is  triangular,  walled  in,  and  contains 
thi-ee  thousand  people,  who  are  nearly  all  makers  of  beads,  crucifixes,  boxes, 
models  of  the  holy  places,  &c.,  for  sale  to  pilgrims.  The  manufacture  of  reUcs  is 
also  carried  on  to  an  extent  which  is  alarming  to  the  true  antiquarian,  although 
very  profitable  to  those  concerned.  The  imitations  can  always  be  detected  by  a 
little  care  and  scrutiny. 

Husks  (p.  22).— The  Carob  tree,  a  species  of  locust,  bears  the  long,  sweet- 
ish pods  (ten  inches),  somewhat  like  the  Lima  bean  pods,  which  are  called  husks 
in  Luke  xv.  16,  and  St.  John's  bread  by  pilgrims.  The  tree  grows  everywhere 
in  Palestine,  and  the  Levant  as  far  south  as  Hebron,  and  is  a  large  and  hand- 
some object,  with  its  deep  green  dense  foliage  of  round  glossy  leaves,  more 
especially  in  the  dry  season,  for  it  is  an  evergreen.  The  Greeks  call  it  keratia 
(horn),  from  the  horn  shape  of  the  pods.  The  pods  (just  before  they  are  ripQ) 
are  steeped  in  water,  formiog  a  pleasant  acid  drink.  They  are  also  sold  in  all 
Oriental  bazaars  for  food,  more  commonly  for  pigs,  cattle,  and  horses,  but  they 
are  only  eaten  by  the  very  poorest  of  the  people.  They  furnish,  by  boiling,  a 
poor  quality  of  molasses  (dibs). 

Nazareth  (p.  24)  is  first  mentioned  in  Matthew  ii.  23,  or  if  taken  in  the 
order  of  time,  ia  Luke  i.  20,  as  the  scene  of  the  annunciation  to  IMary  of  the 
birth  and  character  of  Jesus.  This  place  was  unknown,  or  unmentioned  in  his- 
tory, before  the  birth  of  Jesus,  but  since  that  event  its  name  has  become  a 


732  LISX   OF    ILLUSTKATIONS. 

household  word  throughout  the  Christian  world.  The  city  is  now  built  on  a 
side  hill,  overlooking  a  jilain,  and  probably  not  far  from  the  ancient  site,  a  little 
lower  on  the  same  hill,  and  has  about  5,000  inhabitants.  It  is  very  well  built, 
nearly  every  house  being  of  stone,  flat  roofed,  and  of  two  stories  or  more.  The 
Marouite  convent  is  built  close  under  the  steep  place  which  is  shown  as  the  one 
down  which  the  people  were  determined  to  cast  Jesus.  There  are  many  other  ob- 
jects and  locaUties  pointed  out  to  visitors  as  remnants  of  antiquity,  but  which  have 
little  claim  to  such  honor,  because  the  stone  of  the  district  is  a  soft  white  marl, 
easily  crumbled  and  soon  falling  to  pieces ;  and  therefore  it  is  not  probable  that 
any  house  there  is  more  than  one  or  two  hundred  years  old.  The  fountain,  the 
valley,  and  the  fourteen  hills  around  the  city  have  not  changed,  and  must  pre- 
sent the  same  general  appearance  as  when  the  son  of  the  carpenter  grew  up 
there.  The  valley  runs  nearly  east  and  west,  and  is  about  a  mile  long  by  a 
quarter  wide.  The  hills  are  from  500  to  100  feet  high  above  the  valley  ;  the 
highest,  called  Naby  Ismail,  being  1,800  feet  above  the  ocean,  and  500  above  the 
valley.  The  soil  is  rich,  and  sustains  a  great  variety  of  trees,  flowers,  vines, 
and  produces  fruit,  vegetables,  and  grain  in  abundance. 

The  view  from  the  summit  of  Naby  Ismail,  behind  Nazareth,  to  the  north- 
west, is  most  extensive,  and  includes  many  well-known  and  interesting  Scriptiire 
sites,  some  of  which  are  noted  also  in  later  history.  South-east  the  long  brovni 
crest  of  Carmel  juts  out  below  the  Bay  of  Acre,  with  the  blue  sea  beyond ;  on 
its  east  end  there  are  memories  of  Elijah  and  Baal's  priests,  Ahab.  the  ''fifties," 
and  on  its  western  end,  near  the  sea,  is  a  convent  dating  from  the  Crusades,  and 
the  plain  of  Esdraelon,  level  and  green  at  its  base  ;  the  hills  of  Samaria,  inclosing 
the  city  of  Samaria,  and  the  mountain  Ebal  (and  Gerizlm  behind  it)  by  Shechem , 
Gilboa,  Little  Hermon,  and  its  speck  of  the  village  of  Nain,  and  Shunem  not  far 
off  ;  the  Kishon  river,  the  village  of  Jezreel :  Mount  Tabor,  vrith  memories  of 
Deborah  and  Barak,  and  later  of  Napoleon ;  Gilead,  purple  and  tremulous  in  the 
east,  rising  into  the  high  plateau  of  Jaulan,  over  which,  to  the  north-east,  the 
shining  crest  of  Hermon  above  the  clouds,  lifting  up  so  many  ruined  pagan 
temples  on  its  sides  and  summits.  The  Mount  of  Beatitudes  (Hattin)  just  hides 
Capernaum  at  the  north  end  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee ;  the  heights  of  Safod,  Jebcl 
Jermuk,  and  the  hill  on  which  Hazor  once  stood,  are  to  the  north,  and  over 
them  appears,  like  a  still  blue  cloud,  the  range  of  Lebanon. 

Jebel  Kaukab  marks  the  site  of  Cana,  lying  at  its  foot ;  and  there  is  the  sea 
over  Acre  again ;  St.  John  of  Acre,  full  of  mediaeval  history,  full  of  dust  and 
ruins,  of  Crusading  times  and  later  ages  of  war. 

NAZAUExn  (p.  35).     See  page  731. 

BETiii.KiiiiM  (p.  3G).     See  Shepherd's  Field,  page  23. 

Hkhuon  (p.  8G).  — There  has  been  a  "city"  on  or  near  the  site  of  the 
present  place.  Which  is  called  Khiilil,  The  Friend  (of  God),  meaning  Al)raliain, 
ever  since  the  time  of  the  earliest  records  in  history.  The  whole  district  is  favor- 
able to  an  a^cultural  life,  and  is  noted  for  its  good  soil  and  the  great  variety  of  its 
products,  especially  the  vine,  figs,  olives,  and  is  as  well  watered  as  any  part  of  the 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


733 


country  south  of  Jerusalem.  In  its  days  of  prosperity,  under  David  and  Solomon, 
«very  foot  of  laiid  was  carefully  dressed ;  the  hill-sides,  which  axe  now  stony  and 
barren,  were  terraced,  and  supported  a  dense  population.  The  crops  are  still 
excellent,  and  are  rotated  in  the  most  scientific  manner  (from  tradition),  grain 
and  vegetables  giving  place  to  melons  and  cucumbers. 

The  most  interesting  antiquity  in  the  village  is  the  Haram,  or  Mosque  of 
Hebron,  which  is  the  successor  of  some  more  ancient  structure  built  over  the 
Cave  of  Machpelah,  in  which  were  buried  Sarah,  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob.  It 
is  possible  that  some  part  of  this  buUding,  the  beveled  (or  rebated)  stones,  are 
the  remains  of  some  work  of  Solomon  or  David,  the  only  point  against  this  sup- 
position being  the  silence  of  Josephus,  who  would  probably  have  noticed  such  a 
work  and  given  it  prominence  in  his  Antiquities.  It  may  then  have  been,  as  it  is 
claimed  by  some  critics,  the  work  of  some  one  since  the  time  of  the  Romans. 
Or,  more  probable  than  any  theory,  the  Haram  is  a  relic  of  several  ages,  put  into 
its  present  shape  some  time  during  or  after  the  Crusades. 

The  successor  of  the  Oak  of  Mamre  is  a  terebiath-tree,  nearly  two  miles  from 
Hebron,  in  the  opposite  direction  from  the  real  site.  It  measures  twenty-two 
feet  in  circumference,  and  shades  a  space  of  about  ninety  feet  diameter.  The 
church  of  Constantiue  was  built  near  this  tree,  a  few  of  the  stones  of  which  are 
BtiU  to  be  seen,  some  large  ones  measuring  fourteen  feet  in  length. 

King  David  lived  there  seven  years  and  a  half,  as  king  of  Judah,  and  was 
crowned  there  king  of  all  the  tribes. 

Glass  is  the  chief  manufacture  at  present,  which  is  made  up  into  a  great 
variety  of  articles  for  domestic  use,  and  ornaments  for  women's  wear,  such  as 
rings,  ear-rings,  bracelets,  anklets,  which  are  of  every  possible  tint  and  pattern. 
Many  women  are  so  poor  as  to  be  unable  to  get  any  better  jewelry  than  this 
cheap  glass. 

Inn  ok  Khan  (p.  40). — The  only  public-house  offered  by  the  Orientals  is 
a  two-story  structure,  with  a  large  inclosed  space  for  animals  and  goods.  The 
lower  story  is  used  for  storage  and  for  feeding  and  housing  animals,  and  the 
upper  for  the  travelers.  In  some  of  the  great  khans,  as  at  Damascus,  the  court 
is  roofed  over,  and  the  building  is  three  or  four  stories  high,  and  has  a  great 
number  of  rooms.  No  furniture  or  bedding  is  ever  provided  by  the  innkeeper, 
and  every  needed  article  must  be  supplied  by  the  lodger.  This  makes  it  neces- 
sary to  have  camels  for  baggage  besides  for  riding,  and  so  every  party  of  half  a 
dozen  forms  a  little  caravan  of  ten  to  fifteen  camels,  or  camels,  horses,  and  don- 
keys. 

The  inn  of  Chimham  is  the  first  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures,  and  was  at 
Bethlehem,  on  the  road  to  Egyi^t,  as  aUuded  to  by  Jeremiah  (xli.  17) ;  and  it  is 
not  improbable  that  it  was  the  same  public-house  in  which  Jesus  was  bom.  Its 
site  is  now  occupied  by  a  convent,  which  dates  from  the  Crusades,  if  not  from 
the  time  of  the  Empress  Helena,  mother  of  Constantino,  and  is  the  oldest  Chris- 
tian church  in  the  world.  It  was  repaired  by  King  Edward  IV.  of  England ; 
Baldwin,  the  famous  Crusader  and  king  of  Jcn^salem,  was  crowned  in  it. 

The  building  is  venerable  and  majestic,  and  interesting  from  its  material  hia- 
torv.     Its  roof  is  made  of  the  cedar  of  Lebanon,  and  its  marble  columns  were 


734  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 

gathered  from  many  countries,  the  grifts  of  princes  and  devout  persons.  Some 
of  the  Byzantine  pillars  arc  painted  with  curious  devices,  wHich  are  almosi 
obliterated,  being  very  much  time-worn  and  weather-stained. 

The  history  and  tradition  of  the  "  Cave  of  the  Nativity,"  which  is  under  the 
church,  being  reached  by  a  number  of  steps  cut  down  in  the  solid  rock,  and  in 
which  it  is  asserted  that  Jesus  was  bom,  extends  back  almost  to  the  death  of 
John  the  Evangelist  and  Revelator.  Caves  and  recesses  in  the  rock  are  now 
used,  and  probably  always  have  been,  as  a  refuge  for  cattle,  and  also  for  people, 
as  is  often  noticed  in  the  Scriptures.  But  still  there  is  very  little  to  be  said  in 
favor  of  the  cave  ha^Tng  been  a  part  of  the  original  inn.  Jerome  translated  the 
Bible  in  a  grotto  at  Bethlehem,  which  may  have  been  in  this  same  cave  (where  a 
grotto  is  shown  as  his  studio),  although  it  has  been  very  much  enlarged  in  later 
times,  and  is  now  a  very  sho\vy,  if  not  actually  a  splendid  room,  filled  with  gilt 
ornaments  of  religious  interest,  the  gifts  of  the  pious  pilgrims  of  many  ages. 
Marble  pavement,  marble  columns,  panels,  silver,  brass,  and  copper  lamps,  with 
gold  ornaments,  and  ma.ssive  metal  candlesticks,  highly  enriched  -with  engraving 
and  gilding,  and  inscriptions  sculptured  and  gilded ;  and  more  showy,  and  ap- 
parently more  valuable,  than  all  the  rest,  a  radiated  star  around  the  inscription 
recording  the  birth  of  the  Saviour,  made  of  colored  glass,  in  imitation  of  precious 
stones,  and  placed  over  the  grotto  which  is  pointed  out  as  the  very  spot  on 
which  Jesus  was  bom.  There  was  fcrrmerly  a  star  composed  of  real  gold  and 
precious  stonos,  including  many  valuable  diamonds,  emeralds,  S:c.,  which  was 
removed  by  some  avaricious  and  unworthy  custodian,  and  the  present  cheap 
imitation  substituted.  The  walls,  and  in  many  places  the  roof  also,  are  covered 
with  richly  dyed  silk  hangings. 

SrxAl  (p.  48). — The  Sinai  of  tradition  and  of  many  modem  investigators  is 
{■hown  in  the  view,  which  was  taken  from  the  plain  Er  Rahah,  a  little  west  of  the 
convent.  The  whole  group  of  peaks  is  named  Jebel  Mfisa,  Mount  Moses,  and 
the  peak  nearest  to  the  convent  is  called  Ras  Sufsafa,  Head  of  the  "Willow,  from 
B  single  willow  tree  which  grows  on  it. 

The  summit  is  about  2,000  feet  above  the  plain,  and  has  on  it  a  chapel  and 
the  ruins  of  a  mosque,  which  may  be  reached  by  a  few  minutes  of  hard  climb- 
ing. The  whole  mountain  stands  out  against  the  sky  like  a  huge  altar,  being 
separated  by  valleys  on  all  sides  frmn  the  mountains  around. 

Tlie  plain  of  Er  Rahah  is  two  miles  long,  half  a  mile  wide,  and  slopes  gently 
towards  the  moinitain,  forming  a  natural  amphitheatre  on  which  many  thon- 
sands  could  camp  and  distinctly  view  the  mountain  from  its  base  to  its  summit 

Succorn  (the  Booths)  (p.  84).— It  is  still  called  by  it«  ancient  n.im.-.  pro- 
nounced by  the  Arabs  Sakut,  and  is  believed  to  mark  the  place  where  Jacob 
crossed  the  Jordan  river,  a  few  miles  below  Bcthshan.  The  booths  must  have 
been  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  but  the  name  has  been  transferred  across,  for 
Sakut  is  now  on  the  west  side.     Other  names  have  passed  over  Jordan  in  the 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS.  735 

Bame  manner,  as  "  Jebel  Mfisa,"  near  Jericho,  Moses'  Mountain,  meaning  the 
one  from  which  he  viewed  the  promised  land,  which  was  on  the  east  side. 

The  vessels  for  Solomon's  Temple  were  cast  in  the  clay  ground  on  the  Jordan 
banks,  between  Succoth  and  Zartan,  and  there  are  very  fine  and  deep  clay  beds 
there  now,  the  clay  from  which  is  hard,  almost  slaty,  easily  softened  and 
moulded,  and  the  best  known  for  casting  metals  in  to  this  day. 

The  whole  vicinity  of  Succoth  abounds  in  springs  and  brooks,  and  th^re  is 
"  much  water"  now,  as  there  was  in  the  time  of  John's  ministry  (John  iii.  32). 

The  "  ford  "  (so  called,  for  there  is  no  passable  place  as  a  ford  there)  opposite 
Jericho,  near  the  Jews'  castle,  is  one  of  the  "  localities"  of  the  monks. 

Ford  op  the  Jordan  (p.  58).  The  view  is  of  a  place  near  Nimrim  (the 
Panthers),  where  there  is  a  rather  difficult  ford  in  the  season  of  low  water,  but 
none  at  all  in  the  winter.  There  are  several  fords,  in  the  summer  time,  which 
are  used  by  travelers  and  the  natives,  as  opposite  Bethshan,  near  Succoth,  just 
north  of  Wady  Yabes  (Jabesh),  which  is  supposed  to  be  the  same  as  the  Betha- 
bara  (Bethbara)  of  Judges  vii.  24.  There  are  several  others  north  of  the  mouth 
of  the  Jabbok.  Ten  miles  south  of  that  river  there  is  a  good  one  on  the  road  from 
Nablus  (Shechem)  to  Es  Salt  (Kamoth  in  GUead),  and  there  are  ruins  of  a  Roman 
bridge  there  also.  There  are  also  fords  both  above  and  below  the  Pilgrim's 
Bathing  Place  (Latin),  opposite  Jericho;  the  upper  one  is  supposed  to  be  the  one 
crossed  by  Joshua.  The  river  below  the  "bathing  place"  is  swift  and  deep,  and 
cannot  be  forded. 

Carmel  (p.  90).— The  mountain  is  1,800  feet  at  the  east,  and  500  feet  high  at 
the  west  end,  and  is  nearly  eighteen  miles  long  from  the  site  of  the  sacrifice  of 
Baal's  prophets  to  the  convent  overlooking  the  sea.  It  is  the  most  picturesque 
region  in  Palestine',  in  variety  of  hill-sides,  mountain  slopes,  covered  with  the 
most  luxuriant  vegetation,  and  carpeted  with  countless  flowers.  The  forests 
abound  in  wild  game,  such  as  partridge,  quail,  woodcock,  hare,  jackal,  wolf, 
hyena,  boar,  and  bear. 

The  mountain  has  been  famous  from  remote  antiquity  as  a  holy  place,  having 
had  among  the  visitors  to  its  shrines  the  ancient  philosopher  Pythagoras  and  the 
Emperor  Vespasian. 

The  present  building,  standing  on  the  west  end  near  the  sea,  was  erected  in 
1830,  over  the  ancient  ruins  of  the  convent  originally  standing  there,  which  was 
founded  by  St.  Louis  of  France,  who  named  the  order  '"  The  Barefoot  Carmelite, 
Friars. " 

Capernaum  (p.  112),  which  had  been  so  utterly  destroyed  as  to  leave 
scarcely  any  trace  of  its  site,  has  been  restored  to  history,  beyond  a  doubt,  by 
the  researches  and  discoveries  of  W.  M.  Thomson  {Land  and  Book),  and  the 
Palestine  Exploration  {Jerusalem  Recocered).  The  ruins  lie  scattered  over  a  hill 
called  Tell  Hum,  which  rises  from  the  water  edge  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and 
which  is  an  excellent  site  for  a  city,  being  high,  commanding  a  wide  prospect 
across  the  sea  south,  over  the  plains  and  hUls  east,  the  plain  of  Gennesaret  and 


736  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS, 

the  hills  of  Galilee  west,  and  the  mountains  around  Safed,  while  snow-capped 
Hermon  is  in  view  north-east.  There  is  a  ruin  of  the  synagogue,  which  may  have 
been  built  or  improved  by  the  centurion  mentioned  in  SLitthew,  who  was  in 
command  of  Roman  troops  stationed  there.  The  building  was  made  of  lime- 
stone, brought  from  a  distance,  and  there  are  a  few  pieces  of  sculptured  orna- 
ments, columns,  cornices,  lintels  left,  which  indicate  that  the  structure  was  mag- 
nificent in  size  and  workmanship.  One  of  the  lintels  had  sculptured  on  it  a  pot 
of  manna,  as  an  ornament,  among  scrolls  and  other  figures,  which  proves  that 
the  building  was  a  religious  edifice  built  by  Jews. 

There  was  also  a  cemetery,  with  graves  and  regular  tombs  cut  in  the  rock  or 
built  above  the  surface.  The  ruins  cover  a  space  nearly  as  large  as  the  town  of 
Tiberias,  and  the  place  may  have  contained,  in  its  greatest  prosperity,  fifty  thou- 
sand inhabitants.  The  materials  may  have  been  carried  away  during  the  last 
thousand  years,  to  reappear  in  other  cities,  or  have  been  burnt  into  lime,  as  has 
been  done  at  other  places. 

The  other  claimants  to  the  site  of  Capernaum  do  not  present  ruins  which 
answer  the  demand  of  the  text,  and  Tell  Hum  does.  The  Evangelists  did  not 
give  topographical  indications  directly,  for  they  were  not  writing  a  geography ; 
while  Joscphus,  as  a  soldier  and  engineer,  was  careful  to  notice  localities,  and  his 
description  of  Capernaum  and  other  places  is  very  complete. 

The  miracle  of  the  feeding  five  thousand  persons  with  food  created  for  the 
purpose,  was  considered  by  all  the  Evangelists  of  very  great  importance,  and  as 
they  have  all  mentioned  Capernaum  and  Bethsaida  in  connection  with  the  ac- 
count, geographers  have  been  so  perplexed  as  to  attempt  to  invent  a  second  Beth- 
saida at  the  head  of  the  lake,  west  of  Capernaum. 

The  preaching  by  the  sea  may  be  located  somewhere  along  the  coast  between 
Tell  Hum  and  Tabigah,  where  there  are  several  creeks  and  inlets  in  which  the 
boat  (ship  in  the  Gospel)  could  ride  in  safety  only  a  few  feet  from  the  shore,  and 
where  the  multitude  could  be  seated  on  the  dry  shore,  where  there  are  many 
boulders  of  basalt,  smooth  and  convenient  for  seats. 

The  first  four  of  the  Apostles  were  fishermen,  and  there  are  no  more  favorable 
places  for  carrying  on  their  business  than  this  very  shore,  where  their  boats 
could  be  kept  in  safety,  and  their  nets  mended  on  the  hard  shell-paved  beach. 
(See  Tell  Hum.) 

Cana  (p.  120). — There  is  a  division  of  opinion  among  scholars  on  the  question 
of  the  site  of  the  ancient  Cana,  one  party  holding  that  Kefr  Kenna,  a  village 
three  miles  north-west  of  Nazareth,  is  the  true  site,  and  another  that  what  is 
now  called  Kana-el-Jelil  (Cana  of  Galilee),  is  the  site  of  the  village  in  which 
the  marriage -feast  was  held,  at  which  it  is  said  that  the  wine  was  created  from 
water. 

Kana-el-Jelil  was  selected  as  the  more  beautiful  of  the  two  in  a  pictorixd 
sense,  and  besides  the  evidence  seems  to  be  greatly  in  its  favor.  It  lies  on  the 
end  of  a  ridge,  at  the  foot  of  Jebel  Eaukab,  just  at  the  border  of  the  plain  of 
Buttanf  (plain  of  Issachar),  eight  miles  north  of  Nazareth.  The  site  is  very 
favorable  for  fine  views,  overlooking  the  plain,  and  including  distant  glimpses  of 


LIST    OF   ILLUSTRATIONS.  737 

several  mountains  well  known  in  Bible  narrative,   as  Hermon,  Tabor,  Gilboa, 
Carmel,  and  Lebanon. 

The  ancient  writers  (Antoninus  Martyr,  a.d.  590;  St.  Willibald,  a.d.  780; 
Sajwulf,  A.D.  1103;  Maurice  Sanutus,  a.d.  1321;  Breydenbach.  a.d.  1483; 
Anselm,  A.D.  1507;  Adrichomi.s,  A.D.  1575)  unite  in  describing  the  site,  as  be- 
lieved to  have  been  correctly  located  in  their  day,  at  the  foot  of  a  high  round 
mountain  on  the  north,  a  plain,  broad  and  fertUe  on  the  south,  and  with  Sep- 
phoris  between  it  and  Nazareth,  all  of  which  particulars  are  found  at  Kana-el- 
JelQ.  These  writers  also  described  six  water-pots  and  a  triclinium  where  the 
feast  was  held,  the  whole  being  in  a  cavern  or  grotto,  underground,  like  that  of 
the  Nativity  at  Bethlehem,  and  also  of  the  Annunciation  at  Nazareth. 

The  water-pots  shown  there  are  not  reliable  as  antiquities,  because  tbey  are  a 
common  article  of  domestic  use,  and  are  made  when  wanted,  in  every  age,  in 
eveiy  year,  and  a  few  broken  jars  can  always  be  had  to  lend  their  appearance  in 
aid  of  a  popular  tradition.  It  is  therefore  not  surprising  that  water-pots  are 
shown  at  both  sites  of  Cana,  and  both  claimed  as  veritable  antiquities. 

The  general  truth  of  the  event,  the  Galilean  village,  the  custom  of  the  people 
keeping  water  and  wine  in  jars  of  pottery,  can  be  proven  beyond  question  ;  but 
the  house  in  which  the  feast  was  held,  and  the  jars  that  held  the  water  made 
wine,  have  passed  away  into  their  original  dust. 

John's  Prison,  MachvERUS  (p.  148).— Herod  the  Great  built  a  palace  and  a 
prison,  and  probably  bath-houses  also,  at  the  hot  springs  of  Callirrhoe,  on  the 
river  Main,  about  eight  miles  from  the  Dead  Sea.  Josephus  describes  it  i.  Wars, 
vi.,  c.  1)  as  "  a  vei7  rocky  hill,  elevated  to  a  great  height,  ditched  about  with 
valleys  on  aU  sides  to  such  a  depth  that  the  eye  cannot  reach  their  bottoms,  that 
on  the  west  reaching  to  the  Lake  Asphaltitis ;  and  on  that  same  side  the  castle 
had  the  tallest  top  of  its  hill."  The  cliffs  are  200  feet  high,  about  150  apart,  and 
the  stream  from  the  hot  springs  is  six  to  ten  inches  deep,  50  to  100  feet  wide, 
and  runs  four  or  five  miles  an  hour.  The  ruins  of  the  castle  or  palace,  and  per- 
haps other  houses,  are  scattered  over  several  acres  of  the  ridge,  nearly  half  a 
mile  from  the  ravine.  The  finest  view  is  had  by  moonlight,  when  the  almost 
daylight  of  the  full  moon  gives  a  wild  and  strange  character  to  the  scene.  There 
has  as  yet  been  no  exploration  on  the  east  of  the  Dead  Sea,  except  at  a  few 
points,  and  it  is  believed  that  the  richest  results  would  follow  from  the  examina- 
tion of  certain  well-known  ruins,  such  as  these  at  Machaerus,  and  at  Hcshbou, 
Rabbath-Ammon,  by  scientific  men,  properly  provided  with  instruments  and 
assistants. 

SnECHEM  (p.  149).— The  village  lies  between  two  hills,  Ebal  and  Gerizim, 
which  are  on  the  great  dividing  ridge  between  the  Jordan  and  the  Mediterranean 
Sea.  It  is  now  called  Nablus,  a  corruption  of  Neapolis,  the  Greek  name  given 
to  it  by  Vespasian.     John  speaks  of  it  as  Sychar,  and  Pliny  called  it  INIabortha. 

The  valley  is  about  1,500  feet  wide,  between  the  two  mountains,  and  its 
general  level  is  1,800  above  the  sea.  The  valley  is  full  of  springs  of  good  watei, 
the  people  counting  as  many  as  eighty.  Some  of  these  springs  send  the  waters 
47 


738  LIST    OF    IIXrSTRATIOXS. 

into  the  Jordan,  and  others  into  tlie  Mediterranean.  The  soil  is  rich,  and  very 
productive  in  orchards,  gardens,  and  fields,  and  is  not  equalled  in  Palestine  for  its 
glory  of  fruit  and  verdure,  running  brooks,  and  singing  birds. 

Abraham  pitched  his  tent  under  the  oak  of  Morch,  and  there  first  set  up  the 
worship  of  the  living  God,  near  to  Shechem.  In  this  vicinity  was  also  most 
probably  the  residence  of  Melchizedek,  the  King  of  Salem,  in  or  near  that  little 
modem  village  of  Salira.  The  Samaritans  also  claim  that  the  Moriah  on  which 
Abraham  laid  out  Isaac  ready  for  the  sacrifice  was  Mount  Gerizim. 

Shechem  also  was  the  residence  of  the  grandson  of  Abraham,  Jacob,  who 
bought  a  field  and  dug  a  well.     (See  Jacob's  Well.) 

It  is  probably  on  account  of  these  well-known  facts  in  the  history  of  the  place 
that  Moses  regarded  it  as  the  most  sacred  si:)ot  in  Canaan,  and  the  only  one  con- 
secrated to  the  worship  of  the  living  God,  and  that  accordingly  he  ordered  the 
great  assembly  of  the  people  there. 

The  experiment  has  been  made  of  two  readers  stationed  on  opposite  sides  of 
the  valley,  on  Ebal  and  Gerizim,  who  read  the  blessings  and  the  curses  in  a  loud 
voice,  and  were  distinctly  heard  by  each  other. 

The  bones  of  Joseph  were  also  brought  from  Egypt  by  the  children  of  Israel, 
and  buried,  as  tradition  says,  in  the  level  spot  close  under  the  foot  of  Mount 
Ebal. 

Jacob's  Well  (p.  153). — The  remarkable  work  called  Jacob's  Well  is  iu  the 
plain  of  Mukna,  a  mUe  and  a  half  from  the  village  of  Nablus  (Shechem). 
Joseph's  Tomb  is  in  plain  view,  nearer  Mount  Ebal. 

There  are  none  who  dispute  the  identity  of  this  well  as  having  been  the  work 
of  Jacob  and  his  servants.  The  most  surprising  thing  about  it  is  that  a  well 
should  have  been  dug  at  aU  in  a  place  which  abounds  in  natural  springs  of 
bright,  sweet  water,  and  sufficient  in  quantity  to  supply  several  brooks.  The 
visitor  now  first  descends  into  a  chamber  about  ten  feet,  in  the  floor  of  which  is 
the  mouth  of  the  well,  only  large  enough  to  admit  the  body  of  a  man.  This 
opening  is  broken  through  an  arch  which  has  been  not  very  long  ago  built  over 
the  well.  The  shaft  is  seven  feet  six  inches  in  diameter,  and  seventy-five  feet 
deep  down  to  the  rubbish,  which  is  suiiposed  to  be  fifty  to  seventy-five  feet 
deeper.     It  is  lined  ^vith  rough  masonry,  having  been  dug  through  alluvial  soU. 

There  are  ruins  of  the  church,  which  once  stood  over  the  well,  scattered 
about,  but  no  signs  of  any  curb  or  inclosing  wall  of  any  kind  around  'the  mouth 
(John  iv.  1). 

This  is  one  of  the  few  places  in  Palestine  that  is  not  "honored"  by  some 
edifice  or  monument  ' '  locating "  the  Bible  narrative ;  but  it  is  said  that  the 
Greeks  (Russians)  have  lately  bought  the  place,  with  the  intention  of  building  a 
church  over  the  well. 

The  valley  of  Mukna,  the  ancient  Moreh,  is  one  of  the  richest  in  the  produc- 
tion of  grain,  fruit,  and  vegetables  in  all  the  land  ; — \nncs,  figs,  oranges,  Icmonn, 
pomegranates,  in  short,  every  fruitful  tree,  and  all  growing  beside  never-failing 
Btreams  of  pure  water.  The  valley  extends  for  about  seven  miles,  and  is  the 
fairest  expanse  of  cultivated  soil  in  all  the  land. 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTKATIONS.  739 

Samaritan  priest  (p.  159).  The  Assyrians  carried  away  to  the  Euphrates 
the  Jews  of  Samaria,  and  sent  their  owti  people  to  occupy  the  cities  and  the  land. 
From  these  emigrants  the  modem  Samaritans  are  descended.  They  have  kept  a 
copy  of  the  law  as  it  was  on  their  day.,  500  B.  c. ,  and  still  celebrate  the  ancient  form 
of  worship,  although  there  are  only  about  one  hundred  of  them  left.  The  dress  of 
the  priest  may  be,  and  probably  is,  a  correct  following  of  the  ancient  style,  and  its 
description  answers  the  requirements  of  the  text  in  Exodus  very  closely.  The 
enmity  between  the  Jews  and  Samaritans  began  when  they  were  refused  to  have 
a  share  in  rebuilding  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem,  after  the  return  from  the  captivity 
in  Babylon,  when  they  built  a  temple  for  themselves  on  Mount  Gerizim,  at  She- 
chem,  in  the  time  of  Alexander.  This  was  destroyed  by  John  Hyrcanus,  B.C.  129. 
In  the  fifth  century  a.d.  there  was  a  Christian  Church  on  Gerizim,  but  only  a  few 
stones  of  the  foundation  are  left. 

Tell  Hum  (p.  108).— In  determining  the  antiquity  of  a  name  which  is 
found  attached  to  a  certain  locality,  it  is  sometimes  needful  to  follow  it  through 
several  changes  it  may  have  undergone  in  passing  from  one  language  to  another. 
In  this  archa3ological  skill  Dr.  Robinson  was  especially  noted  and  successful,  hav- 
ing recovered  hundreds  of  Bible  names  from  the  modem  Arabic  titles  to  places 
noted  in  the  Scriptures.  W.  M.  Thomson  was  the  first  to  discover  the  name  of 
Capernaum  in  the  Arabic  Tell  Hum.  He  says:  '•'■  Hum  is  the  last  syllable  of 
Jufr-na-hum,  as  it  was  anciently  spelled,  and  it  is  a  very  common  mode  of  cur- 
tailing old  names  to  retaui  only  the  final  syHable.  Thus  we  have  Zib  for  Ach- 
zib,  and  Fik  for  Aphcah,  etc.  In  this  instance  Kefr  has  been  changed  to  Tell- 
why  ?  A  deserted  sitQ  is  generally  named  TeU,  but  not  Kefr  (which  is  applied  to 
a  village) ;  and  when  Capernaum  became  a  heap  of  rubbish  it  would  be  quite 
natural  for  the  Arabs  to  drop  the  Kefr,  and  call  it  simply  TeU  Hum."  (See 
Capernaum. ) 

Scribes  and  books  (p.  180). 

Cedars  (p.  181).— There  are  few  remains  of  the  ancient  forests  on  the  moun- 
tains of  Syria,  and  the  cedars  are  the  most  noble  specimens  now  standing.  On 
the  slopes  of  the  Lebanon  range  there  are  several  groves  of  the  ancient  cedars, 
one  of  which  is  near  the  Beirut-Damascus  carriage  road,  and  is  quite  easy  of 
access  to  travelers,  who  have  brought  away  thousands  of  the  cones,  which  are 
nearly  three  inches  long  by  two  inches  diameter,  and  one  especially,  Robert  Mor- 
ris. LL.D.,  in  1868,  distributed  several  thousands  among  Sunday-school  scholars 
a.s  incentives  to  a  study  of  the  natural  history  of  Palestine.  The  largest  cedars 
are  found  near  the  highest  summit  of  Lebanon  (Dhor  el  Khodib),  close  to  the 
limit  of  perpetual  snow. 

Bottles  (p.  194).— There  are  several  kinds  of  bottles  used  in  the  East,  made 
of  skins,  earth,  glass,  and  of  metal.  The  skins  are  of  various  sizes,  as  they  are 
taken  from  rabbits,  kids,  sheep,  cows,  holding  from  one  gallon  to  thirty  or  forty. 
These  are  usually  prepared  with  the  hair  turned  inside,  and  so  are  likely  to  give 
the  water  or  wine  a  peculiar  flavor.  These  skin-bottles  are  the  kind  alluded  tc 
in  the  Scriptures,  where  new  bottles  are  recommended  for  strength ;  and  they 
are  also  used  in  Spain  now  as  well  as  in  Palestine  and  other  eastern  countries. 


740  LIST    OF    ILLISTKATIOXS. 

The  bottles  of  glass  do  not  differ  from  ours,  except  that  they  are  pf  vory  sin 
gular  forms.  Those  found  in  tombs  and  in  ancient  ruins  are,  without  doubt, 
▼eritwble  antiquities,  and  have  the  well-known  appearance  of  old,  time-worn, 
decayed  glass. 

Earthen  bottles,  or  jars  and  pitchers,  are  always  finely  formed,  and  often 
elegantly  ornamented  with  figures  and  colors.  They  are  in  constant  use,  as  pails 
are  with  us,  and  are  seen  in  the  hands  or  on  the  heads  of  the  women,  morning 
and  evening,  at  the  wells,  or  on  the  way  to  and  from. 

Metals,  especially  copper  and  bronze,  were  used  for  bottles  and  cups,  and 
most  of  the  smaller  vessels,  such  as  are  made  of  tin  or  tinned  iron  with  us,  in 
the  East  are  made  of  copper  or  brass.  The  ancients  did  not  make  brass,  but 
bronze.  The  ancient  pieces  of  money  are  bronze,  as  also  many  articles,  such  as 
knives,  swords,  handles,  dishes,  bowls,  etc.,  and  this  compound  was  of  copper 
and  tin,  the  union  of  copper  and  zinc  forming  brass  being  a  modem  invention. 

ANCrENT  BOTTLKS  (p.  197). 

Pool.  OF  Hezekiau  (p.  199).— This  pool  is  cut  in  the  solid  rock,  and  is  of 
great  antiquity,  and  is  the  work  of  Hezekiah,  King  of  Judah,  who  "made  a 
|)ool.  and  a  conduit,  and  brought  water  into  the  city  ;  "  and  also  "  stopped  the 
upper  watercourse  of  Gihon,  and  brought  it  straight  down  to  the  west  side  of  the 
city  of  David." 

Jerusalem  is  chiefly  dependent  on  the  rains  for  its  supply  of  water,  and  every 
house  has  under  it  one  or  more  cisterns. 

The  Hezekiah  pool  is  250  feet  long,  150  wide,  and  capable  of  holding  millions 
of  gallons  of  water,  which  is  used  to  supply  several  bath-houses.  The  pool 
is  inclosed  by  houses  on  every  side,  one  of  which  is  a  large  hotel,  kept  by 
Europeans. 

The  question  of  where  the  pool  of  Bethesda  was,  and  which  ruin  or  present 
pool  is  the  true  site,  if  any  now  remains,  is  one  of  the  un.settled  problems  in  the 
map  of  Jerusalem.  Among  the  sites  offered  is  the  great  pool  or  reservoir  north 
of  the  Temple  site,  and  now  called  the  Pool  of  Bethesda,  near  the  St  Stephen 
Gate,  and  which  has  been  lined  with  ma.sonry  and  cemented  for  holding  water, 
although  it  is  now  dry;  300  feet  long,  1:30  wide,  75  deep. 

Another,  called  by  Eusebius  and  the  Bordeaux  Pilgrim  the  twin  pools,  which 
has  been  lately  found  at  the  north-west  angle  of  the  Temple  area,  a  large  reser- 
voir. Hi.'}  feet  long  by  48  wide  (with  a  dividing  wall  running  lengthwise,  and  both 
sides  arched  over,  and  now  built  over).  The  water  is  used  by  the  Convent  of  the 
Sisters  of  Sion.     The  Arch  of  Ecce  Homo  is  near  the  place. 

Mr.  Williams  {Tidy  City,  p.  484)  thinks  the  Bethesda  pool  was  near  the  St. 
Ann  Church,  and  now  almost  completely  destroyed. 

Chancellor  Crosby  selects  the  Virgin  Fountain,  which  is  now  outside  of  the 
city  walla,  as  the  true  Bethesda. 

Our  text  offers  the  Hezekiah  pool,  which  answers  many,  if  not  all,  of  the 
reqoirements  of  the  cose. 

Ska  of  G.^mlkk  (p.  218). —The  sea  is  pear-shaped,  the  large  end  at  the 
north,  six  and  three-quarters  mile  wide,  and  twelve  and  a  quarter  long.     The 


LIST    OF   n.LUSTKATIONS.  741 

surface  is  between  600  and  TOO  feet  below  the  ocean  level.  The  shores  are  on 
all  sides  quite  regular  in  outline,  but  the  hills  are  indented  into  many  little  bays 
or  hollows,  some  of  which  are  small  plains,  filled  with  vegetation,  and  very 
beautiful.  The  hills  are  almost  always  gently  sloping,  and  might  be  cultivated 
from  bottom  to  top.  The  soil  ia  rich,  being  formed  on  limestone.  Basalt  has 
flowed  over  the  tops  of  the  hiUs  from  three  sources,  Kurun  Hattin,  El-Jish,  beyond 
Safed,  and  in  the  Jaulan.  The  beach  is  paved  with  minute  white  broken  shells, 
and  skirted  in  many  places  with  oleanders  and  other  flowering  shrubs. 

The  hills  have  a  general  tint  of  purplish  brown,  broken  in  some  places  by  gray 
rocks,  or  lines  of  foliage.  The  east  shore  is  2,000  feet  high,  quite  uniform  in 
height  along  the  summit  of  the  ridge,  but  cut  down  by  several  deep  ra-vines,  with 
very  few  scattering  trees,  and  no  forests.  On  the  west  the  banks  are  about  the 
same  height,  but  the  uniform  level  is  relieved  by  the  outlines  of  Tabor  and  Hattin, 
which  rise  into  the  sky  in  the  distance. 

Northward  the  outliue  is  still  more  varied  by  the  heights  of  Safed,  the  plain 
of  Gennesaret,  and  the  snow-capped  Ilermon. 

Towards  the  south  the  view  is  lost  in  the  dim  hazy  heat  of  the  Ghor,  with 
Mount  Gilboa  and  Little  Hermon  on  the  west  side  of  the  Jordan,  and  GUead  on 
the  east.  The  locality  of  the  Dead  Sea  can  be  made  out  by  the  level  haze  in 
the  distant  horizon,  in  the  morning  or  near  sunset. 

The  Jordan  river  enters  near  the  western  shore  of  the  north  end,  and  colors 
the  water  for  nearly  a  mile  with  its  muddy  current,  and  passes  out  at  the  south 
end,  a  pure  bright  stream. 

The  water  of  the  sea  is  in  some  places  250  feet  deep,  and  is  clear,  bright,  and 
Bweet  to  the  taste,  except  near  salt  springs. 

The  climate  is  almost  tropical,  ice  or  frost  never  appearing.  Palms  and  all 
kinds  of  trees  and  vegetables  grow  in  luxuriance,  and  indigo  is  cultivated.  The 
summer  heat  is  high,  but  the  cool  breezes  of  the  morning  and  evening  relieve  its 
oppressiveness. 

The  waters  are  well  stocked  with  many  kinds  of  fish,  some  of  which  are  much 
prized  for  their  flavor. 

Several  warm  springs  pour  their  waters  into  the  sea,  which  were  increased  in 
volume  and  temperature  by  the  earthqiiake  of  1837.  The  most  noted  of  the 
hot  springs  are  those  near  Tiberias,  where  there  are  bath-houses  of  stone,  quite 
well  built  Josephus  speaks  of  this  place  as  Emmaus,  near  Tiberias.  It  was  an 
ancient  and  fortified  town  of  NaphtaJi,  as  mentioned  in  the  book  of  Joshua  (xix. 
35). 

In  the  time  of  Jesus  there  were  nine  cities,  or  cities  and  villages,  around  the 
Bhores  of  this  lake,  only  one  or  two  of  which  now  remain — Tiberias  and  Magdala, 
All  the  others  are  in  ruins,  and  even  so  far  destroyed  as  to  be  almost  entirely 
lost. 

The  sea  has  had  several  names,  as  Galilee,  from  the  district  in  the  Roman 
period ;  Chinnereth,  from  a  city  which  stood  at  or  near  the  present  Tiberias ; 
Tiberias,  from  the  city  which  was  named  in  honor  of  Tiberius,  Emperor  of 
Rome  ;  and  Genncsaret,  from  the  plain  of  that  name  on  its  north-west  border. 


742  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

Lamp-stand  (p.  240). — The  recent  exploratiou  iu  Palestine  has  found  manT 
articles  of  domestic  use,  such  as  bottles,  jugs,  lamps  of  pottery,  and  some  articles 
of  copper,  as  ring«  and  ornaments,  daggers,  heads  of  gods  and  serpents,  and  this 
lamp-stand,  which  was  found  in  a  chamber  south  of  the  Haram  Area.  Some  of 
these  articles  were  finely  wrought,  beautifully  enamelled,  or  delicately  inlaid. 
There  were  also  a  few  articles  of  shell,  ivory,  and  wood  carvings,  such  as  boxes 
and  cases  for  the  toilet,  and  objects  of  luxury. 

Mount  ok  Beatitudes,  Kurux  Hattin  (p.  242).— Almost  unanimous  con- 
sent locates  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount  on  this  mountain,  which  rises  high  abova 
the  plain  of  Buttauf  (Issachar),  a  little  more  than  half  way  between  Nazareth 
and  the  Sea  of  Galilee.  Its  Arabic  name,  Kurun  Hattin,  Horns  of  Hattin,  de- 
scribes its  appearance  from  a  distance,  for  it  is  marked  by  sharp  peaks  at  each 
end,  especially  as  seen  from  the  south.  The  view  given  in  the  engraving  is  from 
the  opposite  side  of  the  plain,  on  the  north,  where  the  horns,  or  peaks,  are  not 
BO  apparent.  The  Hebrew  word  for  horn,  keren,  is  almost  identical.  It  is  the 
mo.st  prominent  height  on  the  west  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and  the  plain  at  its 
northern  foot  is  very  easily  reached  from  the  coast  towns,  while  from  the  plain 
to  the  summit  it  is  but  a  few  minutes'  walk.  There  is  a  level  place  on  the  top. 
as  described  in  the  text,  and  also  a  higher  standing-place  on  the  horns.  It  is 
distinctly  "the  mountain"  of  the  whole  region,  no  other  being  comparable  to  it 
in  prominence. 

The  la,st  great  battle  between  the  Crusaders  and  the  Saracens  took  place  on 
and  around  this  mountain.  On  the  5th  July,  1187,  the  noble  army  of  Knights 
Templars,  numbering  2,000,  with  8,000  squires,  men-at-arms,  &c.,  formed  their 
line  of  battle  against  the  army  of  Saladin.  The  contest  was  carried  on  through 
several  days,  until  the  remnant  of  the  Knights  and  their  followers,  then  led  by 
King  Guj'  of  Lusignan,  Raynald  of  ChatiUon,  the  Grand  Master,  the  Bi.shop  of 
Lydda,  bearing  the  relic  of  the  true  cross,  and  Humphrey  of  Turon,  were  either 
killed  or  made  prisoners.  There  has  been  no  Christian  power  or  ruler  in  Pales- 
tine from  that  day  to  this. 

Nain  and  Little  Heumon  (p.  310).— The  village  of  Nain  is  poorly  built, 
of  about  twenty  huts,  on  a  rocky  ridge,  a  spur  from  Little  Hermon  (Hill  Jloreh), 
and  near  the  water-shed  between  the  Jordan  and  the  Mediterranean.  The  ruins 
of  an  ancient  city  lie  around  the  village,  and  there  are  cave  sepulchres  in  the 
steep  side  hUl  east  of  the  site,  and  al.so  on  the  west.  The  expedition  of  Gideon 
and  hie  300  men,  with  lamps  in  pitchers,  and  trumpets,  is  associated  ^vith  this 
vicinity,  for  the  plain  in  front  of  Nain  is  that  on  which  the  Midianites  were 
camped. 

Tyre  (p.  310)  was  built  both  on  an  island  and  on  the  mainland  opposite,  the 
island  being  very  strongly  fortified.  Alexander  found  it  necessary  to  build  a 
causeway  out  to  the  island  during  hi.s  siogo  of  the  city,  and  the  work  still  re- 
mains, joining  the  island  to  the  shore.     The  papulation  in  tlio  tinie  of  Christ  was 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


743 


nearly  equal  to  that  of  Jerusalem.     Cassias,  a  Christian  bishop  of  Tyre,  was  at 
the  Council  of  Caesarea.     "  William  of  Tyre  "  was  archbishop  in  the  time  of  the 
Cmsades   (A.D.   1124),  and   wrote,  in  his  history,  an   account  of  the  wealth, 
strength   and  manufactures  of  the  city,  among  which  glass  and  sugar  are  men- 
tioned  as  articles  of  great  value  in  trade.     The  Christian  army  abandoned  the 
place  on  the  eve  of  June  17,  1194,  the  Saracens  took  possession  the  next  mom- 
in-   and  have  held  it  ever  since.     The  ancient  strength  and  wealth  have  disap- 
pe^alred   and  its  present  condition  of  sUcnce  and  desolation,  as  compared  to  its 
former  activity  and  magnificence,  is  a  most  complete  fulfilment  of  prophecy. 
One  stone  alone  of  its  great  sea  waU  is  left  m  its  original  position,  near  the  north 
end  of  the  island  city.     It  measui-es  G^  feet  thick  by  17  feet  long.     The  rums 
have  been  used  as  a  quaxTy,  fui-nishing  columns,  capitals,  panels,  and  wrought 
stones  for  buildings  in  Joppa,  Acre,  and  Beimt,  besides  many  fine  works  earned 
to  Rome  and  Constantinople.     The  ruins  of  the  Christian  cathedral,  m  the  south- 
eastern  quarter  of  the  modem  village,  are  still  imposing,  and  are  visited  by  every 
passing  pilgrim.     It  was  about  250  by  150  feet  in  extent.     Some  of  its  mam 
.-olumns  were  red  syenite,  and  now  lie  where  they  fell. 

The  most  interesting  objects  next  to  the  cathedral  ruin  are  the  immense 
fountain  and  the  remains  of  the  aqueduct  for  supplying  the  city  with  water.  A 
few  days'  work  would  repair  the  fountain  as  good  as  new.  The  water  is  bright 
and  clear,  and  flows  in  a  large  stream,  which  is  only  used  to  turn  some  small  mills 
built  against  the  ancient  walls.  The  largest  pool  or  cistern  is  80  feet  across, 
octagonal,  and  20  feet  deep.  Another  is  52  by  47,  and  12  deep  ;  and  the  third 
is  52  by  3G,  and  16  deep. 

Tell  Hoi  (p.  319).— See  Tell  Hum,  p.  168. 

Gersa  (p  366).— The  ruins  of  this  place  are  on  the  east  side  of  the  Sea  of 
Galilee  on  the  left  bank  of  Wady  Semakh,  just  at  the  foot  of  the  hills,  having 
a  little  plam  half  a  mile  to  three-quarters  of  a  mUe  in  width  between  the  site 
and  the  water.  The  city  was  enclosed  with  a  waU  about  three  feet  thick.  The 
largest  ruin  is  of  a  rectangular  building,  which  was  built  east  and  west,  but 
wMch  cannot  now  be  identified  either  as  a  temple,  synagogue,  or  church.  Near 
the  water  there  are  a  few  ruined  foundations  and  walls,  which  were  the  port  of 

the  ancient  citj'. 

There  is  a  hot  spring  in  the  hills  a  mUe  south  of  the  site,  where  the  hills  come 
close  to  the  sea,  leaving  only  a  roadway  and  a  little  beach,  and  formmg  a  steep, 
even  slope,  which  may  have  been  the  "  steep  place  "  mentioned  in  Matthew  vni. 

28 

There  are  no  rock-hewn  tombs  (as  far  as  has  been  examined),  and  the  two 
demoniacs  must  have  lived  in  one  that  was  built  above  ground,  similar  to  those 
described  at  Capernaum. 

IlEUOD's  Mite  (p.  380). -The  farthing  was  the  smaUest  coin  of  Herod,  unless 
perhaps  the  mite  or  lepton  was  still  sm.oller.     There  are  mites  extant  of  Herod 


744 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


(p.  589;  of  braf<s  or  bronze  or  copper.     There  is  also  a  well-kno^v^l  mite  of  Tibe- 
rius and  Julius  Caesar. 

The  best  idea  of  the  value  of  the  money  that  was  in  use  in  Palestine  in  the 
time  of  Jesus  will  be  had  from  tables  of 


Greek  CoiM. 

Lepton  (mite)  2  mills. 

Drachma IG  cts. 

Didrachm 33    " 

Stater 6-1   " 

Mina  (pound) IG  doUs. 

Talent 9G0     " 

Hebrew — Copper  or  Bronze. 

Weight. 

Gerali  (^V) ...  20  grains.  2  mills. 

One-sixth....  88      "  3     " 

Zuzah  (i)  . .  .132       "  4     " 

Bekah  (i)...2G4       "  8     " 

Shekel 528       "  1  ct.  6     " 

Talent  (1,500  shekels) 25  dolls. 


Roman  Coins. 

As  (farthing) 15    mills. 

Quadraus 3i  cts. 

Denarius  (penny) 15      '* 

Aureus  (stater) 3    dolla 

Talent 9C1       " 


Hebrew — Silver. 

Gerah  (bean) 25  mills. 

Bekah  (divided) 25  cts. 

Shekel  (weight) 50    '• 

Maneh  (talent) 25  dolls. 

Kikkar  (round) 1,500     '• 


Talent  (p.  446). — The  Attic  talent  of  Antiochus  III.  was  valued  about  sixty- 
four  cents,  being  equal  to  four  drachms  (tetradrachmj. 

Statkk  (p.  437). — Tribute-money.  The  stater  was  equal  to  the  shekel  in  the 
New  Testament  time,  and  therefore  one  stater  was  the  sum  required  for  the 
tribute  for  two  persons.  The  image  on  it  was  of  some  Greek  king  or  emperor, 
and  an  emblematical  figure  with  an  in.scription  telling  whose  money  it  was — as 
money  of  Alexander. 

Judas  Money  (p.  414).— The  shekel  coined  by  Simon  or  Eleazar. 

Map  ok  Galilee  (Central  and  South)  (p.  378). — The  numerous  villages  and 
cities,  and  the  many  unnamed  ruins  of  ancient  towns,  give  some  idea  of  the 
dense  population  that  inhabited  Palestine  in  its  prosperous  days. 

Many  of  these  sites  are  without  names,  and  there  are  quite  a  number  of  Scrip- 
tural names  not  yet  identified  with  their  sites.  There  are  not  many  roads  now, 
.ind  probably  never  were  more  than  a  few  great  lines,  connected  with  the  smaller 
towns  by  bridle-paths,  as  is  the  case  now,  the  traveller  needing  a  guide  for  a  jour- 
ney of  a  few  miles. 

Tyrk  (p.  402).— See  page  310, 


SiDON  (p.  40()). — The  Great   Zidon   of  Pha^nicia  was  built  on  the  northern 
iio,  e  of  a  promontorj'  wliich  juts  north-west  into  the  Mediterranean  Sea,  and  Li 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTKATIONS.  74-5 

the  most  ancient  of  the  coimtiy.  Homer  says  the  large  silver  bowl  given  as  the 
prize  to  the  swiftest  runner  by  Achilles  was  made  at  Sidon  {Iliad,  xxiii.  743). 
In  the  Odyxsey  (iv.  G14)  there  is  also  an  account  of  "  a  divine  work,"  a  bowl  of 
silver  with  a  gold  rim,  the  work  of  HephiEstus,  and  a  gift  from  King  Phaedimus 
of  Sidon.  He  mentions  the  beautifully  embroidered  robes  that  were  brought 
,  from  there  for  Andromache  ;  and  it  is  also  noticed  in  the  Book  of  Kings  (1  Ki. 
v.  G)  that  skilled  workmen  and  not  traders  were  their  special  pride. 

WTiile  under  the  Persian  rule  the  city  rose  to  great  wealth  and  importance, 
arid  to  live  carelessly,  after  the  manner  of  the  Sidonians,  became  a  proverb 
(.Judges  xviii.  7).  The  prize  in  a  boat-race,  witnessed  by  Xerxes  at  Abydos,  was 
won  by  Sidonians ;  and  in  reviewing  his  fleet  he  sat  under  a  golden  canopy  in  a 
Sidonian  galley,  and,  at  the  grand  assembly  of  his  officers,  the  King  of  Sidon  sat 
in  the  first  seat.  Strabo  said  there  was  the  best  opportunity  for  acquiring  a 
knowledge  of  the  sciences  of  arithmetic  and  astronomy,  and  of  all  other  branches 
of  philosophy. 

It  is  now  called  Saide.  The  vicinity  is  one  great  garden,  fiUed  with  every 
kind  of  fruit-bearing  trees,  nourished  by  streams  from  Lebanon.  Its  chief  ex- 
ports are  silk,  cotton,  and  uutgalls.  A  mission  station  of  Americans  arc  working 
among  5,000  people. 

There  are  many  sepulchres  in  the  rocks  at  the  base  of  the  mountain  east  of 
Sidon,  and  also  in  the  plain.  One  of  the  most  beautiful  and  interesting  Phojni- 
cian  monuments  in  existence  was  discovered  in  a  cave  in  1855.  It  is  a  sarco- 
phagus of  black  syenite,  with  a  lid  carved  in  human  form,  bandaged  like  a 
mummy,  the  face  being  bare.  There  is  an  inscription  in  the  Phoenician  lan- 
guage on  the  body,  and  another  on  the  head.  In  them  the  king  of  the  Sidonians 
is  mentioned,  and  it  is  said  that  his  mother's  name  was  Ashtoreth.  The  date  of 
the  inscription  is  assigned  to  the  11th  century  B.C. 

Gadaka  (p.  407). — This  was  a  Greek  city,  celebrated  for  the  hot  baths  near 
it,  and  for  its  temples  and  theatres,  the  ruins  of  which  may  still  be  traced.  It 
is  five  miles  south  of  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and  nearly  three  from  the  river  Hiero- 
max,  which  some  think  was  called  the  Jabbok.  Some  of  the  ruined  tombs  have 
rooms  ten  to  twenty  feet  square,  and  even  larger,  with  many  small  recesses  in 
their  side  walls  for  receiving  bodies.  The  doors  are  of  stone,  turning  on  stone 
hinges,  and  some  stQl  in  use  by  the  people,  who  occupy  the  tombs  as  dwellings. 

There  was  a  straight  street  from  end  to  end  of  the  city,  nearly  two  miles  long, 
with  a  colonnade  on  each  side.  Not  a  house  or  a  column  of  the  whole  city  is 
standing  except  the  western  theatre. 

The  hot  springs  are  in  a  natural  basin  near  the  river,  a  beautiful  spot,  and 
average  110'  F.,  smelling  strongly  of  sulphur,  and  they  are  now  used  by  quite  a 
number  of  invalids  who  believe  in  their  curative  properties.  The  ruins  of  baths 
and  houses  are  so  many  and  important  as  to  indicate  that  there  must  have  been 
at  some  time  a  population  of  at  least  a  thousand  invalids  and  attendants  at  the 
baths. 

The  eastern  theatre  is  still  quite  perfect  in  its  ground  plan,  although  the  seats 
are  covered  with  rubbish  and  loose  atones. 


74G  LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS, 

The  western  theatre  was  much  larger,  and  was  only  about  a  thousand  fee< 
from  the  eastern,  and  is  in  quite  a  good  sti\te  of  preservation,  having  been  ver} 
strongly  built.  The  seats  are  of  stone,  well  designed,  finely  finished,  and  scarcely 
show  the  effect  of  so  many  centuries  of  neglect.  The  entrance  was  by  a  grand 
stairway  leading  from  the  main  street,  having  Corinthian  columns  on  each  side. 

The  basalt  pavement  of  the  streets  shows  here  and  there  the  marks  of  wagon 
wheels,  which  had  worn  quite  deep  ruts  in  the  hard  stone. 

The  Jordan  valley,  Sea  of  Galilee,  and  the  mountains  beyond,  are  in  plain 
view  from  the  brow  of  the  hill  near  the  city. 

Bethsaida  (p.  414). — This  interesting  place  was  on  the  Jordan,  just  above  its 
entrance  into  the  Sea  of  Galilee,  and  there  was  no  second  Bethsaida,  as  has  been 
supposed,  west  of  Capernaum.  The  arguments  for  and  against  are  given  wth 
much  detail  by  W.  M.  Thomson  {Lund  and  Book),  and  by  the  Palestine  Explo- 
ration {Jerusalem  Jucocered).  A  misunderstanding  of  the  text  made  it  seem 
necessary  to  find  a  second  place  of  the  name  on  the  shore  of  the  sea.  The  re- 
cent discovery  of  the  Sinaitic  copy  of  the  gospels,  which  gives  a  more  correct 
version  of  the  passage,  has  settled  the  question  in  favor  of  one  city  of  the  name 
located  on  the  Jordan  river  It  may  have  been  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  and 
so  have  been  one  i)art  ' '  in  Galilee "  and  the  other  ' '  beyond  Jordan. "  The 
ruins,  although  they  are  found  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  do  not  appear  equal  to 
the  requirements  of  the  text  of  Josephus,  in  which  it  is  described  as  an  impor- 
tant city,  raised  to  the  first  rank,  and  named  Julias,  in  honor  of  Julia,  thei 
daughter  of  the  Emperor  Titus.  Herod  Philip,  the  Tetrarch,  was  buried  there 
in  a  magnificent  tomb,  which  has  not  yet  been  found.  The  jilace  where  the  five 
thousand  were  fed  has  been  located  in  the  Plain  of  Butiha  by  some,  and  at  Ain  Ba- 
rideh,  near  Tiberias,  by  others.  If  the  correction  *  of  the  reading  derived  from 
the  Smaitic  MS.  is  the  more  ancient  and  reliable,  then  Ain  Barideh,  or  more  cor- 
rectly, Ain  el  Fuliyeh  (Warm  Springs),  was  the  place. 

CiJifiAREA  PniLlPPl  (p.  416). — The  ancient  Paneaa  (Pan's  city)  was  named  in 
honor  of  Tiberius  Caesar  by  Herod  Philip,  who  added  his  own  name  to  that  of  the 
emperor.  It  was  a  place  of  idolatrous  worship  from  the  most  ancient  times,  and 
there  are  shrines  Jiear  the  Jordan  source  now.  This  fountain  is  one  of  the  largest 
in  Syria.  The  ruins  of  the  town  are  on  a  hiil  a  little  east  of  the  fountain.  The 
ruins  of  the  castle  are  on  the  hill  above  the  fountain,  and  among  them  are  some 
bevelled  stones  which  indicate  a  Phoenician  origin. 

"Mount  IIkrmon"  (p.  428),  said  Dr.  Vandyke,  of  Beirut,  Syria,  "is  a 
beautiful  sight  from  every  side,  wherever  visible,  near  or  afar  off."  Its  summit 
is  crowned  with  perpetual  snow,  and  ita  lower  slopes  are  clothed  with  forests. 
The  summer  sun  melts  the  snow  from  the  crests  of  the  ridges,  leaving  it  in  the 

•  The  cr>rrecUxl  u-xt  roiwlit:  "When  thorvforo  the  boatn  came  from  Tiberias  (which  was),  nigb 
onto  where  they  did  nlno  eat  breiul."  The  most  ancient  writers  record  the  tradition  that  the  loculit] 
wak  at  AiJi  liuridch.     (John  vi.  Zi. 


LIST    OF   ILLUSTRATIONS.  Y47 

deep  ravines,  where  it  appears  like  long  white  lines  at  a  distance,  and  has  been 
compared  to  the  white  locks  of  an  old  man.  The  name  Jebel-esh-Shekh  means 
the  chief  mountain,  a  title  which  every  traveller  gives  it  spontaneously.  It  may 
be  seen  from  the  hills  a  few  miles  north  of  Jerusalem,  and  from  any  part  of 
the  country  north  of  that,  and  also  from  the  heights  of  Moab.  Its  height  is  a  Uttle 
less  than  ten  thousand  feet ;  but  as  it  stands  alone  and  separated  by  several  miles 
from  any  other  high  range,  it  appears  even  more  majestic  and  lofty  than  Leb- 
anon itself,  which  is  higher.  "Whether  this  mountain  or  its  slope  near  Paneas 
(Csesarea  Philippi)  was  the  scene  of  the  Transfiguration  of  Jesus,  has  not  been 
determined  ;  but  the  common  consent  of  many  writers  on  the  subject  has  con- 
nected its  name  with  that  event,  and  the  only  other  locality  (Moimt  Tabor)  which 
at  one  time  was  thought  to  have  been  the  scene  is  now  almost  entirely  rejected, 
partly  because  Josephus  gives  an  account  of  a  Roman  fort  on  its  summit,  the 
foundations  of  which  are  still  traceable. 

JoPPA  (p.  444). — This  was  the  only  port  of  Judea,  and  from  the  earliest 
times  has  been  subject  to  danger,  having  been  taken  by  annics,  sacked,  burnt, 
and  rebuilt  many  times.  Nearly  every  ancient  nation  of  Europe  and  Asia  Minor, 
Mesopotamia,  and  Egypt,  has  had  a  hand  in  making  the  history  of  Joppa.  The 
present  city  is  but  little  more  than  12.j  years  old— some  of  the  residents  remem- 
bering the  time  when  there  were  not  more  than  a  dozen  houses  in  the  town — and 
the  present  number  of  people  is  about  16,000.  Soap  is  the  leading  manufac- 
ture.    Fruit  and  silk  are  exported  in  large  quantities. 

The  lauding  of  shipping  is  made  very  dangerous  by  rocks,  especially  in  windy 
weather,  and  even  steamers  are  often  compelled  to  go  on  to  HaifEa,  nearly  sixty 
mUes  away  to  the  north.  The  rocks  which  lie  just  outside  of  the  inner  harbor 
are  famous  in  the  works  of  the  ancient  historians  and  poets  as  the  monster  which 
devoured  Andromeda  and  was  killed  by  Perseus.  They  still  devour  many  boats, 
and  even  large  ships,  with  all  their  cargoes,  and  sometimes  also  their  passen- 
gers. 

The  gardens  around  Joppa  are  famous  for  most  excellent  fruits,  probably  be- 
cause the  whole  plain  is  percolated  by  the  waters  from  the  hills,  which  may  be 
drawn  up  in  every  garden  from  a  few  feet  deep. 

The  followers  of  tradition  show  a  "grave"  of  Dorcas  and  a  "house"  of 
Simon  the  Tanner.  The  tanneries  are  a  little  south  of  the  city,  where  they  pro- 
bably have  been  from  the  earliest,  and  were  in  Peter's  time. 

The  route  for  a  railroad  from  Joppa  to  Jerusalem  has  been  surveyed,  following 
very  closely  the  ancient  summer  road  of  Solomon's  time.  It  will  seem  almost  a 
sacrilege  to  ask  for  "tickets  for  Jerusalem,"  and  "through  tickets  for  Bethle- 
hem," after  the  ages  of  weary  climbing  of  pilgrims,  mostly  on  foot,  over  the 
staep  rocky  hUls. 

Silo  AM  (p.  454).— This  pool  is  one  of  the  very  few  localities  in  and  around 
Jerusalem  that  is  not  disputed,  and  its  Arabic  name,  SQwan,  is  almost  identical 
with  the  Hebrew  SniLOAcn,  or  SiLcvn.     It  is  near  the  junction  of  the  Tyro- 


U5T    "^' 


licsntATioss. 

Mecca  pilgtun**'  ^^  ^,,^  |B  ww—  _,_  ^^^^  mm  o«  ^""^ 

1  rock,  and  be  gt«"  •  a»w»  b«t«  »•  ■•^ 

,  ^,  jo^phoiL    TU  ^^^  ^ 

.-  with  the  ki»«i  of  TLi-i-.  ruAt— *" 
teen  cents,  ^"^  .  ^tt,-.1«ni«i-^  "^ 

three  rarieUes  of  flent-  ,;^  .A^ -4  »^ 

pUte,havebeenthei^  -  vt««  *«'''*^  "1,^1^     TW  I— 

text,  and  inT««tig*t»o^  ^  ^^»^  .ay  o-  ''^^^_.  ..  ^^^ 

:.t  without  .a  yet  de.  . :  trib^ -^  ^^^^  ^^  • 

Plate  wa.  symbolid  -  ^ .  glgn  of  the F--«  «]2^  ^  ^^.  .;  v 

'^Is  in  their  se^P--^;j1Uf*i*-'*:f^  a. 

Jehovah.     Jo^P^^-;  :.     •n*-bolTC—-*         ^^^ 

boUcal  meanings  m  -^  ^^  pi««a  w*rt  f- 

^om  onlv  bv  the  higb-pr  ,  th«  Holy  o<  "- 

dav  of  at.  .,^e. 

presence  ^  - 

BrnKvTM  .p.  r>OS.  u--led  ^^  ^^  ^ 
l^U,  and  comp\eteW  ^^»  ^  .^^  ^  ,v,  ^^- 
There  are  some  r 

^^^^  and  it  is  nv.  ^^    ^^  ^     ., 

23;  Judges  VI.  H,  ^ 

srring  of  the  ..cU.  "■^„^.^,, 

Tbcre 
qsedj 


f 


LI*T 


iVi  T  1  »Tr  \  1  ii 


51 


OOW  ijw.i  :    '"-  S't.tan  ;  r»T  .>  fi    me    .N  i  \v     i  iMaiiu'iii    '.inu'   at   the 

fool  of  t!  •     .     -    \ '  •  r.   ;:  ■   '  -  ti<->w  Wailv  Kelt,  cnt<>r9  the  plain.     The 

BaBM  in  the  U'    -<  -y  "'.  :i!>    .  and  the  almndanoe  of  tlowering 

dintba  in  the  mu-y  stolon  cvcu  •..  .;e  color  to  tlie  title.     Josophus  de 

•cribes  it  as  sarroandedbr  gmrdooMf-^vhanU,  and  palm-gTOTce  in  his  daj,  and 
■*y«that  . I  to  it.     The  l;  lit 

M  an  im:  ii^  the  fort  Cn  ;  r  his 

moOier,  and  a  town  after  his  broth*  I'luisaelaa.  lie  is  ahio  said  to  have  built  a 
new  town  a  I:"'  -  'h.  in  the  sat'  plain,  which  was  also  named  PhasaJis. 
VwpMJan  ma  .  oad  of  a  t^<  'ly      It  was  dt^troyed  during  the  siege  of 

Jentaalem.      The  rains  are   n)0^'  ns  and  hcape  of  rubbish,   which 

bare   be**"    .inr.»    .-rt.  n^-v.^iy  .  ^  .,_;  ly   \»-ithout  yielding  any  vtUi  .>ii.» 

antiqvity 

Si\  !•.      -  .  .  r  -    t:  .  .Ionian,  are  the  ruins  of 

what  !■<  ii'W  i-:\..'  \    •  T:  y  of  the  time  of  theCru- 

«M]es.  It  wms  once  a  grmnd  pile  oi«'t  U-built  cloisteTS  and  chapel,  and  is  now 
quite  an  inteieating  ruin.     The  m  '.'  .'•:>  and  roomy,  and  would  make  ex- 

cellent pt<^r»-hwi.«ej,  if  there  was  a  ro  to  store.     WTiat  little  grain  that 

is  Ti  i  is  carried  awa.tiy  the  farmers,  who  live  among  the  hills, 

«*-^"  ..      ;*  cooler,  as  sooni  it  in  hs'-*--'*' ■! 


jERr<Lii.EV  (p.  544). — The  riew>f  the  city  from  Olivet  looking  over  the 
'*  G'."'  •'  '  '^Tf thsemane  "  is  t*--  ••"♦  --howing  the  dty  to  its  best  advantage. 
At  •  oe  it  is  a  ben  •     with  its  donaes.  towers,  walls,  well- 

built  coav.  iitn.   and    Engliali  -tion   reveals   the   utter 

neglect  of  streets  and  of  the  NN  ^-     .-  -      -    . „    u  the  streets.     The  only 

pleasant  places  in  the  citj  are  in  thaourt -yards  of  houses,  or  in  the  square  be- 
for>  !isnlate  ati'l  -         .      -        %,  area.     The  streets  are 

all  1.  .  .nanj  plaot  -  'ih  awnings  or  mats,  and 

are  Tery  badly  paved  or  not  paved  aall .  The  rain  makes  a  torrent  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  way,  and  no  one  takes  tlitri>uble  to  clean  the  street,  street-sweeping 
beinir  nnbeaitl  of. 

T  -  small,  m*  1  a  half  by  three-quarters,  but  there  is 

•car--         -  ,  -  xce  in  the  \\ .  ..  .    .,iven  scholars  and  investigators  so  much 

■erere  labor  with  so  little  result.  lis  almost  completely  an  enigma,  after  so 
many  years  of  the  most  care f  ^n.     The  descriptions  of  the  Old  Testa- 

ment writers  were  not  very  n,  liiose  of  Joscphus  were  very  exact  and 

particular,  while  of  many  points  therar.-  aocounta  by  other  writers  of  antiquity, 
so  that  it  seems  almost  marvelloa4li.it  there  should  have  been  any  difficulty, 
until  we  are  reminded  that  darin^b<^  Crusadc-s,  as  well  as  in  the  earlier  ages 
sucoeeding'  the  destruction  '  'y  Titus,  Jerusalem  was  regarded  as  a 

peculiarly  aacs«d  dty,  and  tii,   residents  desired  to  have  every  event 

that  is  mentioned  in  the  Bible,  as  tubig  happened  in  or  near  it,  located  and  hon- 
i.ite  memorifef  t«>inl>,  ch.ipol,  or  church, 
had  been  l<Aautjiucr  was  adopted  and  c^.'i■ 


748  LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 

pceon  valley  with  the  Eidron.  The  reservoir  is  fifty -three  feet  long  by  eighteen 
wide,  and  nineteen  deep.  The  water  flows  from  the  Virgin  Fountain  (and  did 
formerly  from  other  city  pools),  underground,  to  Siloam,  with  an  ebb  and  How  de- 
pendent on  the  supply  of  water,  being  more  freqent  in  the  rainy  season.  There 
is  another  pool  a  short  distance  below  this,  which  is  nearly  five  times  the  size  of 
Siloam,  and  is  called  the  Birket  el  Hamra,  and  may  be  the  Solomon's  Pool  of 
Josephus,  and  the  King's  Pool  of  Nehemiah  (ii.  14)  Jewish  tradition  makes 
Gihon  and  Siloam  one  and  the  same  pool.  The  village  of  Siloam,  seen  in  the 
view  of  the  Kidron  valley,  page  629,  is  apjiarently  a  number  of  tomb  dwellings 

SANnKDum  (p.  455). — The  supreme  council  of  the  Jews,  composed  of  seven- 
ty-one members,  who  represented  the  twelve  tribes,  consisting  of  chief  priests 
(the  heads  of  the  twenty-four  classes  of  priests),  the  elders  (men  of  age,  experi- 
ence, and  honor),  the  scribes,  and  the  doctors  (an  order  of  men  learned  in  the 
sacred  law).  The  president  (Nasi,  chief)  was  generally  the  high-priest,  although 
chosen  by  vote  (lot),  and  sat  in  the  centre  of  the  semicircle  on  au  elevated 
divan,  with  the  vice-president  at  his  right  hand.  Two  scribes  acted  as  secre- 
taries. The  room  in  which  they  met  was  called  Gazzith,  and  was  at  one  time  in 
the  south-east  comer  of  the  group  of  buildings  around  the  Temple.  It  also  met. 
according  to  Matthew  (xxvi.  .3),  in  the  residence  of  the  high-priest.  They  sat 
every  day,  from  the  momiug  sacrifice  to  the  evening  sacrifice,  except  Sabbath, 
when  they  instructed  the  people  by  lectures.  The  Sanhedrin,  after  the  destruc- 
tion of  Jerusalem  (a.D.  68  to  80),  met  at  Jabne  (Jamneel),  under  the  rabbi  Zak- 
kai ;  and  after  being  transferred  back  and  forth  two  or  three  times  between 
Jabne  and  TJsha,  was  finally  located  at  Tiberi;is  (.v.d.  19;1),  where  it  retained  its 
name  until  about  the  year  A.D.  300,  when  it  lost  its  peculiar  hold  on  the  Jewish 
mind  and  became  a  consistory  only,  and  in  a.d.  425  finally  closed  its  sittings. 
The  SEVENTY  appointed  by  Jesus  took  the  place  in  the  new  church  of  tlie  San- 
hedrin in  the  old  economy,  as  the  twelve  apostles  answered  to  the  twelve 
tribes  of  Israel  (Matt.  xix.  28;  Luke  xxii.  30). 

If  Moses  was  the  real  founder  of  the  Sanhedrin,  it  had  a  continuous  history 
for  nineteen  centuries. 

The  only  legal  modes  of  punishing  by  death  allowed  to  the  Sanhedrin  by  the 
law  of  Moses  were  by  stoning,  burning,  beheading,  and  strangling.  The  Romans 
took  away  this  privilege,  and  no  one  could  be  put  to  death  without  their  sanc- 
tion. 

The  S.MALL  Sanheduin  was  a  judicial  court  appointed  by  the  Great  Sanhe- 
drin, and  had  twenty-three  members  and  a  president  (excellency).  Their  time 
of  meeting  was  on  Monday  and  Thursday,  which  were  stated  market-days. 

A  smaller  court  of  three  judges  tried  petty  ofltences  against  the  person  or 
property. 

Denaiiius  (p.  404). — The  value  of  the  donarins  (penny)  was  fifteen  cents, 
which,  being  the  price  of  a  day's  labor,  and  also  of  a  Roman  soldier,  would  vary 
\n.  value  from  time  to  time.  When  first  coined  in  Rome,  B.C.  2G9,  it  waa  worth 
fifteen  cents,  but  it  was  reduced  by  Nero  to  twelve  cents. 


LIST    OF    ILLrSTKATIONS.  751 

now  called  Ain  es  Sultan  ;  and  the  Jericho  of  the  New  Testament  time  at  the 
foot  of  the  hills  where  the  brook  Cherith,  now  WadyKelt,  enters  the  plain.  The 
name  in  the  Hebrew  means  a  fragrant  place,  and  the  abundance  of  flowering 
shrubs  in  the  rainy  season  even  now  gives  some  color  to  the  title.  Josephus  de- 
scribes it  as  surrounded. by  gardens,  orchards,  and  palm-groves  in  his  day,  and 
says  that  it  is  not  easy  to  light  on  any  climate  equal  to  it.  The  Romans  held  it 
as  an  important  town,  and  Herod  fortified  it,  naming  the  fort  Cyprus,  after  his 
mother,  and  a  town  after  his  brother  Phascelus.  He  is  also  said  to  have  buUt  a 
new  town  a  little  north,  in  the  same  plain,  which  was  also  named  Phasselis. 
Vespasian  made  it  the  head  of  a  toparchy.  ^  It  was  destroyed  during  the  siege  of 
Jenisalem.  The  ruins  are  mostly  foundations  and  heaps  of  rubbish,  which 
have  been  quite  extensively  examined  lately  without  yielding  any  valuable 
antiquity. 

Six  miles  across  the  plain,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Jordan,  are  the  ruins  of 
what  is  now  called  "  The  Jews'  Castle,"  an  old  monastery  of  the  time  of  the  Cru- 
sades. It  was  once  a  grand  pile  of  well-built  cloisters  and  chapel,  and  is  now 
quite  an  interesting  ruin.  The  vaults  are  large  and  roomy,  and  would  make  ex- 
cellent store-houses,  if  there  was  anything  there  to  store.  What  Uttle  grain  that 
is  raised  in  the  plain  is  carried  away  by  the  farmers,  who  live  among  the  hills, 
where  the  climate  is  cooler,  as  soon  as  it  is  harvested. 

Jekusalem  (p.  544). — The  view  of  the  city  from  Olivet  looking  over  the 
"  Garden  of  Gethsemane"  is  the  finest,  showing  the  city  to  its  best  advantage. 
At  that  distance  it  is  a  beautiful  sight,  with  its  dom-es,  towers,  walls,  well- 
built  convents,  and  English  church.  A  nearer  inspection  reveals  the  utter 
neglect  of  streets  and  of  the  walls  of  houses  fronting  on  the  streets.  The  only 
pleasant  places  in  the  city  are  in  the  court-yards  of  houses,  or  in  the  square  be- 
fore the  English  consulate  and  church,  and  in  the  Temple  area.  The  streets  are 
all  narrow,  and  in  many  places  arched  over  or  shaded  with  awnings  or  mats,  and 
are  very  badly  paved  or  not  paved  at  all.  The  rain  makes  a  torrent  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  way,  and  no  one  takes  the  trouble  to  clean  the  street,  street-sweeping 
being  unheard  of. 

The  city  is  small,  measuring  a  mile  and  a  half  by  three-quarters,  but  there  is 
scarcely  a  place  in  the  world  which  has  given  scholars  and  investigators  so  much 
severe  labor  with  so  little  result.  It  is  almost  completely  an  enigma,  after  so 
many  years  of  the  most  careful  exploration.  The  descriptions  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment writers  were  not  veiy  minute,  but  those  of  Josephus  were  very  exact  and 
particular,  while  of  many  points  there  are  accounts  by  other  writers  of  antiquity, 
so  that  it  seems  almost  marvellous  that  there  should  have  been  any  difficulty, 
until  we  are  reminded  that  during  the  Crusades,  as  well  as  in  the  earlier  ages 
succeeding  the  destruction  of  the  city  by  Titus,  Jerusalem  was  regarded  as  a 
peculiarly  sacred  city,  and  the  Christian  residents  desired  to  have  every  event 
that  is  mentioned  in  the  Bible,  as  having  happened  in  or  near  it,  located  and  hon- 
ored with  some  appropriate  memorial  of  tomb,  chaijel,  or  church,  and  therefore, 
when  the  exact  location  had  been  lost  another  was  adopted  and  consecrated,  and 


752  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

among  the  multitude  of  "sacred  localities"  it  is  just  a  little  surprisiug  to  find 
not  only  every  trifling  as  well  as  important  event  preserved,  but  also  the  inci- 
dents and  personages  of  parables  embodied,  and  provided  with  a  habitation  and 
history,  such  as  the  rich  man  and  his  house. 
Stater  Cp.  553). 

AuousTUs  CoTN  (p.  571). — The  imperial  coin  of  the  first  Roman  emperor 
(Caesar)  who  assumed  the  title  of  Augustus,  which  means  t?ie  renerahh.  This 
title  was  adopted  by  all  the  Caesars  until  near  the  downfall  of  Rome. 

Jerus.xlem  (p.  582).  See  page  544. — The  beautiful  location  of  the  city  is 
given  in  this  \-iew,  which  shows  the  depression  of  the  valley  of  Kidron  (Jehosha- 
phat)  and  the  height  of  Zion,  with  the  very  conspicuous  site  of  the  temple,  so 
placed  as  to  be  visible  from  every  direction.  The  dome  of  the  work  now  standing 
over  the  famous  Rock  (said  to  have  been  Araunah's  threshing-floorj  can  be  seen 
from  Kerak,  beyond  the  Dead  Sea,  by  good  eyes  without  a  glass,  a  distance  of  • 
forty  miles  in  a  straight  line.  It  is  also  visible  from  the  summit  of  Giboah,  north- 
east of  the  city.  Beautiful  for  situation  the  temple  on  Zion  certainly  was,  as 
sung  by  the  "  sweet  singer  of  Israel." 

FARTnixo  fp.  589.)— See  Herod's  Mite,  page  380. 

Robinson's  Arch  (p.  596). — ^Edward  Robinson,  D.  D. ,  of  New  York,  has  done 
more  to  revive  a  study  of  the  Bible  in  our  day  than  any  other  man.  His  researches 
in  Palestine  are  the  mo.st  important  work  during  the  last  century,  if  not  since  the 
Crusades,  since  they  have  been  the  direct  means  of  restoring  to  our  knowledge 
several  hundred  sites  of  cities  named  in  the  Bible,  which  had  been  lost  for  centu- 
ries. He  al.so  minutely  exaniined  many  ruins,  and  rarely  failed  to  bring  out  some 
point  of  historical  interest.  This  "Arch  "  is  the  one  destroyed  by  Titus  in  the 
destruction  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  only  remains  visible  above  ground  are  the  few 
jutting  fragments  in  the  wall  to  the  right,  as  shown  in  the  picture.  The  stones 
which  formed  the  arch  are  lying  on  the  rock  or  soil,  more  than  forty  feet  below 
the  present  surface,  the  valley  having  been  filled  up,  in  some  age  since  .\.D.  70,  to 
its  present  level. 

Half  Shekel.— The  shekel  (p.  G03)  was  first  coined  by  Simon  the  Macca 
bee,  under  the  authority  of  Antiochua  VII.,  139  B.C.,  and  the  inscription  recorded 
this  and  other  privileges  that  the  Jews  had  received  from  their  rulers,  dating 
from  the  first  year  of  Simon's  rule  :  "  In  the  first  year  of  Simon  the  Bonofactor 
of  the  Jews,  High-Priest."  The  shekel  was  struck  in  silver  and  in  bronze. 
There  are  a  number  of  specimens  still  existing  in  the  museums  or  in  private 
collections  of  the  coins  of  the  Jews  in  nearly  every  age,  from  the  first  of  Simon 
tT  the  last  of  Barkokab,  a.d.  130.  The  half  shekel  (p.  612)  was  the  regular 
yearly  Temple  dues  from  each  adult  Jew.  Those  who  lived  in  foreign  lands, 
Greece,  Egypt,  etc.,  changed  their  money  into  Jewish  coin  before  paying,  becan  e 
sacred  money  only  could  be  received  into  the  trea.sury. 

The  devices  on  Hebrew  coins  had  reference  to  the  productions  of  the  country, 


LIST   OF   nXUSTKATIONS.  753 

and  also  to  their  religious  history.  The  bunch  of  grapes,  palm-tree,  palm 
branch,  with  leaves  braided  and  called  lulab,  ears  of  wheat,  cup  of  manna,  vase 
or  jar  of  oil,  baskets  of  fruit,  horns  of  plenty,  the  throne  or  chair  of  State,  the 
State  umbrella,  anchor,  wreath  of  olive  leaves.  Temple  portico,  are  all  weU  known 
on  coins  now  in  existence. 

Table  (p.  615). — The  oriental  table  is  what  we  should  call  a  tea-tray,  is 
generally  circidar,  five  or  six  feet  across,  and  is  used  on  stool  about  sixteen  inches 
high.  The  party  sits  on  the  divan  on  one  side,  and  on  cushions  laid  on  the  floor 
on  the  other  sides,  all  around  it.  The  servants  (or  the  host's  wife  or  daughter) 
serve  the  dishes,  usually  one  at  a  time.  There  is  a  large  copper  table  (or  tray) 
at  Salahiyeh,  near  Damascus,  which  has  on  it  the  revenue  stamp  of  several  Roman 
emperors,  and  has  been  an  heir-loom  in  the  same  tribe,  or  it  may  be  the  same 
family,  for  nearly  two  thousand  years.  Nearly  every  traveller  who  goes  there 
pays  an  extra  price  for  a  dinner  served  on  this  antique  table. 

Gethsemame  (p.  G28). — The  so-called  Garden  of  Gethsemane  is  a  "locality  " 
of  the  Christian  monks  of  Jerusalem,  which  is  placed  more  for  convenience  near 
the  city  than  for  any  desire  to  meet  the  demands  of  the  text  and  of  his- 
toric accuracy.  The  old  olive-trees  are  its  chief  attraction,  and  are  certainly 
great  curiosities,  being,  without  doubt,  many  centuries  old,  and,  it  may  be, 
the  descendants  of  some  planted  in  the  time  of  the  Crusades.  Titus  de- 
stroyed all  trees  around  Jerusalem  during  his  siege,  so  that  not  one  that  was 
then  growing,  even  if  it  could  have  lived  so  long,  is  now  standing.  The 
"garden,"  or  "  olive-press,"  as  some  read  the  original,  was  probably  in  some 
more  retired  part  of  Olivet,  away  from  the  public  road,  and,  it  may  be,  nearer 
Bethany.  The  most  ancient  Christian  writers  (Eusebius,  Adamnanus)  mention 
some  such  locality  as  "a  place  of  prayer  for  the  faithful"  (Jerome),  having  a 
church  built  in  it.  The  Empress  Helena  may  have  selected  this  spot,  as  she 
did  many  others,  as  convenient  and  appropriate  for  her  special  honors,  and 
named  it  Gethsemane  in  memory  of  the  place  mentioned  in  the  Gospel  nar- 
rative. 

The  eight  old  trees  inside  of  the  stone  wall  are  supposed  to  have  an  addi- 
tional proof  of  antiquity  in  the  fact  that  the  Turkish  government  have  always 
levied  upon  them,  as  they  did  on  all  fruit-trees  which  were  standing  at  the  time 
of  their  conquest,  a  tax  of  one  medina  ;  those  planted  after  that  time  being 
rated  differently.  This  would  date  them  before  a.d.  634,  when  Omar  took  the 
city,  or,  if  the  Turkish  conquest  is  meant,  before  A.D.  1087.  The  "garden"  ia 
filled  with  flowers  of  many  kinds,  which  are  carefully  tended  by  the  monks,  and 
are  pressed  on  little  pieces  of  paper  and  sold  to  pilgrims.  The  walls  of  the  city 
near  the  Stephen  Gate  are  in  plain  view,  only  850  feet  distant. 

A  little  farther  up  the  Kidron  valley  there  are  some  ' '  gardens  "  or  shady 
places  under  olive-trees,  where  many  resort  for  cool  shade  and  quiet,  away  from 
the  bustle  of  the  city  and  distant  from  the  public  roads. 

Kidron  Valley,  prom  Akeldama  (p.  629).— The  valley  of  the  brook  Kid- 
ron below  Jerusalem  is  full  of  gardens,  which  are  supplied  with  water  from  Si- 
48 


toi  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS. 

loam,  and  in  the  rainy  season  it  is  really  a  beautiful  spot ;  but  in  the  hot,  dry, 
and  dusty  summer  it  is  almost  a  desert.  In  the  view  the  Mount  of  Olives  rises 
to  the  right,  and  the  village  of  Siloam  is  at  its  foot,  bordering  the  edge  of  the 
Kidron.  Scopus  is  seen  in  the  distance,  and  the  comer  of  the  Temple  wall  rises 
high  over  Ophel,  which  falls  steep  doA\Ti  on  the  west  side  of  the  Kidron.  Both 
of  these  Rlopes  are  covered  with  tombstones,  every  one  of  which  indicates  a 
dozen  graves  below,  or  it  may  be  a  hundred  bodies  to  each,  for  this  has  been  a 
vast  cemetery  for  all  devout  persons,  both  Christian  and  Mohammedan,  and 
especially  Jew,  for  many  ages,  and  never  in  greater  request  than  now. 

It  is  thought  by  some  that  Solomon's  idol  shrines  were  built  on  the  site  of 
Siloam,  or  on  the  summit  behind  it  to  tht  .  t,  while  others  think  the  pagan 
high  place  was  more  probably  on  the  summit  of  Olivet.  There  were  also  shrines 
to  Moloch  in  the  vaUey  of  Tophet  or  Hinnom,  where  children  were  offered  to  the 
god  in  burnt  sacrifice.  This  valley,  with  its  horrid  associations,  has  become  the 
poetic  type  of  hell. 

The  Aksa  mosque  (originally  the  chapel  built  by  the  Knights  Templars)  is  in 
plain  view  on  the  Temple  site,  and  Zion  rises  high  to  the  east,  with  its  long  slope 
terraced,  dotted  with  orchards  and  scattering  trees,  and  cro%vned  with  the  ancient 
church  and  mosque  called  the  Tomb  of  David.  Everywhere  the  surface  is  carpeted 
with  a  bright  green  in  the  rainy  season.  The  Tyropoeon  Valley  joins  the  Kidron 
at  Siloam  Pool,  and  the  Hinnom  valley  at  En  Rogel,  when  the  three  become  the 
Wady  en  Nar  (Valley  of  Fire),  and  flow  by  the  old  convent  of  Santa  Saba  to  the 
Dead  Sea.     (See  page  663.) 

Map  of  Jekusalem  (p.  636). — The  various  sites  named,  except  Golgotha, 
are  located  according  to  tradition,  or  the  selection  of  the  monks  at  Jerusalem. 

ECCE  Homo  Ancil  (p.  657),  over  the  Via  Dolorosa,  Jerusalem.  This  is 
called  the  Ecce  Homo  Arch  because  of  the  legend  that  Pilate  exposed  Jesus  to 
the  multitude  at  the  middle  window  in  the  wall  over  the  arch,  and  said,  "  Be- 
hold the  man."  Pilate's  palace  may  have  been  near,  but  there  is  no  proof,  either 
of  ruin  or  record,  as  to  where  it  actually  was.  Nor  is  there  any  reason  to  believe 
that  the  street  called  Via  Dolorosa,  "Way  of  Grief,"  is  even  on  the  line  of  the 
street  through  which  Jesus  was  led  "out"  to  Golgotha,  and  it  certainly  is 
not,  if  the  true  site  of  Golgotha  has  been  found  at  the  Jeremiah  Grotto,  north- 
west of  the  Damascus  gate.  The  streets  of  the  holy  city  are  almost  always  fre- 
quented by  pilgrims  from  every  Christian  country,  habited  in  an  endless  variety 
of  costume.  The  narrow  way  is  often  perilous  from  the  rush  of  eager,  hurry- 
ing, loaded  men  and  animals,  and  is  very  unsafe  after  dark  from  the  loose  pave- 
ment, steep,  crooked  ways,  and  the  numbers  of  half  wild  dogs,  whose  "  tooth  " 
is  against  every  eatable  thing.  Very  few  of  the  streets  are  named,  although  the 
Christians  are  beginning  to  apply  names  to  some  of  the  principal  ways,  for  their 
own  convenience  of  description.     (See  Jerusalem.) 

Calvary  (p.  63G). — The  question  as  to  the  true  site  of  the  crucifixion  has 
very  much  depended  on  the  theories  respecting  the  location  of  the  two  more 


LIST   OF   ILLIT6TKATION8.  755 

ancient  walla  of  Jerusalem.  W.  C.  Prime  has  within  the  year  just  past  found 
some  remains  of  the  long-lost  second  wall  in  its  original  position,  and  so  definitely 
settled  that  point,  although  he  argues  that  his  finding  is  in  favor  of  the  claim  of 
the  so-called  Church  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre.  It  may  argue  that  the  Mary  church 
built  by  Helena  was  on  the  same  site,  but  cannot  determine  that  the  site  selected 
by  Helena  was  not  adopted  for  convenience  rather  than  fixed  by  actual  know- 
ledge of  the  grovmd. 

The  recent  examination  of  the  skull-shaped  hill,  north-east  of  the  Damascus 
Gate  (formerly  St.  Stephen's  Gate,  which  for  convenience  is  now  located  on  the 
east  of  the  city),  suggested  twenty  or  thirty  years  ago  by  Thenius,  and  adopted 
by  many  other  scholars  (and  published  by  Fisher  Howe,  Oriental  and  Sacred 
Scenes,  M.  W.  Dodd,  1854 ;  and  TJie  True  Site  of  Calvary,  A.  D.  Randolph  &  Co., 
New  York,  1871  ;  and  also  on  a  Ifew  Map  of  Palestine,  A.  L.  Rawson,  Boston, 
1856),  has  led  to  the  conclusion  that  the  place  named  on  the  maps  the  Grotto  of 
Jeremiah  is  the  true  site  of  Calvary.  The  hill,  or  knoll,  above  the  so-called 
grotto  is  very  distinctly  skuU-shaped,  as  seen  from  several  directions,  and  besides, 
it  answers  in  its  location  better  than  any  other  place  to  the  requirements  of  the 
text. 

The  points  in  favor  of  the  site  as  the  true  Golgotha  (Hebrew  for  skull,  as 
Kranion  is  Greek  for  skuU,  and  Calvary  is  from  the  Latin  for  skull),  are — 

1.  The  place  was  out  of  the  city,  as  this  must  have  been  then,  and  is  now. 

2.  It  was  also  "  nigh  unto  the  city,"  as  this  is  about  five  hundred  feet  from 
the  nearest  part  of  the  city  wall. 

3.  The  hill  is  shaped  like  the  upper  part  of  a  skvdl. 

4.  The  place  was  near  a  main  road  to  and  from  the  city,  aa  this  is. 

5.  The  spot  was  very  conspicuous,  and  this  is  also. 

6.  There  were  gardens  and  sepulchres  near,  and  now  (and  probably  also  there 
were  anciently)  there  are  rock  tombs  of  great  extent  and  magnificence  of  design 
i-nd  finish,  which  give  an  idea  of  the  wealth  and  splendor  of  the  ancient  Jews. 

7.  And,  finally,  there  is  no  other  spot  that  claims  equal  attention  or  respect, 

CAPERNAim  (p.  702),  See  page  1G8. — The  ruin  at  Tell  Ham,  which  stands 
uear  the  water  edge,  is  evidently  a  building  of  a  later  age  than  the  synagogue, 
whose  ruins  are  on  the  hUl  higher  up.  The  view  from  near  this  spot  is  very  fiine. 
There  are  a  gfreat  many  thorns  and  thistles  here,  which  make  it  almost  impossible 
to  move  about,  where  once  there  were  streets  fuU  of  a  busy,  proud  population. 

Restored  view  op  Jerusalem  (p.  704). 

Urfa  Com  (p.  709). — This  bronze  coin,  or  medal,  was  found  at  TJrfa,  Syria, 
and  may  possibly  date  as  early  as  the  fourth  or  fifth  century  A.  D.  The  inscrip- 
tion indicates  a  Christian  origin,  "  Jesus  Christ,  king  of  kings."  The  specimen 
here  engraved  was  loaned  to  the  designer  by  Rev.  G.  B.  Nutting,  missionary  of 
the  A.  B.  C.  F.  M.  at  Urfa. 

Olivet  (p.  710). — The  mountain  on  the  east  of  Jerusalem  is  between  two  and 
three  hundred  feet  higher  than  the  city,  is  more  than  a  mile  long  from  north  to 
south,  and  is  divided  into  four  summit^,  which  are  named,  beginning  at  the 


756  LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 

north,  1.  Mount  of  the  Men  of  Galilee  (Viri  Galilei);  2.  Ascension  Mount;  3. 
Mount  of  the  Prophets ;  4.  Mount  of  Offence. 

During  the  middle  ages  the  mount  was  dotted  all  over  with  chapels  or  monu- 
ments of  some  kind,  marking  the  localities  selected  as  the  sites  of  interesting 
events  recorded  in  Scripture,  and  these  are  now  still  in  use,  or  their  former  lo- 
cation is  known  and  pointed  out.  The  "ascension"  is  commemorated  by  a 
chapel  on  the  summit,  nearly  opposite  to  the  Temple  site  ;  but  this  is  merely  a 
monkish  tradition,  and  the  true  site  of  the  ascension  cannot  be  determined 
beyond  the  one  important  allusion  in  the  text,  which  says  that  it  was  "  as  far  as 
to  Bethany"  (Luke  xxiv.  50),  and  therefore  must  have  been  somewhere  on  the 
eastern  slope  of  Olivet.  The  view  includes  all  that  can  be  seen  of  the  mountain 
from  a  point  near  tae  road  to  Mar  Saba,  north-east  of  the  Arab  village  Beit  Sa- 
hur.  The  south-east  comer  of  the  Temple  site  just  appears  in  the  left  side  of 
the  picture,  to  mark  the  position  of  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  and  the  site  of  Beth- 
any is  but  a  short  distance  to  the  right  of  the  large  tree,  hidden  behind  a  ridge. 


AGENTS  WANTED  FOR  THE  GREAT  WORK 


ENTITLED 


JESUS." 

:Oy    OH-A-I1.31.E3S     IF-     I>E!E33VtS,    33-33-, 

Pastor  "  Church  of  the  Strangers,"  M'7o  York. 

This  undertaking,  in  spite  of  the  numerous  Lives  of  Christ  that  have  al- 
ready appeared,  is  both  a  bold  and  unique  one.     It  is  an  acceptance  by  a 
Christian  Warrior  of  the  Infidel  Rationalist's  gage  of  battle,  and  is  a  scholarly, 
patient,  and  exhaustive  analysis  of  the  life,  words,  and  character  of  Jesus,  at 
least  rationally,  if  not  rationalistically  considered— bestowing,  in  fact,  the 
same  treatment,  the  same  laws  of  evidence  and  methods  of  deduction  adopt- 
ed by  Strauss  and  R6nan,  but  widely  differing  from  those  writers  in  the  con- 
clusions arrived  at.     It  is  bold,  for  the  reason  that  Infidelity  in  all  ages  has 
relied  and  boasted  its  reliance  upon  the  application  of  pure  reason  for  con- 
troverting the  truths  held  most  sacred  by  Christians;  and  uniciue,  because  no 
Christian' writer  has  ever  before  attempted  to  estabhsh  the  divinity  of  Jesus 
with  the  very  weapons  chosen  to   disprove   it.     It  is  in  no  sense  a  theologic 
or  dogmatic  work,  and  is  not  to  be  confounded  with  "Lives  of  Christr     It 
is  simply  a  "Life  oi  Jesus:'  and  if  the  author  succeeds  in  establishing  the  fact 
that  Jesus  was  the  Christ,  it  nuist  be  considered  as  the  product  of  his  reason- 
ing, and  not  an  assumption  ignoring  the  very  pith  of  the  controversy  between 
Infidelity  and  Christianity.     It  is  a  work  the  want  of  which  has  been  sorely 
felt  since  the  books  of  Kenan  and  Strauss,  to  complete  the  bulwark  of  Chris- 
tian defence  from  its  new  and  most  dangerous  foe,  insidiously  clothed  in  the 
garb  of  philosophy,  and  seductively  disguised  in  the  language  of  reason.     No 
Christian  can  afford  to  be  without  a  copy,  as  a  perusal  of  its  pages  will  not 
only  increase  and  confirm  his  own  faith,  but  supply  him  the  means  of  success- 
ful resistance  to  the  sceptical  objections  of  unbelievers.     The  style  is  simple 
and  unpretending,  and  well  adapted  to  a  thorough  and  practical  understand, 
ing  of  the  whole  matter,  while  nothing  material   to  the  establishment   of  his 
co'iiclusions  has  been  sacrificed  to  an  ostentatious   or   affected   simplicity- 
avoiding,  on  the  one  hand  the  pedantry  of  the  schools,   and  on  the  other,  the 
charlatanry  of  the  demagogue.     Buy  it,  read  it,  and  judge  for  yourselves. 

2^=  Clergymen,  Students,  and  others,  with  a  little  spare  time,  can  do  a 
great  work  for  Christianity,  and  at  the  same  time  make  good  financial  returns 
to  themselves  by  taking  an  Agency. 

For  Circulars,  Terms,  and  Press  A^otices,  aMress 

U.  S.  PUBLISHING  CO., 

411  Bioome  Street,  N.  T. 


AGENTS  WANTED 

FOR   THE 

WONDERS  OF  THE  WORLD; 

CO.Ntl'UISlSci 

Startlius  Incidents,  Iiiteresliiii  Scenes,  ani  Wonierfiil  Events 

III  All  Count  lies,  All  Ages,  and  Amonij  All  PtupU. 

BY     C.     G.     ROSENBERG. 

OVER  ONE  THOUSAND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

fiy  the  mast  distinguished  Artists  in   Europe  and  America.      The   list  of  contributors 

'  numbering  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight,  among  whom  are  found  the  popular  and 

widely-known  names  of  Gustave  Dori,  Berghaus,  Billings,  Cruikshank,  Corbould, 

Eytini^e,    Fenn,     Gilbert,    Gavarni,    Hennessy,    ffonier,    Milais,    Nehleig, 

Nast,    Read,    Horace    Vernet,     White,     Weir,     Wand,    Miss   Ediuards, 

Tony  Johannot,  etc.,  etc. 

The  Largest,  most  Beautiful,  and  Cheapest  Pictorial  Work  ever  issued. 

A  novelty  in  literature,  and  the  most  splendid  book  enterprise  of  the  age.  A  progres- 
sive book  for  progiessive  people,  at  a  nominal  ]>rice.  Indisj^ensable  to  every  man,  woman, 
and  child  in  the  land.  It  contains  over  one  thousand  magnificent  engravings,  with  accom- 
panying reading  matter  on  every  conceivable  subject  of  popular  interest,  embracing 

Science,  History,  Biography,  Adventure,  Comedy,  Tragedy,  Fun, 
Frolic,  Incidents,  Wonders,  Events,  etc.,  etc., 

of  the  present  and  every  other  age  and  country,  forming  within  itself  a  complete  and 
select  family  library  and  a  picture  gallery  of  the  rarest  and  most  wonderful  beauty,  the 
value  of  which  can  lie  but  faintly  estimated,  and  obtainable  at  a  cost  of  comparative 
insignificance.  It  is  by  far  the  most  exciting,  attractive,  instructive,  humorous,  enter- 
taining and  valuai)le  book  ever  issued  from  the  American  press,  containing  a  larger  amount 
of  historical,  biograjihical,  curious  and  startling  inciiients  than  any  work  of  modern  times, 
and  presented  in  a  form  so  attractive  tliat  even  tiie  untutored  mind  finds  in  it  subject  of 
absorbing  attention.  No  one  who  sees  the  book  can  refuse  to  buy  it,  <>r,  once  having 
bought  it,  would  consent  to  sell  it  at  five  times  the  original  cost. 


New    York  Herald. 
Certainly  we  live  in  a  wonderful   age.      Fifty  years  ago  such  a  book   as  this  would 
have  been  considered  a  miracle. 

New    York  Leader. 
It  would  be  imjx)ssible  to  give,  in  a  mere  criticism  any  adeciuate  idea  of  the  enormous 
variety  of  its  contents  and  its  profuse  illustrations. 

Frank  Leslies    Weekly. 

The  volume  is  one  that  can  be  made  available  fur  Icn  minutes'  or  an  entire  liay's 
study.  It  is,  ai)ove  all,  unii|ue  in  design  and  execution,  and  ouglit  to  be  in  the  hou^e  of 
erery  man,  whether  farmer,  mechanic,  mercliant  or  philosoi)her. 

For  circulars  and  terms,  with  oinnions  of  the  ])rcss,  .address 

U.  S.  PUBLISHING  CO., 

411  Ih-oonit'  Street,  yew  Yorh. 


SERMONS  BY  REV.  DR.  DEEMS. 


We  have  just  issued,  In  a  super-royal  8vo  volume  of  300  pages,  aU  the  sermons  delivered  on  the 
Sunday  momiugs  of  the  first  year  that  Dr.  Deems  occupied  the  new  "  Church  of  the  Stranger.-;." 
The  volume  contains  a  tine  steel -plate  likeness  of  the  Doctor,  and  a  picture  of  his  Church.  All  the 
sermons  referred  to  in  his  book  on  "  Jesus  "  are  in  this  volume.  Bead  the  following,  selected  from 
many  notices : — 

From  Howard  Crosbt,  D.D.,  Chancellor  of  the  University  of  New  Tork.^ 
I  have  read  several  of  Dr.  Deems's  sermons  with  much  interest.     They  are  vigorous,  entertaining, 
and  instructive.    They  wUl,  doubtless,  prove  a  benefit  to  many  who  cannot  hear  the  Doctor's  voice. 

From  Robert  Rosseix  Booth,  D.D.,  Pastor  Uulvei'sity  Place  Presbyterian  Church. 

I  have  been  reading  with  very  great  interest  the  sermons  of  my  friend  and  neighbor,  Dr.  Deems, 
which  you  have  issued  weekly  during  the  past  year.  They  present  the  most  important  practical 
truths  in  a  singularly  attractive  and  impressive  manner,  and  are  worthy  to  be  read,  and  pondered  by 
those  who  read  them,  with  no  less  interest  than  has  attended  their  delivery  to  the  large  congregation 
to  which  Dr.  Deenls  is  ministering.  They  meet  an  intellectual  and  spiritual  want  in  this  commmiity 
with  admirable  adaptation. 

From  Bishop  Kavanatjoh,  of  Kentucky. 

"  I  admire  them  for  many  reasons ;  and  among  these  are  their  highly  practical  character  and  their 
soundness  in  morals  and  doctrines.  They  are  evangelical  and  spiritual,  and  yet  catholic  and  unseo- 
tarian.    They  are  adapted  to  do  good,  and  no  harm,  everywhere. 

From  Rev.  Dr.  Bellows  (Unitarian),  in  tJie  ^^ Liberal  Christian." 
"Dr.  Deems  furnishes  his  weekly  hearers  with  food  for  serious  reflection,  with  much  valuable  and 
fresh  knowledge,  and  with  preaching  having  a  steady  reference  to  existing  circumstances.  He  does 
not  beat  the  air,  though  ho  may  now  and  then  shoot  over  people's  heads.  But  he  aims  at  the  heart,  with 
a  due  respect  for  the  understanding.  He  docs  not  preach  dogmatic  divinity,  nor  systematic  theology, 
nor  anj-thing  effete,  merely  speculative,  or  only  sectarian.  Ho  has  a  good  wide  outlook ;  his  mind  is 
well  ventilated,  ami  his  heart  generous.  We  find  a  good  many  logical  inconsistencies  between  some 
of  his  implied  postulates  and  his  confessed  conclusions ;  but  these  are  unavoidable  by  those  who  ho'd 
on  to  an  irrational  theology,  and  yet  cannot  deny  themselves  the  luxury  of  rational  conclusions.  Dr. 
Deems  teaches  a  very  sweet,  a  very  liberal,  and  a  very  devout  Christianity;  but  he  assiunes  certain 
theological  ideas,  which  may  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with  the  sympathy  of  his  ministerial  supporters, 
but  seem  to  have  small  connection  with  his  practical  ministry  and  preaching. 

"His  success  in  the  '  Church  of  the  Strangers'  is  marked,  and  most  creditable  to  himself  and  f.'l- 
lowers.     We  wish  there  were  a  thoiisand  Dr.  Deemses  at  work  in  this  city." 

From  the  Rutland  ( Vt.)  Independent^ 
"These  sermons  from  the  pulpit  of  the  'Church  of  the  Strangers'  are  not  simply  printed  oecanse 
it  is  popularly  fashionable  to  print  sermons.  They  are  printed  for  their  worth — intellectual  and 
gpiritual.  Dr.  Charles  F.  Deems  was  one  of  the  mo~t  efllcient  preachers  in  the  South  before  tlie  war  ; 
he  is  now  one  of  the  most  successful  of  the  North  after  the  war.  These  sermons  are  gems,  and  the 
setting  is  worthy.  A  feature  of  great  excellence  in  these  sermons  is  their  practical  value  on  themes 
of  vital  importance.  No  one  can  read  them  without  great  profit.  If  you  would  have  a  treat  send  for 
this  volume.     It  will  prove  a  well-spring  of  pleasiire  to  you  in  many  ways." 

From  the  Olive  Branch. 
"  Piu-e  Gospel  sermons,  preached  in  the  heart  of  Now  York  City  ;  calculated  to  do  good  wherever 
read.    An  excellent  Sabbath  companion  for  any  who  are  without  regular  Sabbath  preaching.     We 
have  just  arisen  from  the  perusal  of  the  sermon  from  this  text :  '  The  Son  of  Ood,  who  loved  me  and 
gave  himself  for  me.'    It  made  our  heart  warm,  and  glow  with  love  for  Jesus." 

From  Rev.  Dr.  Johnson  {in  the  Western  Methodist). 
"  They  are  admirable  in  substance  and  fonn — presented  beautifully,  both  as  to  paper  and  type. 

From  Rev.  Dr.  W.  R.  Gober,  of  Sacramento,  California. 
"  I  am  finding  in  them  a  rich  treat,  as  I  anticipated.    Please  give  my  compliments  to  Dr.  Deems, 
and  tell  him  I  shall  compel  him  to  preach  to  the  people  of  California  whether  he  will  or  not." 

From  Rev.  Dr.  Poisal  {in  the  Baltimore  Episcopal  ifethodlat). 
"We  welcome  them  with  much  pleasure,  and  commend  them  to  our  readers,  and  the  Christian 
pubUo  generally.    They  are  sound  In  doctrine,  chaste  and  beautiful  in  style,  thoroughly  evangelical, 
and  eminently  practical." 

From  Rev.  Dr.  ScrmiEns  {In  the  Nashville  Christian  Advocate). 
"These  gentlemen  (the  publishers)  have  been  personally  benefited  by  Dr.  Deems's  sermons  in  the 
pulpit  of  the  '  Church  of  the  Strangers,'  and  they  wish  to  increase  his  usefulness  by  publishing  his 
sermons  as  they  are  preached.  Their  object  is  to  do  good  ;  and  we  wish  them  groat  success  in  their 
laudable  enterprise.  Of  the  sermons  it  is  not  necessary  to  speak — they  are  fresh,  pungent,  and  elo- 
quent— good  to  the  use  of  edifying." 

From  Rev.  Dr.  Cross  {in  the  Banner  ofthA  Church,  Episcopal). 
"  Our  old  friend  is  no  ordinary  preacher,  and  these  sermons  nobly  sustain  his  reputation.    They 
lire  sound,  classical,  and  earnest." 

This  volmne  will  be  sent  by  mail,  prepaid,  to  any  address,  on  the  receipt  of  the  retail  price,  $3.00. 
Addrest 

UNITED    STATES    PUBLISHING    COMPANY, 

411  Broome  Street^  New  York, 


